The compact city of Providence, R.I., is practically crying out to be explored, with its rambling streets packed with ancient edifices winding up and down seven hills and sprawling across 25 officially designated neighborhoods.
Since your attendees might not have the time or energy to tackle all two-dozen-plus districts, Meetings Focus culled down the offerings to a handful of the very finest sectors in the city, taking a look at the some of the most interesting aspects of the “Creative Capital.”
College Hill
“On Providence’s East Side you can find several of the city’s seven colleges and universities, including Brown University and the renowned Rhode Island School of Design,” says Brian Hodge, spokesman for the Providence-Warwick CVB. “Benefit Street, nicknamed the ‘mile of history,’ boasts a wealth of well-preserved architecture, including the longest contiguous strip of houses on the National Register of Historic Places. Here, the historic and hip intertwine as attractions like the First Baptist Church—that would be the first Baptist church—and the Providence Athenaeum roll into casually chic eateries and percolating coffee shops.”
Hodge also highly recommends the Rhode Island of School of Design (RISD) Museum.
“Featuring classic works from the masters—think Picasso and Monet—to more-contemporary and up-and-coming artists, the museum is a lynchpin in the city’s arts and cultural scene,” Hodge says.
And for attendees on the lookout for some retail release, Thayer Street is a fun stretch of shops with a funky college town feel to it that provides a nice blend of indie stores with some national names like Starbucks and Urban Outfitters. PageBreak
Downtown
“If you head down College Hill, you will bump into the city’s manageable and highly walkable downtown,” Hodge says. “Groups visiting the Rhode Island Convention Center will find scores of alluring eating options and area attractions at their collective fingertips. Featuring great restaurants, award-winning theaters and plenty of diversions, downtown Providence has the same quality of amenities as a much larger city, but all at arm’s length.”
Downtown is home to three parks, including Waterplace Park, featuring the unique WaterFire Festivals that bring out residents and visitors in droves with floating bonfires in the midst of a huge community celebration. These memorable gatherings take place on a regular basis—generally on designated Saturday evenings—between May and October, and are an unforgettable event for groups to experience.
Other downtown offerings include the Dunkin’ Donuts Center, where sports-hungry attendees can take in action like big-time college hoops (Providence College) or pro hockey skirmishes (the Providence Bruins of the American Hockey League).
But if your group is craving culture, that’s on tap as well. Downtown Providence has not just one but a pair of performing arts possibilities: the Providence Performing Arts Center and the Trinity Repertory Theater.
Federal Hill
“Past the city’s downtown, you find Federal Hill, the city’s charming Little Italy,” Hodge says. “Routinely praised as one of the top ‘Little Italys’ in the country, this small neighborhood packs a wallop of restaurants and a wealth of history, culture and authenticity. A group can easily experience the neighborhood via the Savoring Federal Hill culinary walking tour, where they can see the sights, hear the stories and—most importantly—taste the food, as certified pastry chef Cindy Salvato leads tour-goers in, out, behind and through some of Federal Hill’s best-loved shops.”
For groups going it on their own, Atwells Avenue is a main artery of the neighborhood, with top-notch restaurants that include, of course, a number of inviting Italian eateries. For the real flavor of the area, consider Angelo’s, a neighborhood standby since 1924. Another top choice is the Mediterraneo Caffe, with a vibrant ambience and spacious private dining space.
Federal Hill is also dotted with some cozy green spaces adding a countryside touch to the urban setting, and is home as well to the iconic arch known as La Pigna (“the pinecone”), a symbol of the district’s warm hospitality. PageBreak
Hope Street
“Another neat neighborhood for groups is the Hope Street area,” Hodge says. “Hope Street serves as a smooth segue from Brown University’s collegiate setting to a more residential, neighborly feel. With some delightful shopping and warm, welcoming restaurants, it’s a great area to explore.”
A wise dining choice for groups, according to Hodge, is Pizzico Ristorante, which “offers some of Providence’s famed Italian food in a comfortable, group-friendly setting. They can do a special menu and even tableside cooking demonstrations.”
For something a bit more exotic, attendees might appreciate India, a casually elegant establishment with two different outdoor seating areas, a bar lit by 200-plus candles and plenty of fun little surprises, such as Bollywood movies shown on a big screen, free henna tattoos, occasional belly dancing performances and Thursday evening jazz.
Hope Street is also home to the unique and unusual Studio Hop, a retail trove of cool contemporary creations and offbeat antiques. The nearby Frog & Toad is equally eccentric, but with a focus on handcrafted offerings.
From May through October, the neighborhood also hosts a hopping farmers market at Lippitt Park on Saturday mornings and Wednesday afternoons, showing off the gamut of goods Rhode Island is known for, from freshly farmed produce to dairy products to amazing oysters.
Fox Point
“Over on the East Side, the Fox Point neighborhood shows a unique side of the city,” Hodge says. “Framed by a freshly revitalized India Point Park, which offers sweeping views of Narragansett Bay, groups can stay at the convenient Wyndham Garden and walk over a new pedestrian bridge to the galleries, antique stores, restaurants and coffee shops along Wickenden Street.”
Hodge adds that groups walking Wickenden Street should be on the lookout for the statue of George M. Cohan—“the man who grew up to own Broadway,” in Hodges’ words—who was born in the neighborhood.
Much of Fox Point is residential in feel, and attendees that are into architecture will savor strolling along the many structures still standing strong from the 18th and 19th centuries, with a range of building types running the gamut from Federal to Italianate. PageBreak
Warwick
For some insights on the neighboring city of Warwick, we turned to Kristen Adamo, vice president of marketing and communications for the Providence Warwick CVB, who hails from the community.
“Warwick is located just south of Providence and is home to TF Green Airport and the InterLink intermodal transportation center, which offers scheduled rail service to Providence and Boston,” Adamo says. “And while Warwick is the second-largest city in Rhode Island, it is really more of a series of villages. If you ask someone from Warwick where they are from, they are more likely to name the village than the actual city.”
Among the more intriguing villages, according to Adamo, is Pawtuxet Village, a quaint locale nestled between the Pawtuxet River and Narragansett Bay.
“The village center includes bakeries, small shops and a sprawling Irish Pub called O’Rourke’s, and is best known as the site of the annual Gaspee Days celebration,” she says. “Held every June, it commemorates the burning of the British ship the HMS Gaspee by colonists in 1772, a full year before the Boston Tea Party.”
Adamo also suggests a neighborhood with a classic seaside feel to it.
“Located on a peninsula that juts out into Greenwich Bay, Oakland Beach is like a Bruce Springsteen song come to life,” she says. “It features seafood restaurants, a small boardwalk and sweeping water views. Not to be missed is Iggy’s Doughboys and Chowder House, which serves up batches of classic Ocean State foods like clamcakes, chowder and fried doughboys.”
Adamo also recommends a nifty neighborhood park in Warwick.
“Goddard Memorial State Park is situated along Greenwich Bay and offers a peaceful natural environment with spacious lawns, fields and forested areas,” she says. “Visitors can make use of a nine-hole golf course, an equestrian show area, 18 miles of bridle trails, 355 picnic tables, 11 game fields and a new performing arts center for weddings, concerts, picnics and special events.”
