Connecting cuisine and culture across the Atlantic. PHOTO CREDIT: David Broccoli | Entertainment Editor
For those of you who don’t know me personally, I am half Portuguese and half Italian. So, you can imagine that I am in love with food.
I take pride in the fact that I am a second generation American, and the fact that I am very lucky and privileged to have everything my mother didn’t have when she was growing up. My mom is Portuguese, and both her parents immigrated to Rhode Island in the 1960s from São Miguel, the biggest island in the Portuguese Azores archipelago.
Growing up, my mother spent a lot of time with her family and she really enjoyed it. She cooked with my Avó, Portuguese for grandma, all the time and hung out with her aunts and cousins who were the same age as she was.
Anyway, she would watch her mother cook and would learn a lot of her recipes. Of course, my Avó never wrote anything down, so my mom tries to replicate dishes based on memory. Sometimes they’re spot on and sometimes there’s always one thing missing.
I love Portuguese food so much and try to get my mom to make it when she can. It’s so flavorful and well-seasoned, which I like, and the desserts are even better. One of my favorite dishes, which is a very common one, is a bifana.
Bifana is a pork-steak sandwich seasoned with garlic and spices, along with a spicy pepper sauce-like topping and lettuce in between a delicious soft and crispy Portuguese roll. Thin crunchy fries are paired with this sandwich as well as a refreshing Sumol, which is a Portuguese soda. I, however, don’t drink soda, but I still enjoy the sandwich and fries.
Providence and East Providence is home to many Portuguese people, and along with that home to many stores and restaurants. One of my all time favorites is O Dinis, which is located in East Providence.
Before I get into the meal, I would like to give a little background. I interned for WPRI/Channel 12 News on the Rhode Show during the fall semester this year. During that time, I got to meet guests and watch segments live, either in the couch area or the kitchen.
On my second week interning, I was left in charge of running the show on set and getting the show hosts and guest ready for each segment.
The guest chef, Natalia Paiva Neves, was from O Dinis and told me she was the owner. She told me all about the food and how I have to force my family to go again.
She and I talked all about being Portuguese for the entire hour of the show and how our food and culture is so fun and vibrant. She and I even talked in Portuguese a little, which made everyone on set laugh.
About a month after that interaction, my family decided to go to O Dinis for dinner for my mother’s birthday. I was extremely excited because I finally got to see the menu and see the inside of the restaurant.
What made the night so much fun was that when we walked in, Natalia saw my family and then saw me as she was sitting with us and was so happy. She said hi to me and was talking to my parents about how nice I was, which they loved hearing.
She ended up giving my parents samples and tastes of wine because my mother mentioned we were going to Portugal soon, and she was helping them out and telling us all the information we needed to know.
Now, onto the food. I was on the edge of my seat waiting for my meal. I didn’t want to drink too much red sangria because I wanted to have room in my stomach for my food.
It was a hard choice on what I wanted to eat looking at the menu and seeing so many tasty options. I finally settled for the “Bife À Casa,” which is a pan-seared sirloin steak in a beer and garlic sauce that was served with French fries, a fried egg on top of the steak and rice.
The steak was so juicy and tender it literally melted in my mouth when I was eating it. The sauce spread all over the plate which was good because the fries and rice soaked it up and made it so flavorful. I didn’t want to eat it too fast because I was enjoying it so much, and I wanted to savor every single bite.
I didn’t stop there. My sister recommended a dessert to me that she got last time that she said I would love. It’s called “Bolacha Maria,” which is like a cookie pudding that is so sweet and delicious. She and I got one each and it was like eating cookie ice cream but even better than that. It was so rich and creamy that I ended up getting full right when I had two bites left.
O Dinis is one of my favorite restaurants and has the best atmosphere. If you’re looking for good Portuguese cuisine, O Dinis has what you’re searching for.