Cranston, Rhode Island
Sometimes everyone needs a little Italian.
And if there's one thing Suit 420 is good at, it's gettin' some!
Food, that is.
And on my recent trip to Rhode Island, the place where it all went down was Marchetti's.
Marchetti's is owned by brothers David and Donald Marchetti, and it has been around for over twenty yeas.
Now, if you've ever seen the movie "The Departed," Marchetti's is the type of place that the mob bosses would have hung out at while they consumed their alcohol and planned their next crime.
And one of the owners, David, looks like a mob boss.
The inside is dark, and there's old gangster pictures all over the place.
As for the food?
I'll never be able to go to an Olive Garden or Macaroni Grill again.
When I arrived, the place was jam packed, so I put in for a table, and headed off to the bar while I waited.
This is where I became really impressed.
Marchetti's had martini's for $2.85 a pop.
In fact, while I waited on my table, I downed two martinis, and one glass of wine, and was able to pay for it for under ten bucks.
Not bad, I thought. It's always a plus when you can get out of an Italian restaurant with both arms and legs attached and no kneecaps busted.
Someone at the bar told me they used to serve box wine by the glass for $1.10. Nice.
After my three drinks, Suit 420 had a little buzz going on.
Of course, being Suit 420, I had a buzz when I walked in the door -- but that's a different buzz.
Pretty much this is how everything was looking to old Suit 420 at that point.
It wasn't too long before the waitress took me to a table and handed me a menu.
Wow.
Was there anything they didn't have. And could it get any LESS expensive?
Appetizers included Garlic Bread, Fired Calamari, Clams Casino, Stuffies, Chicken Wings and many others.
And the highest priced appetizer was 7.95 -- the Calamari -- which I ordered.
Marchetti's also has $5.95 sandwiches, ranging from meatball, sausage with cheese, sirloin steak or grilled chicken.
Impressive, I thought.
But I wanted a full meal, so I ordered the Veal Parmesan.
Based on the prices, I was a little worried perhaps it might not be the greatest.
After all, there's no such thing as cheap and good . . . right?
As I waited, I downed a few more martinis, and checked out the scenery.
There are literally old mafia/jazz-like pictures everywhere.
I saw Sinatra. Dean. Connick, Jr.
And, of course, Elvis.
It wasn't too long before my calamari arrived.
And I must say, it was delicious. The calamari wasn't overcooked. It wasn't chewy. And the breading didn't overpower the fresh, salty flavor of the seafood.
Not much later, the Veal Parmesan arrived.
It was good, but I decided shortly thereafter I definitely should have ordered the chicken instead.
Suit 420 just likes chicken.
That's the Southerner in me. What can I say?
I managed to finish most of my meal, but couldn't quite get it all down.
But all in all, it was a good meal. A dadgum good meal.
I walked -- or partially stumbled thanks to six martinis -- out of Marchetti's with a full stomach.
And best of all, my wallet wasn't hurting after this meal either.
On the way out, I couldn't help but think about the movie The Departed again.
Suit420 was now full and feening a smoke. Where were my Yankee friends now, I thought.
I was tempted to seek some mafia smoke connections, but decided I didn't want to end up dead in a dumpster -- not yet anyways.
Rating: Seriously Thought About Buying the Shirt.
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