Restaurant: Gardel
Gardel, a newer restaurant in the Fox Point neighborhood of Providence, serves home-cooked Argentine flavors with touches of Spain and Italy and offers a natural wine list. The matrimonio is served with Argentinian chorizo, morcilla (a traditional Spanish blood sausage), and chimichurri that you pile on top of a crostini. For entrées, split the Milanese, pounded and breaded pan-fried chicken with finishing salt, served with a side of tiny, crispy potatoes. Also try the fish pil pil, which is cod served with peppers in a yellow sauce made from olive oil, garlic and chili.
Gardel, 102 Ives St., Providence, pvdgardel.com.
Matrimono from Gardel in Providence, R.I.Jonathan Wiggs/Globe Staff/Boston Globe
Restaurant: Minas Café
Minas Cafe in East Providence has been serving Brazilian barbecue since 2000. While you can get barbecued sirloin, brisket, chicken hearts, sausages (all different kinds), wings, and garlic steak any day of the week, don’t sleep on the specials.
315 Waterman Ave, East Providence, R.I., minascaferestaurant.com.
Restaurants: Rosa’s Kitchen, 10 Rocks Tapas Bar & Restaurant, Taste of Island
Head to Rosa’s Kitchen in Pawtucket, a cozy spot for a spicy bife a rosa (grilled sirloin steak sautéed in a seasoned meat stock and garlic, garnished with fried egg, linguica, banana peppers, and olives). Or order the bacalau a gomes de sa, which is salted boneless codfish cooked in onions and olive oil and served with potatoes and boiled eggs. Also in Pawtucket, check out 10 Rocks Tapas Bar & Restaurant, a Cape Verdean restaurant known for plates with fried goat cheese, mango chili cauliflower, and batatas bravas.
In East Providence, Taste of Island is a takeout spot known for its daily specials. Recently, they served a cajun style fried shrimp and salmon dish with rice and fries with tartar sauce, and pork alentejana, a pork and clams dish with potatoes and rice.
Rosa’s Kitchen, 757 Main St., Pawtucket, R.I., rosaskitchen757.com. 10 Rocks Tapas Bar & Restaurant, 1091 Main St., Pawtucket, R.I., 10rockstapasbar.com. Taste of Island, 2777 Pawtucket Ave., East Providence, R.I., updates are posted on their Facebook page.
Restaurants: Caprichos Antioquenos Bakery, La Casona, El Rincon Colombiano
Head to Caprichos Antioquenos Bakery in Pawtucket for a cafe atmosphere with empanadas, chicharrón, and pastries. They also serve a hearty breakfast menu. In Central Falls, go to La Casona, known as a community hub that attracts large crowds during soccer matches. Order bandeja paisa and empanadas. And in Providence, go to El Rincon Colombiano for brunch items like arepas, cholado, shrimp, plantains, and more.
Caprichos Antioquenos Bakery, 173 Lonsdale Ave, Pawtucket, R.I., caprichosantioquenos.com. La Casona, 768 Broad St, Central Falls, R.I., lacasona-ri.com. El Rincon Colombiano, 568 Broad St., Providencefacebook.com/elrinconcitocolombianoeastboston.
The Cazuelita, which can be done with either ground beef or shredded chicken with beans, sweet plantains, fried pork rinds, sausage, and rice at La Casona in Central Falls, Rhode Island. La Casona
Restaurants: Mémère’s, Pot au Feu, Pescadou
If you’re staying in Providence, head to Mémère’s, a new French Canadian restaurant in the heart of downtown. Their menu updates regularly, but expect items such as terrine de foie gras with a kumquat jam and brioche, boeuf tartare with a quail egg, and ratatouille de saison. Pot au Feu, also in downtown, has been serving French food for decades. When you walk downstairs to the restaurant’s cozy brick-walled bistro, you’re welcomed by a photograph of French Chef Julia Child. Order some escargots à la Bourguignon, foie gras, crepes aux boeuf et champignons (two crepes with beef and wild mushrooms, served with a Sauce Dianne).
Wine is poured for a pair of diners at Mémère’s in downtown Providence.MARK STOCKWELL FOR THE BOSTON GLOBE
If you’re making a day trip to Newport, check out Pescadou. It’s a new and playful French Riviera-inspired restaurant inside the historic Hotel Viking that looks like it belongs in Palm Beach with its pink and green accents. The raw bar offers oysters and clams, but their signature dishes include fresh pastas and bouillabaisse.
Mémère’s, 122 Fountain St., Providence, memeresri.com. Pot au Feu, 44 Custom House St., Providence, potaufeuri.com. Pescadou, One Bellevue Avenue, Newport, R.I., hotelviking.com.
Bob Burke, the owner of Pot Au Feu, poses for a photo in the dining room of his bistro in Providence, Rhode Island.Matthew Healey for The Boston Globe
Restaurants: Suya Joint, The Village
Ghanaian and Nigerian cuisines share similar West African staples, such as jollof rice, fufu, and various soups. Typically, Ghanaian jollof is sweeter, while Nigerian jollof has a distinct smoky flavor. But if you’re craving fufu, go to Suya Joint.
Cecelia Dama Lizotte grew up in the sleepy village of Qua’an Pan in the Plateau State in Nigeria, where she learned how to cook in her grandmother’s restaurant. She opened Suya Joint, a Nigerian and West African restaurant where she became famous for home-cooked stews and fufu. Then she expanded to Providence. Get the beef suya as an appetizer and split it with your table. The dish has thinly sliced beef marinated in Lizotte’s suya spice, which consists of peanut powder, ginger, cayenne, onion and garlic, and then grilled and served with more onions.
