Coco Pazzo Opens on College Hill
Sean DeBobes, GoLocalProv Dining Critic
Coco Pazzo Opens on College Hill
The brainchild of bar/restaurant veteran Bert Sorbo and high-flying restaurant entrepreneur Stephan Fortier, this fashion-forward Italian eatery sits atop the popular English Cellar Alehouse, also owned by Sorbo. Smartly, an elegant, open internal stairwell connects the two spaces. You can feel the lure of the upstairs when you're enjoying the updated environs in the Alehouse (and both menus are available, whether upstairs or down), and vice versa. It's fun... like being at a party where you can't decide whether you want to hang out in the designer kitchen or in the swanky dining room.
Lovers of New York and Boston restaurants that feature long, tall family-style tables with lots of stools will be delighted to see that Sorbo and Fortier have brought that sociable innovation to Rhode Island dining. A dominating floor to ceiling mirror with the daily drink specials scrawled across it make the setting more Euro, and it works.
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Rounds of delicious tapas, pizzas and perfectly priced entrees roll out of the kitchen (and the beautiful imported Italian pizza oven) all orchestrated by the unforgettable Tom Buckner, former chef/owner of L’Epicureo on Federal Hill and later the Hotel Providence. His return to the dining scene promises great things.
Though not in full swing yet, Coco Pazzo promises to be a destination from lunch through late night when they plan on offering tapas until 1:30am on the weekends. The writing on the walls (or mirror in this case) tells me that Coco Pazzo is going to be an instant destination for students, East Siders and many Rhode Islanders very soon… so get in there and check it out before all the crowds do.
Coco Pazzo, 165 Angell St, Providence, 454-3434. Check them out on Facebook, here.
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