The following listings have been distilled from recent full-length reviews; the date appearing at the end of each entry indicates the month and year of review. Hours, credit-card and liquor information are not included, so be sure to call ahead. And bear in mind that some menus change seasonally.

GOURMET HOUSE, 787 Hope Street, Providence (621-9818). Located in the amiable retail district between the Rochambeau branch library and the Pawtucket line, Gourmet House has developed a following with large portions of inexpensive Chinese and Thai food. The homespun feel of this restaurant, which also offers a smaller selection of Vietnamese and Cambodian dishes, is conveyed with Thai folk art and funky wood paneling in one of the two dining rooms. Nime chow ($2.95), a pair of the Vietnamese fresh rolls filled with lettuce, bean sprouts, minced shrimp and a burst of fresh Asian basil, is a good way to start. The fried ravioli ($4.75), your basic pork pot stickers, are tasty and come with an appealing ginger dipping sauce. The large menu is easy to navigate because of the familiarity of most of the food. Beef ban hoi ($5.75), a Vietnamese dish of seasoned beef strips served with fresh lettuce, bean sprouts, basil, cucumber, vermicelli noodles and a side of peanut sauce, is a real bargain and quite tasty. Some of the Chinese dishes are lackluster, but the Thai side of the menu offers stronger selections, including six winning pad Thais and spicy shrimp with lemongrass ($7.75). To help wash it back, there are five wines by the glass and a good selection of bottled beer. (2/00)

THE LITTLE INN, 103 Putnam Pike (Route 44), Johnston (231-0570). Far from the chichi boites and bistros of Providence, The Little Inn is an unpretentious gem that offers thoroughly enjoyable dining. Endorsed by no less a luminary than Frank Sinatra, the inn features attentive service, plenty of wine by the glass, and an appealing selection of entrees. The dining room is large, with Tiffany-style lampshades and antiquey tchotchkes on wall shelves. Wood-grilled veal tenderloin ($14.95) was tender and delicious. Four jumbo shrimp, instead of the advertised pan-seared sea scallops, turned up with the bucatini ($15.95), fat, hollow spaghetti-like strands, but the dish was still delicious in a lemony sauce with tomatoes and fresh fennel. Farm-raised salmon ($13.95) was a large fillet, grilled with restraint in a delicate champagne and butter sauce. Paparadelle ($13.95), served with a slightly spicy tomato sauce with capers, artichoke hearts, crumbled sweet sausage and pieces of breaded chicken breast, is a concoction worthy of becoming a signature dish. For dessert, lemon mousse with fresh raspberries provided a nice tart-on-tart complement. (1/00)

PHOEBE'S, 663 Fall River Avenue, Seekonk, Massachusetts, (508-336-6295). Phoebe Dunn's delicious fruit pies and the outstanding seafood dishes of her husband, Bro, have been constants here for years. But the service is often frustratingly slow, inconsistent and inattentive. Still, that hasn't stopped people from queuing up outside the door of this tiny place in the summer or packing the dining room in the winter. Customers keep coming because of garden-grown produce, and since the scallops, scrod, oysters and shrimp are so fresh, you'd think there was an ocean dock out back. Phoebe's informal, family-oriented feel is carried through in the BYOB policy. On a recent deep-freeze night, we gravitated toward some warming soup: a cup of carrot ($3), and a bowl of bouillabaisse ($4.50), and both were excellent. The fried squid plate ($8.95) featured a mound of squid rings (no tentacles), capped by slices of banana peppers and a mound of long, thick, nicely browned fries. My partner's only complaint was the missing coleslaw that had been promised in the menu The broiled seafood platter ($15.95) featured almost a dozen scallops, a half-dozen shrimp and a generous fillet of scrod, all in a delicate broth of white wine and garlic, along with a bit of shell pasta and home-fried potatoes. As expected, each item was perfectly cooked. And a slice of apple-raspberry pie ($3.50) showed that whatever the pratfalls in service, Phoebe's pie remains as pleasing as ever. (2/00)

THE RIVER CAFE, 446 River St., Woonsocket (762-1457). Using techniques and comfort food straight from mom's kitchen, this easygoing cafe can cure your winter blahs. The varied menu, includes everything from Sicilian-style pizza ($10) to baked scallops ($6.75), chicken cordon bleu ($6.50), lasagna ($3.99) and coffee cabinets ($2.25). To warm up, we skipped chicken wings ($3.95 for seven, $4.50 for 14) and fried cheese ravioli ($3.50) for a cup of minestrone ($1.50, $2.25 for a bowl), the soup of the day. The hearty concoction was loaded with pieces of carrot, potato and pasta for a delectable homemade taste. A large order of St. Louis pork ribs ($11.25) was large enough to feed two people. The meal came with mashed potatoes with gravy and nicely crisp coleslaw. Lightly coated in a mildly tangy barbecue sauce, the ribs were so expertly cooked that the meat fell off of the bone. And in a fitting choice for a city with a large French-Canadian population, the River Cafe offers a traditional meat pie dinner ($3.99). Served with a crunchy fresh garden salad and a side of baked beans, one pie of seasoned ground beef, wrapped in a flaky butter crust, was the perfect size to satisfy. (2/00)