Travel: Al Forno in Providence for Simply Delicious Italian Cuisine

As an ex-New Englander, I had long heard about Al Forno down in Providence. Known for its great pizza and rustic Italian cuisine. Al Forno was on my must try list but never happened while I live in Massachusetts. Fast forward 20 years later and I’m visiting friends in Providence and of course, we’re going to try and dine at Al Forno. Reservations are not easy to come by but we’re able to grab one and head on over for dinner at this culinary classic.

Approaching Al Forno is a bit deceiving. A non-descript brick building, I’m sure the restaurant has expanded over the years but currently, dining is only offered on the first floor at the bar and a wing of the dining room. We pass through a garden terrace, through a patio, and into the restaurant. A host greets us up front and we are brought to a side dining room that’s long and narrow, bustling with guests and activity. Apparently only half of the dining rooms are open now and like many restaurants that grow over the years, the dining rooms are a bit disconnected and spread out, I’m curious to see what the others look like.

As first-time diners at Al Forno, we eagerly scan the menus to settle in on what we want but it all looks quite good. Appetizers, pizzas, pastas, and grilled entrees along with a selection of sides. One thing I immediately notice is the prices are pretty mid-level: $15 for appetizers, $20 to $35 for pizzas, pastas, and entrees which seems very reasonable to me. The dessert is 10+ items deep so you know they take their sweets here seriously. And a deep wine list gives you quite a few beverage options for the table. Our waitperson is decked out in all black, explains all the details of the dishes as needed, and whisks our menus away, all very professional. One note but Al Forno asks that you order the dessert when your entree is ordered to make sure it is served up fresh, see my earlier comment about taking dessert seriously.

Our first treat (and surprise) for the evening is the popular Al Forno grilled pizza and we’ve ordered up the corn version. As someone who’s eaten a LOT of pizza in my life and just dined at Frank Pepe’s in New Haven, I’m blown away. This grilled pizza is oblong and organic in shape with grill marks on top a light red sauce, big kernels of plump corn, and shreds of scallion on top and served uncut. It’s confusing but I dive in, cut a slice off and it’s amazing! What a light, airy, crispy, and chewy crust, wow. The sauce is light so it doesn’t overwhelm the corn and the scallions add some green, oniony contrast. This pizza gets devoured quickly by the table and makes for a perfect starter at Al Forno.

For my main, I’ve got the fedelini with ribeye meatballs while my friends are going with the clams linguine. My dish is actually just a classic spaghetti and meatballs but done REALLY well. The pasta is cooked just right and the light tomato sauce lightly coats everything. The meatballs are ovalish in shape and really tender and supple making for a great bite. It’s a fantastic rendition of a classic Italian dish and there’s plenty on the plate, very shareable. I take a bit of the clams dish which is equally good, I’m guessing the clams here are super fresh given Al Forno’s location by the water.

As expected given we pre-ordered, our upside-down fig cake shows up at the table right after our entrees are cleared. I’m sure Al Forno follows this process to make sure that dessert is perfectly timed and to make for more efficient seatings. This cake has a bit of creme anglaise (drizzled around) and creme fraiche (on top) which makes for a nice contrast to the warm cake which has a wonderful crumb. But tap into the top of the cake with caramelized fig fruit and browned sugar makes for an eye-rolling bite. Delicious and well worth the extra effort to order early. 

The bill arrives and it’s maybe $70 per person for a shared appetizer, two entrees, dessert, 3 drinks and a bottle of wine, very reasonable. We all walk out of Al Forno super full, happy, and impressed. While Al Forno has been around for decades, it obviously has not sat on its laurels and its still serving up some fantastic food in 2022. I just love the fact that the food takes the stage, front, and center. While the decor and ambiance is good and the service professional, you leave raving about the food as it should be. The reality is we have nothing like Al Forno in the Triangle that hits that mix of great Italian food, service, and decor while also feeling like a relative bargain. Maybe if you took Gocciolina and amped up what’s its delivering a level or two up. But a slow round of applause for Al Forno in Providence, RI. So many wonderful culinary surprises over the course of my visit and it’s obvious that you’ve been doing a LOT of things right for over 40 years…

Al Forno

577 S Water Street

Providence, RI 02903

401.273.9760

Location on Google maps