RI Day 4 - An Art and Food Day, A Fart Day If You Will
This was neither the first nor the last day of farting around, but now that I've thought of that term you better believe I'm gonna be using it a lot.
The Food: Today was the day I tried another RI tradition: Stuffies. Stuffie is the colloquialism for stuffed quahogs. Served on a half shell, the quahog is a big ol' clam and it gets stuffed with a mixture of breading, spices, and some form of meat, usually crab, clam, or sausage or a combo. I first went to the place that supposedly had the best in the state, The Red Bridge Tavern.
It was a great local pub, and the bartenders were really friendly. The stuffie was really incredible. Fluffy, with a hint of spice, and surprisingly filling for what's technically an appetizer.
Glorious
I continued the stuffing by going to my friend Olivia's favorite donut place, Knead Donuts. They make old-fashioned donuts, cake donuts, and brioche. I ordered a vanilla glazed with a side of coffee milk. It was resplendent, but the best part was that there were a bunch of free samples of all the donuts on the counter so I got to try a few before settling on my glazed. The highlights for me were the double chocolate cake and the cider donut. I don't really like jelly donuts much, but according to my friend Gus, they have the best in the world.
For dinner I did seafood round 2 with a stuffie and chowdah from Rocky Point Clam Shack. Rocky Point was once the second oldest amusement park in the United States, but it fell on financial hard times and had to close. The clam shack started inspired by the food that used to be served at the park and they were eventually able to buy back a lot of the original art and some rides from the park. The food was really good. Maybe my stuffie palette isn't very refined yet but it tasted every bit as good as the Red Bridge Tavern one to me. I got the RI clear broth chowder, and, maybe because it was starting to get cold outside, it really hit the spot. I don't think the clear broth will ever replace the New England style chowder in my heart, but I'll be happy to get it whenever I'm in the ocean state.
For dessert, I went to my friend Chris' recommendation of Three Sisters Ice Cream. All their ice cream is home made and they have a bunch of flavors as well as drinks and sandwiches. The cashier suggested a beer float with a vanilla porter and cake batter ice cream. I normally think cake batter is a little too rich, but something about the combination with the beer brought out the best in both. A fun combination of the adult and the childish.
I ended the night of food at Ogie's Trailer Park (another Olivia recommendation). It's a hip bar with an out door patio, a big drink selection, and most importantly tater tots. There were many different varieties, but I splurged and went for the French Canadian tots which was essentially poutine with bacon and tots as opposed to fries it was heavenly. To drink I got a beer from Foolroof Brewing in Pawtucket that was a peanut butter porter. It was good but it felt more rich and dessert-y than the beer that actually had ice cream in it early. I stayed and just kind of hung out there until midnight so that I could be around people when I turned 23. It's kinda depressing to have to ask for your own birthday shot, but it was still a fun place to be.
Art: While art makes up most of the fart portmanteau, it made up less of the actual day than eating. I went to the Bristol art Museum which was really cool, but by far the smallest of the museums I'd been to so far.
What it lacked in size though, it made up for in quality. Since there were so few artists on display each person was really highlighted and a lot was written about them, so you got a real picture of where the art was coming from and trying to do. Naturally my favorite was a guy who tried to always infuse a little humor and playfulness in his work named Mark Wholey. I'm also always impressed when someone can be talented in multiple different mediums.
I also happened to be there while a high school class was there on a class trip. This made feel both a little creepy just being there, but also happy with the sense of community in the town. Bristol's a really pretty area and they're very famous for their fourth of July festival but unfortunately nobody I asked would recreate it in September on my behalf.
I should also point out that this excursion was in between meals so it's not like I ate all of that just in a row.
The Comedy: The Mic was in a bar called the Salon. It was in a room downstairs that very much felt like a basement but still kinda cool. The word dank could definitely be applied in multiple contexts. I liked the bar itself, but the mic itself was a little disappointing after the high of the night before. It wasn't bad by any stretch just sparsely attended, and a lot of the comics just left after they performed which I get but it's always a bit of a bummer when a small crowd gets smaller.
The comics were all pretty good though. I think Vicki Porter was probably my favorite of the night. She told a joke about being the only black person in a 90% white town: "I'm like the racial equivalent of a chocolate covered marshmallow. I'm on the inside I'm white... and gelatinous."
My favorite joke of the night was from the host, RA Bartlett: "I recently downloaded Movie Pass which is really good if you like movies, and great if you need to use the bathroom in a city."
Favorite random sightings: A church sign that said "Running On Empty? Try Christ" from the famous gospel of Jackson Browne; A little girl going to school dressed like a leopard. Could have been for class but I like that it might just be her thing; Uncle Sushi; Block Not Do (the warnings painted on the street are all Yoda style because in theory that's the order you'll read them in when you're driving but it took me a confused while to figure that out); bumper sticker that just said "I love guns + coffee"
Regional Observations: So far I've seen a lot of bars in Providence have at least one arcade machine which is pretty fun.
Albums Listened To: Closing Time by Tom Waits (how the hell did he make an album this good at my age?); The Clown by Charles Mingus; Clown Heaven & Hell by Me Mom & Morgentaler; CLPPNG by clipping (experimental rap by Daveed Diggs now famous for being in Hamilton and Kimmy Schmidt); Coloring Book by Chance the Rapper (so positive); Combat Rock by the Clash; Come and Get It by Westbound Train (good Boston boys); Come Come to the Sunshine Tree by the Mountain Goats (just Love Love Love and the The Day the Aliens Came); Come Dancing With The Kinks: The Best Of The Kinks 1977-1986; Comfort Eagle by Cake (just short skirt/long jacket); Coming Home by Leon Bridges; The Commitments by the Commitments (pretty great album from a very great movie)
People's Favorite Jokes:
One did one eye say to other? Between you and me, something smells
How do you think the unthinkable? with an itheberg (it's a lisp joke)
Song of the Day:
One of my sister's favorites
