A comfortable and unique restaurant overlooking Narragansett Town Beach, Chair 5 recently opened in The Break Hotel on Ocean Road on June 29.
The Break Hotel, which opened on June 19, is a completely new boutique hotel. Tania Carosi, manager of Chair 5, said that Chair 5 is an original restaurant, but is apart of Lark Hotel Company Collection. Although Chair 5 isn’t the only restaurant in the collection, it is the only restaurant with this certain unique cuisine and name, according to Carosi. She said the name originated from Narragansett Town Beach’s most popular beach chair. The restaurant wanted to represent the locals, who typically flock to this chair’s vicinity to avoid tourists.
The downstairs portion of Chair 5, which features couches and a fireplace, offers a dinner/lounge atmosphere that is more formal. On the other hand, Chair 5 also offers a rooftop lounge and bar, which opened on August 3. Carosi said that during the summer the restaurant received the best sales between July and September, but the rooftop lounge was highly anticipated by customers.
“You can’t really go wrong sitting in an Adirondack chair on the roof with a cocktail and looking out at the water,†Carosi said. “The view is beautiful and it’s a great time.â€
Fortunately, the rooftop offers appetizers, small dishes, and homemade sodas for customers under 21 years old. Carosi said that students often use the rooftop to their advantage and finish homework while grabbing a bite to eat and overlooking the water. Currently, the rooftop’s hours were limited on Monday through Thursday from 4 p.m. to 10 p.m. and Friday, Saturday, and Sunday from 12 p.m. to 10 p.m., which are their normal hours.
Chair 5 Chef, Basil Yu, is originally from New Hampshire and moved to Rhode Island while travelling with another chef who he learned some trade and skills from. The chef ended up going to Newport where Yu found his own niche, Carosi explained. She said that he brings various types of cuisine to the restaurant, offering a beach-like style item with so many flavors and complexities into the dishes that come together nicely. Carosi also said that Yu cooks a lot of New England traditional meals, but in a completely different way. Most people really love the taste, but she said some people want more plain items, which they can accommodate.
Carosi explained that the restaurant tries to get all of their food as local as possible, and all of their seafood is from Narragansett Bay Lobsters on Point Judith. Chair 5 tries to stay local and seasonal with everything they do to support local brands and keep communities going, according to Carosi.
Previously, Carosi said she worked at 41 North, a restaurant in Newport, and after reading about the opportunity at Chair 5 she became interested because she loves Lark Hotels and what they stand for. She said that the whole idea of opening a new restaurant wasn’t new to her; it was actually something she enjoyed when she had done it in the past.
“I try to stress to my employees that everywhere I’ve worked I’ve basically treated as my home, because I’m there more than I’m at my home,†Carosi said. “I would love for anyone to come in and enjoy the space as much as we do. I want to welcome people like it’s my home and treat you special.â€
Carosi said Chair 5 is definitely a prevalent part of the hotel, but it is open to non-hotel guests as well. The restaurant solely serves breakfast to hotel guests, and they have free reign of rooftop access. From the deck, guests can watch the sunrise while in the bar and open seating area without stepping foot outside.
To try and attract more college kids, Chair 5 offers a free meal to students who bring in their parents and also offers a $10 pasta bowl including beer/soda on Monday nights. Carosi said she is trying to continue to market the restaurant and have people of all ages enjoy the space. She hopes to spread awareness and reach out to locals by sending out a thank-you letter to everyone in a five-mile radius for welcoming the restaurant with a free appetizer their next visit.
Chair 5 restaurant is located on 1208 Ocean Road in Narragansett and is open seven days a week. Lunch is served from noon to 3 p.m., dinner is served from 5 to 10 p.m. and the bar is open from noon to midnight. For more information about Chair 5, visit their website at https://www.dinechair5.com/ or find them on Facebook and Instagram.