Side of the Rhode: Who’s Hot and Who’s Not? - June 27, 2025
Analyst
Side of the Rhode: Who’s Hot and Who’s Not? - June 27, 2025
We have expanded the list, and we are going to a GoLocal team approach while encouraging readers to suggest nominees for who is "HOT" and who is "NOT."
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Over the past 14-plus years, more than 7,000 have been tagged as HOT or NOT.
Email GoLocal by midday on Thursday about anyone you think should be tapped as "HOT" or "NOT." Email us HERE.
Side of the Rhode: Who’s Hot and Who’s Not? - June 27, 2025
HOT
The "Perfect Lobster Roll" in Rhode Island
It is summertime, and we Rhode Islanders take our seafood delights very seriously.
Summer seafood can make the weekend. It can make the summer.
We are not sure if it is due to tariffs or supply chain issues — we say in jest — but it seems that at a few too many seafood restaurants, the proverbial bang for the buck has greatly diminished over the past few years.
Clam cakes often have little in the way of clams, and in recent years, lobster rolls have gotten smaller, the meat more minced than chunks, and the cost has gone through the proverbial roof.
But during a recent week-long visit to Newport, we found "it" — the holy grail — the perfect lobster roll.
HOT
Columbus Theater's Big Reopen
Uptown announced that it is set to “reclaim its spotlight with a dazzling series of upgrades and an electrifying first wave of shows. After eight months of passionate restoration under the leadership of local business owners Cory Brailsford and David Fiorillo, the theater is ready to welcome audiences back to a space that honors its century-old legacy while stepping boldly into the future.”
Since October 2024, Brailsford and Fiorillo, known locally for their successful ventures Comedy Connection and Black Duck Tavern—have poured their energy into transforming the nearly 100-year-old venue.
The results are nothing short of spectacular: new lobby bars on both floors, a vibrant interior refresh, a state-of-the-art roof, modernized electrical and plumbing systems, gleaming restrooms, advanced air conditioning, a cutting-edge sound booth, a painstakingly restored ceiling, and plush new seating throughout the main theater’s first floor. Not to be missed: the original balcony seats, lovingly restored to their 1920s glory.
READ MORE ABOUT THE LAUNCH SCHEDULE
HOT
Back in Business
Matunuck Oyster Bar plans to open for al fresco dining next week, with its official opening date set for Tuesday, July 1.
Matunuck Oyster Bar owner Perry Raso said, “Matunuck Oyster Bar has secured final approval from the South Kingstown Town Council to open for al fresco dining. We are making final preparations to set up in the marina parking lot across the street from our restaurant, and we are looking forward to begin welcoming guests to our tented dining area in Matunuck Marina with a soft opening on Monday, June 30th, and an official opening date of Tuesday, July 1, on our 16-year anniversary.”
The restaurant will offer both tableside dining and grab-and-go options. The operating hours for outdoor dining will be daily from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Reservations and take-out will be available at RhodyOysters.com.
HOT
Those "Real Housewives" Are Everywhere
GoLocal captured photos of two different scenes being shot for the upcoming Bravo series "Real Housewives of Rhode Island."
In the exclusive footage taken by GoLocal on Wednesday afternoon, multiple cast members were seen being filmed on location in East Greenwich and the Fox Point neighborhood of Providence.
HOT
Painter Eric Telfort
Michael Rose, GoLocal's art columnist writes:
The lives of children are full of imagination and play. For illustrator and artist Eric Telfort, memories of childhood are fertile ground for the creation of thought-provoking paintings. A classically trained artist with a rich knowledge of art history, Telfort is currently featured in a solo exhibition titled Child’s Play. On view through June 28 at AS220, the exhibition highlights the distinctive skills and narrative powers of one of the state’s most impactful artists.
Telfort was raised in the Little Haiti section of Miami and came to Rhode Island to earn his undergraduate degree in Illustration at RISD. He went on to work in the game industry and completed his MFA at the New York Academy of Art, an institution known for cultivating contemporary realists. His work has been exhibited at the Cahoon Museum of American Art and he earned a prestigious $25,000 MaColl Johnson Fellowship from the Rhode Island Foundation. An engaged educator, he has served as Department Head of Illustration at RISD and helped to launch its new MFA program in Illustration. READ MORE
NOT
Silly Man
Governor Dan McKee doesn't like the budget, so is he "taking action" and vetoing it?
Oh, no!
Did he clutch his pearls?
His whining and reluctance to sign the budget is, in fact, the equivalent of muttering under one's breath.
NOT
Ciccone's Duplicity
New Senate Majority Leader Frank A. Ciccone III (D-Dist. 7, Providence, Johnston) moved through the Senate legislation clearing the way for a significant tax increase in Providence.
On Friday night, he tried to shift the blame after he pushed the legislation. The bill allows the City of Providence to exceed the levy cap for fiscal year 2026 de facto, giving Providence Mayor Brett Smiley and the City Council the ability to increase taxes to 8%—one of the biggest tax increases in decades.
The tax increase is expected to hit renters hard, as the tax increase will be passed along.
Ciccone, as the leader, could have blocked the legislation, but instead pushed it through the Senate.
At least he got some Del's on his way out.
NOT
Company Raimondo Pushed During COVID Cited by Feds, Paying $8.5M
During COVID, former Rhode Island Governor Gina Raimondo closed Rhode Island’s daycare centers and repeatedly promoted a privately owned out-of-state company that had powerful investors and a track record of alleged violations.
On Tuesday, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced that it is sending refunds totaling more than $8.1 million to consumers who are harmed by online child and older adult care gig platforms, Care.com (Care). The company will pay $400,000 to the FTC. The total amount paid is $8.5 million.
The FTC alleged that Care used deceptive advertising that vastly overstated the number of jobs available on its platform and made unsubstantiated claims about how much job seekers could expect to earn through these jobs. The complaint also alleged that Care used unlawful tactics to prevent consumers — both job posters and job seekers — from canceling their subscriptions.
But in 2020, despite enforcement actions being taken against the company in other states Raimondo repeatedly pushed for Rhode Islanders to sign up for Care.com’s services.
Raimondo Closed RI Childcare Providers and Pushed Care.com - On Same Day
Raimondo pushed Care.com daily to Rhode Islanders and urged them to sign up. In her administration’s daily press briefings, Care.com was a key message point.
In more than a dozen press conferences and press briefing materials, Raimondo pushed Care.com even after GoLocal raised questions about the company being cited for violations and being investigated in other states.
While closing Rhode Island childcare facilities, Raimondo was endlessly pushing Care.com and its “extensive background and safety checks”