For a more casual spot, go to The Village. Any of their popular stews can be served with your choice of goat meat, beef, boneless fish, or chicken topped with iyan (the Yoruba name for pounded yam).
Suya Joint, 320 Westminster St, Providence, suyajoint.com. The Village, 100 Fountain St., Providence, villagerestaurantsri.com.
Chef Cecelia Lizotte inside Suya Joint in downtown Providence.Jonathan Wiggs/Globe Staff
Beef Pies and West African stew at Suya Joint in Providence.Jonathan Wiggs/Globe Staff
Restaurants: Eve’s Kitchen, Goût D’or Cuisine
Eve’s Kitchen opened earlier this year inside Varsity Luxury Sports Bar in Providence. It’s run by Yveline Bontemp, who was born in Haiti and then spent years running Garden of Eve, a beloved Haitian restaurant in the Federal Hill neighborhood. Grab the tender and savory fried goat that’s marinated in her special seasoning. Or the marinated stew chicken, also known as poul, that’s simmered in a tasty tomato base sauce.
Right over the Massachusetts border in Attleboro you’ll find Goût D’or Cuisine, where you can get pate kode (Haitian patties), red snapper, Caribbean fried wings, griyo, brondini fish, or tassot cabrit (fried goat), which is marinated in creole spices, boiled and then fried. All of their enteées are served with platains, rice, pikliz, and salad.
Eve’s Kitchen, 289 Atwells Ave Providence, eveskitchenri.com. Goût D’or Cuisine, 15 Park St., Attleboro, Mass., goutdorcuisine.com.
Friends and business partners, Sandy Martin (left) of the USA, Reem and Youssef Akhtarini, of Syria, inside Aleppo Sweets.
A spread at Aleppo Sweets located in Providence’s Fox Point neighborhood.Alexa Gagosz/Globe Staff
Your team: Iraq or Jordan
Restaurants: Aleppo Sweets, Kaza Maza, El Laham
While Iraqi and Jordanian restaurants are hard to find in Rhode Island, there are some Syrian restaurants, and the two countries have been united in historical, political, and cultural relations. Head to Aleppo Sweets, which is known for their authentic Syrian food, baklava, strong coffee, and cozy atmosphere. At Kaza Maza in North Providence, chef Khaled Alhamad serves shawarma, falafel, and hummus.
In Cranston, El Laham Restaurant has classic halal food and a traditional complimentary tea service.
Aleppo Sweets, 107 Ives St, Providence, R.I., alepposweets.com. Kaza Maza, 146 Waterman Ave., North Providence, R.I., updates are posted on their Instagram. El Laham, 91 Rolfe Square, Cranston, R.I., ellaham.com.
Your team: Korea Republic
Restaurant: Mokban Korean Bistro
You want pork bulgogi, juicy kalbi short ribs, or braised pork belly scented with soy sauce, ginger, and garlic? Head to Makban Korean Bistro in downtown Providence. All meals are served with a side of rice, soup, lettuce leaves, blanched cabbage, wrap sauce, kimchi, and veggie pickles.
Mokban Korean Bistro, 217 Westminster St, Providence, R.I., mokban.com.
Portuguese fado singer Alison DaSilva of Lowell, Massachusetts performs in O Dinis restaurant in East Providence, Rhode Island.Matthew Healey for The Boston Globe
Restaurants: O Dinis, Silver Star Bakery, Cafe Zara, Aguardente, Cafe Alma
Rhode Island is considered a hot spot for Portuguese food, where you can get everything from delicious pasteis de nata, an egg custard tart that’s flaky and crisp, from Silver Star Bakery to Portuguese tapas with a Guatemalan and Mexican twist from Aguardente. Head to East Providence for coffee from Cafe Alma, galão and tosta from Cafe Zara & Coffee House, or an iconic dining experience at O Dinis.
O Dinis in particular is a mainstay; they have fado singers each week to go along with your grilled salt cod, braised goat, or camarão à alhinho.
Silver Star Bakery, 150 Ives St., Providence, silverstarbakery.com. Aguardente, 12 Governor St., Providence, aguardente.com. Cafe Alma, 227 Warren Ave, East Providence, R.I., updates are posted on their Instagram. Cafe Zara & Coffee House, 30 Taunton Ave, East Providence, R.I., cafe-zara.com. O Dinis, 579 Warren Ave, East Providence, R.I., odinisrestaurant.com.
O Dinis’s braised goat is inside the eatery in East Providence, Rhode Island.Matthew Healey for The Boston Globe
Restaurants: Palo, Otra
Otra means “other” or “another” in Spanish, and brings together Portuguese, Spanish, and Southern French influences. Lucky for you, Otra is a great tapas restaurant in Providence where you can enjoy paellas, croquettes, and gazpach like you’re in a coastal Spanish city. If you’re really hungry, get the Cataplana, which is a Southern Portuguese inspired seafood stew with Toulousian sausage, littlenecks from Narragansett Bay, and chourizo with sweet onions, tomato, garlic, and white wine.
If you want to slide into a bar seat to munch on addictive corn ribs while sipping on a mineral-forward white wine, head to Palo. While you’re there, make up a cheese board, and split the braised oxtail and meatballs with someone.
Otra, 303 S Main St., Providence, otrarestaurant.com. Palo, 3 Steeple St, Providence, paloprovidence.com.
Pork belly a la Placha over ORTA piperade drizzled with aged sherry. Glenn Osmundson for The Boston Globe
Alexa Gagosz can be reached at alexa.gagosz@globe.com. Follow her @alexagagosz and on Instagram @AlexaGagosz.
Dining and Cooking