Photo by Laura Weick |CIGAR| A new restaurant in town, Davo’s offers students another option for their loved calzones.
When I first heard that a restaurant specializing in calzones called Davo’s Calzones and Wraps would be replacing the Hawaiian eatery Flat Waves in the Emporium, I was admittedly a bit disappointed. From The Rhode House to Kingston Pizza, don’t URI students already have enough options for calzones near campus? I was hoping the Emporium would get a more unique dining option. But being a frequent visitor of the Emporium, and a foodie at heart, I decided to give Davo’s a shot.
Upon entering the restaurant, I noticed that Davo’s had a streamlined and modern appearance. The walls were painted a blue-grey shade, and the tables were square and well-kept. The restaurant was near-spotless, though this is probably in part because it had just opened a few days before my visit. However, I could not help but notice that Davo’s was a bit cramped. Tables were pretty close together, and while I was the only person eating there when I visited, I felt that during a 12 p.m. Friday rush hour, everyone would be bumping elbows. Though to be fair, most restaurants in the Emporium face this same issue due to a lack of space. The staff was also friendly and laid-back. Davo’s struck me as the kind of place that would be frequented by college students, but a bit more modern than other restaurants of this kind.
Davo’s Calzones and Wraps is a counter service restaurant that serves (shocker!) calzones and wraps. These dishes include the standard fare such as buffalo chicken calzones and BLT wraps, but also some more unusual offerings such as teriyaki chicken calzones, Buf-A-Q calzones (buffalo and barbeque combined) and dessert Nutella calzones. You can also build your own calzone or wrap. Davo’s also offers appetizers such as onion rings and cheese fries.
I decided to order a chicken parm calzone, my standard calzone order. The food took about 15 minutes to cook, which is a tad long for a quick-service restaurant, but not a huge deal if the food was good. And thankfully, it was overall a solid meal.
The calzone wasn’t as big as some of those found at other locations, but it was still pretty sizable. The chicken was juicy, had a nice texture and was crisped to just the right amount. I also liked how the chicken was cut up more into nuggets, compared to keeping the entire chicken breast whole in the calzone like some other places do. This gave the calzone a bit more of a crunch and made it easier to eat.
The portions of mozzarella cheese were generous, and while delicious, I felt that adding some parmesan or other kind of cheese to the mix could improve the calzone. The marinara sauce was not as prominent as the cheese, but this was resolved by the side of sauce that came with my food.
The biggest issue I had with the calzone was the crust. Some parts of it seemed a bit unevenly cooked, with certain sections being on the doughy side. Thankfully, none of it was burnt, and the doughiness wasn’t enough to detract too much from the meal.
Overall, I would recommend checking Davo’s out. Having just opened on Saturday on April 8, it wouldn’t hurt to try. The location is clean and laid-back, and the calzones are a solid offering for hungry students.