There has been enthusiastic talk of a restaurant opening in the Rumford Center for some time now and I assure you all that day has finally arrived.  Construction is scheduled to begin Jan. 11 and we hope to open in March.

The restaurant is called Avenue N, named for its Newman Avenue address. It will be located in Building 3 of the Rumford Center, next door to Seven Stars Bakery. The goal is simple: to provide a local gathering place for the Rumford community and all of East Providence, while ensuring that the restaurant's great food and service is matched with a beautiful, inviting atmosphere.

As a Chef, I have been blessed with a good career, with experiences ranging from high-end steakhouses and award-winning caterers to gourmet sushi bars and casual barbeque and burger restaurants. 

When my wife, Tracy, and I were planning Avenue N, our main priority was to give the people of our community and all of Rhode Island something special. After many conversations, much debating and a lot of trial and error, we came up with a regional American menu that draws from the many unique territories of the United States.

As a Chef, I habitually use local seasonal ingredients, so the menu at Avenue N will feature locally-farmed produce, meats, dairy and seafood.  I have not shared the menu thus far with anyone but my wife, so the readers of Food World are about to get the very first sneak peak at what we will be serving at Avenue N.

Our appetizer menu will offer a range of innovative options such as Housemade Rabbit Sausage with Dijon, Acorn Squash Puree and Pine Nuts and Pancetta. It will also feature more playful dishes, such as Hand Battered Corn Dogs with BBQ Potato Chip Crusted Mac & Cheese.

We will also feature fresh soups such as Chicken Dumpling & Rumford Biscuits, and signature salads like a fresh Caesar made with white anchovies, capers and dry Jack Cheese, and a warm Wild Mushroom and Celery Leaf Salad with sherry vinegar, red mustard and parmesan.  

As someone who spent most of his youth working in New York pizzerias, I wanted to provide pizza on the menu, but swore I would do something different—keeping the same simple characteristics of what makes pizza so great. Avenue N will feature about four pizzas at a time on the menu as well as daily chalkboard specials. They will be seasonally inspired. In the cooler months, you may find Sugar Pumpkin and Gorgonzola with Tasso Ham or Wild Mushroom with Fontina and Rosemary, for example.

Our entrée menu will be comprised of items such as locally sourced Diver Scallops, House Cured Pork Belly and brussels sprouts with a whole grain mustard sauce, and Baffoni Farms Chicken with sweet potato gnocchi, roasted beets, goat cheese and Cranberry-Brown Butter sauce. The menu will also include big burgers, great steaks and a variety of sustainable seafood dishes.  

Desserts will all be made from scratch. Selections will include a Sampling of Three Cobblers and our signature PB&J, which is Peanut Butter Bread Pudding, Concord Grape Sauce and marshmallow ice cream.

Avenue N has been tastefully designed by our local friends at Judd Brown Designs, who are world renowned for their restaurant design projects.  The builders—Cobalt Industries—are a Rhode Island-based company that has successfully produced projects both big and small all across the United States.  Cobalt has predicted the entire project will take ten weeks, so we are optimistic for a mid-March opening.

Avenue N will have 45 seats inside and 32 exterior seats during the warmer months. A 12-stool white Carrera marble bar will be the center of attention in the dining room. The restaurant will feature a warm urban design, incorporating several elements from the organic mill space where Rumford baking powder was once produced. 

We hope to keep the longstanding food tradition at the new Rumford Center alive and well for years to come. My wife and I plan to be on site daily to help, so please feel free to stop in or send us an email at info@avenuenrestaurant.com for more information.