Gian Carlo's Ristorante

In the state's French-Canadian capital, an Italian restaurant thrives

by Dawn Keable

153 Hamlet Ave., Woonsocket, 765-3711
Open Tues-Sat, 5-10 p.m.
Sun, 2-8 p.m.
Fri, 11:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m.
Major credit cards
Sidewalk access

My hairdresser, Donna, has an amazing talent outside of taming my thick mane. Give her the name of a town and she'll come up with the best Italian restaurant in it -- all included in the price of a trim. Even the French-Canadian city of Woonsocket didn't stump her. She'd heard of a relatively new place, Gian Carlo's Ristorante, and thought it would be perfect for my boyfriend, Andre, and I to check out. You don't argue with someone holding scissors.

From Providence, the trip to Gian Carlo's was only about 20 minutes of straight highway driving. But once inside, we could have easily convinced ourselves that we had boarded a plane and traveled through several time zones to reach our destination. The dining area, with its gilt-framed artwork and period curios, has a distinct European feel. Dim lighting and softly playing jazz adds to its ambiance. And with delectable scents wafting from the open grill area, we were ready to eat.

Thankfully, our table had a basket of fresh Italian bread to curb our ravenous appetite. If only we hand't refused the accompanying extra virgin olive oil. You see, I thought that when the waiter said "extra," he meant more -- as in "a lot of," not "This is the only condiment I have to offer you."

But, anyway, Andre solved the problem by asking for butter and then impressing me with his table manners by grasping a slab with his bare hands. He claims he thought they were wrapped. Sure, must have been the lighting.

Fortunately, his eyesight, along with his knife and fork, returned in time for the appetizer. We ordered "Bruschetta Pomodoro" ($5.95). Yup, more Italian bread, but these two pieces were lightly toasted, rubbed with olive oil and garlic, then topped with fresh basil, Mozzarella, and circles of overlapping fresh plum tomatoes.

For our main course, we each chose one of the nightly specials. Andre, a lover of the good life, had the shrimp and scallop dish ($18.95). And this time, I'm pretty sure that he didn't realize that, once again, he had chosen the most expensive entrée on the menu, because our waitress hadn't rattled off the prices with the dinner descriptions. Regardless, his dinner was worth every penny.

The featured attraction was two grilled shrimp-and-scallop kabobs, expertly seasoned with a light hand to let the natural flavors shine. But that's not all. They were accompanied by a colorful grilled red pepper half, fresh greens in a balsamic vinaigrette dressing, and garlic potatoes mashed with the skins on. Not only was his selection delectable, then, but beautiful in its presentation.

I chose "Penne Primavera" ($11.95), a pasta cooked to a perfect al dente firmness and tossed with strips of onions, red and green peppers, and zucchini medallions in a light red sauce with juicy chunks of tomato. The dish, seasoned with fresh basil, was an incredibly flavorful blend of ingredients. And as an added bonus, I had enough for lunch. (Never have leftovers tasted so good.)

Then, just when we thought it couldn't get any better, it was time for dessert. Fork in hand, I had to restrain myself from snatching the huge tray of selections for my own self-imposed taste test, while Andre managed to make the hardest decision of his life -- settling for a single slice of mocha mousse cake ($4.95).

Each of the triple layers of moist chocolate cake was surrounded by a lightly whipped mocha mousse. The confection, topped with a coffee bean, was strong on coffee flavor but so perfectly sweet and light that Andre didn't feel full. (Quite an accomplishment, considering he had completely cleared off every plate set in front of him.)

After several seconds of quiet contemplation, I'd selected the chocolate cream nut torte ($4.95). My reason? A quick calculation of the high ratio of chocolate per square inch. A thick layer of chocolate mousse lined both the bottom and top of the crusty pastry shell, with a fluffy layer of real whipped cream sandwiched in between. A liberal sprinkling of shaved almonds was the finishing touch.

What more could a girl want? In a dessert? In a restaurant? In a hairdresser? At Gian Carlo's, they were all on target.