RESTAURANT BOUCHARD,

Despite the frigid weather, romance was in the air as we stepped into Restaurant Bouchard on a recent Saturday evening. Tiny white lights twined through artificial grapevines in the small-paned side windows and across the imposing wooden mantelpiece. An Old World flavor permeated the two small dining rooms, where most tables have heavy brocade or flowered underskirts, their edges caught up in a round knot to avoid tripping customers. Chairs, in a variety of styles, have wide, upholstered seats. White linens and flowered plates, small pleat-shaded lamps and stems of fragrant Scotch broom completed the feeling of having stepped into a place where we would be pampered. As indeed we were. From the filtered water -- such a necessary alternative to the poor-tasting Newport water -- and the hot-out-of-the-oven homemade rolls to the extra sauce, potato puff, and colorful garnish that were added to my take-home portion of Dover sole, we felt surrounded by a sense of elegance, but not pretentiousness. And that certainly carried over to the food.

Full review.