Andy HoffmanI know, that’s a weird apostrophe, one of those apostrophes that grammar nerds lose their cool over. Even more weird, Louis Family Restaurant sits amid buildings of Brown University, which boasts a top-ranked English department. And though they’ve corrected the apostrophe on their web page, it still stands weirdly proud on the sign outside. It has been there since it opened in 1946, and I – myself a proud recipient of a PhD from that hallowed English Department – hope it remains as long as Loui’s does. I suspect most colleges have a local diner that has become a student favorite, but if they don’t I suggest a visit to Providence to see what they are missing.
Deb and I went there for breakfast during one of our Providence stops. Parking, as near any campus, daunts frequenting the place, which is why it sticks primarily to a university clientele. The folks from Facilities always gather there, as do graduate students; the undergraduates seem to consider themselves too hip for Loui’s. Which is a shame, because they serve excellent and generous portions of well-prepared food. I have had lunch, dinner, and breakfast at their sturdy tables and marveled not only at the marvelous omelets, pancakes, and eggplant parm sandwiches, but at the collection of art. I suspect it most got left to the restaurant by students from Brown and Rhode Island School of Design who felt gratitude to Loui’s and left them creative work they couldn’t carry with them as they left Providence.
The menu has a simple economy I always admire in a restaurant. Keep your Cheesecake Factories and white-cloth establishments that publish books of their offerings. These places often go on and on with elaborate descriptions of unnecessarily ornate dishes, but not Loui’s. They keep their menu to a white piece of 8½ by 11 paper, printed on both sides, with the weekly specials on the wall over the counter. Nothing on the menu requires an explanation, and if you don’t find what you want there you have simply gone to the wrong place. Providence has become a foodie heaven over the past few decades, a combined result of the strong Italian cultural base and the nationally regarded culinary-arts program at Johnson & Wales University. Any restaurant in town – probably Loui’s too, though I don’t know for sure – has well-trained cooks preparing your food.
When Deb and I went recently, we split a veggie omelet and blueberry pancakes. The omelet hung off the side of the plate, generously filled with vegetables, including zucchini, broccoli, and peppers, blanketed in melted cheddar. The potatoes were crisp and well-seasoned, while the pancakes smelled of fresh fruit and what I believe was yeast. Chewy. Juicy. Sweet. So good Deb took what we couldn’t finish home for a snack a couple of days later. Keep your apostrophe, Loui’s, and cook on.