Our next historical destination was Newport where we explored the architecture and life of the rich and famous during the Gilded Age. Some of the fabulous mansions we toured include The Breakers, Beechwood, and Rosecliff.
Our first culinary stop in Rhode Island was an old time favorite, the Newport Creamery. This summer, the creamery is celebrating the 60th anniversary of the Awful Awful, their special milkshake.
We tasted Mint Chocolate Chip and Vanilla Awful Awful shakes. The mint chocolate chip shake was naturally brown in color, rather than artificial mint green.
We also enjoyed a Malted Frappe with maple walnut ice cream.
We then had dinner at the Rhode Island Quahog Company restaurant, located on busy Thames street. The “Quahog Story” on the menu explains that this restaurant is named after quahogs, Rhode Island’s original clams. Narragansett Indians called this clam "poquahock" which eventually became quahog. They also used these clams as currency, known as wampum. Hence, the saying “Hey that’s a lot of clams”.
The restaurant offers many excellent seafood dishes. In the summer, there is also a special lobster menu that has an impressive list of creative dishes featuring lobsters.
We opted for lighter fare (after all those Awful Awfuls for lunch) and chose some appetizers to share. The New England clam chowder was delicious. In fact, their clam chowder recipe has won awards at the International Chowder Cookoff.
We couldn’t resist sampling the lobster cakes from the Summer Lobster menu. The lobster cakes were very flavorful with a little bit of sweetness and a nice spicy kick. Roasted corn, tomato, and black bean salsa were very refreshing and complimented the lobster cakes.
We also had to try the stuffed quahogs which were really good, featuring excellent Native American flavors.
We liked our meal at the Rhode Island Quahog company so much that we had to come back the next day. This time, we had a Block Island lobster bisque, a Waldorf salad with pomegranates and gorgonzola, and a bowl of linguine with little neck clams and buttery white sauce. We enjoyed all of these dishes as well.
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The Rhode Island Quahog Company is an excellent casual seafood restaurant that offers a good value and a classic New England experience.
