A quick google search for “Oberlin” in the Providence area will likely return the Ohio college well known for its music conservatory. The second result is of greater interest to this column: a Rhode Island restaurant of the same name. So, on a Monday night, I headed down College Hill for a 7:30 p.m. reservation at the recent 2025 James Beard Award Finalist.
Oberlin has not one, but two bars. The first was a cocktail bar, armored in slats of cappuccino-colored wood. The second was situated to the back of the restaurant with a clear view into the open kitchen. Perched here, you can watch prep cooks garnish plates of crudo or a chef throw this and that into a wood-fired oven. It was these delicate details that made one thing clear: Oberlin understands its culinary craft as a performance.
Alongside this pomp and circumstance, a movie was being projected near the window. Its presence was as if to say, we take fine dining seriously but don’t worry, we’re a little eccentric too. This choice might be effective given the kind of people that go to Oberlin: a quick glance around the room and I tallied one Brown sweatshirt, a few salt-and-peppered couples and an overwhelming number of PVD yuppies.
Not quite millennials nor gray-haired, my dining partner and I followed our hostess to a petite table in the corner of a booth where we were given menus and the impression that we would be well taken care of. A note: deciphering the little piece of cardstock requires either an intimate knowledge of French and Italian cooking or a smartphone. We had the latter.
To start, we ordered the brandade with herbs and grilled country bread ($14), an emulsion of salted white cod, potatoes and olive oil broiled and decorated with lemon and chives. It was well salted — not aggressively, but confidently — and the lemon sung out like sour sunshine. Credit must also be given to the supporting actor, a charred and self-assured sourdough who contributed a welcome bitterness.
Appearing next was the kohlrabi caesar, bluefish boquerones, croutons and parmigiano ($14). Unlike most caesars — famously bombs of savory salinity — Oberlin’s version was, above all things, refreshing and light. Ribbons of shaved kohlrabi were folded into pleats and relaxed into a thin dressing. The parmesan was mild and milky. Coarsely ground peppercorns acted as little exclamation points which, when stumbled upon, delivered a warm heat.
All of a sudden, our entrees appeared. Up first was the pizzoccheri with braised Vermont pheasant, potato, leek, egg yolk and caciocavallo ($28). Multisyllabic name aside, it really did look like a bowl of unassuming slop. Thankfully, the Lombardic pasta dish made up for its appearance in taste. The broth was remarkable — deeply savory and underlined with the flavor of leeks. Fresh pasta, pieces of pheasant and little cubes of potato were folded throughout. I’m not sure what exactly they’re doing to the pheasants up north, but this one was not too gamey and tasted mostly like chicken.
Next, we turned our attention to the large platter taking up our table. This was the roasted bone-in halibut stew, mussels, chorizo fish sausage and swiss chard (dinner special). The halibut had been seared off and was haloed by segments of pink beet, mussels, coins of chorizo and mounds of chard. Chorizo, usually the punchiest thing on a plate, was surprisingly outshone by the broth which bordered on being too salty. I’m sure a whole bowl would have overwhelmed a small mammal.
Once our bowls had cleared, an apple tart arrived to escort us on to the meal’s sweet finale. Accompanied by a rose geranium ice cream, the tart was sticky with toffee and caramelized apples. The pastry was undeniably flaky and heady with the aroma of butter. The ice cream had an assertive tang like frozen yogurt, but neither me nor my dining partner could detect any rose and geranium. Furthermore, it was a little icy.
At this point, the movie in the corner had played through twice, and the sound of voices had softened. We lingered, never feeling rushed by our server and marinating in the honeyed light.
Oberlin offers a fine dining experience to its patrons. For better or worse, the obscure words on the menu and the $14 plate of vegetables made it feel sophisticated; however, it was the truly delicious food that made the meal special.
Service: attentive
Sound level: conversational
Recommended dishes: brandade with herbs and grilled country bread, pizzoccheri with braised Vermont pheasant, potato, leek, egg yolk and caciocavallo
Hours: Dinner Thursday-Monday 5 p.m.-10:30 p.m., Brunch Saturday-Sunday 11 a.m.-2:30 p.m.
Price Range: Appetizers $10-18, Entrees $20-75, Dessert $8-16
Wheelchair accessibility: wheelchair accessible
★★★★/5.
Eleanor Barth Wu’26 can be reached at eleanor_barth_wu@brown.edu. Please send responses to this column to letters@browndailyherald.com and other opinions to opinions@browndailyherald.com.
