Bites Nearby: Christopher's

Christopher’s is a family restaurant owned and operated by the LaHousse family located on North Main Street.  They have been in business for more than 25 years. 

The building is designed with three main rooms.  One has a lounge with its own separate entrance. The smaller of the two dining rooms is at the main entrance and has approximately half a dozen booths.  We sat in the larger dining room (the handicap entrance is in here,) which is meant for large parties, such as our party of five. 

The décor is warm and inviting.  There has been some remodeling since my last visit. The wallpaper and simplicity of wall elements, as well as the booth textiles have changed.  I loved the old décor, but this is a welcomed change, making it appear even brighter.  There is ample parking with any overflow allowed across the street to accomodate a maximum of 140 patrons.

My guests and I arrived close to 7 p.m. on Tuesday night.  We were greeted immediately by Holly, who not only showed us to our table, but also acted as our waitress.  She was very pleasant and accommodating.  By the end of the meal, we were like old friends.

After perusing the extensive seven page menu, which included everything from seafood, steaks, poultry, Italian dishes, pizza, burgers, all sizes of sandwiches, meal-size salads, Rhode Islands’ own family style chicken and daily house specialties, as well as appetizers and desserts, we found the back cover to illustrate some of the absolute best dishes on the entire menu.  

Here, we found what was, in our opinion, a secret gem: the Tuesday Combo Specials.  These included an appetizer (five choices,) an entrée (19 choices,) and a dessert (four choices.)  Plus, when you order off the regular menu or choose a special of any sort, you get a choice of soup or salad bar. 

I noticed there were also nightly specials, which were never offered, but to give Holly the benefit of the doubt, we never asked either. There was, of course, a children’s menu for my daughter, offering a variety of typical tasty delights for the youngsters, but unfortunately, there were no crayons and coloring placemats.  (Luckily, however, for once she was content with the four adults she had to endure as company.)

We were given an ample amount of time to make our decisions and ultimately, the four of us all ordered from the Tuesday Combo Specials.  My son ordered the soup while the rest of us chose the salad bar.  The salad bar was clean and continuously being replenished.  The salad fixings were fresh and crisp.  The Italian bread was right from the oven, hot and delicious.  By the time we returned to our table with our salads, my son’s soup was being served.  He said the homemade chicken noodle soup was very satisfying with lots of chunks of tender chicken.

For appetizers, my son chose the mozzarella sticks, my husband ordered the potato skins, and my friend and I had the most luscious French onion soup either of us had ever consumed.  The mozzarella sticks were crispy, not thickly coated, not greasy, and definitely a winner. (My daughter ordered these, which included shoestring fries, and the salad bar for her dinner.)  The potato skins were served with a variety of toppings and had to be equally delicious since they were devoured in minutes.  Note: other than the French onion soup, the appetizers on the Tuesday Combo Specials were of smaller portions, but no one seemed to mind (except maybe my son) with the collection of food still to come.

The entrees could would have been more than enough to eat by themselves.  My friend’s Chicken Sorrentino looked as if it could feed all of us, (or at least two!)  She told me it was like having a real home-cooked meal.  The aroma of the chicken layered with eggplant, spinach, mozzarella cheese and tomato sauce over pasta just penetrated the entire room.  My “meat and potato men” opted for the 10 oz. sirloin steak with 2 sides.  My picky son chose double steak fries, while my husband chose mashed potatoes and corn.  All were definitely enjoyed. 

I chose Holly’s recommendation of the boneless stuffed chicken with sweet potato fries and carrots.  The stuffing melted in my mouth and the chicken tender enough that I could cut it with my fork. It was so juicy, too.  I didn’t even need the side gravy for additional flavor, but it was so hard to resist.  The carrots were hot and the sweet potato fries were practically perfect. 

Time for dessert: would there be any room left?  My son devoured his delicious, creamy chocolate pudding while my daughter had my husband’s dessert.  Her vanilla ice cream with frozen strawberry topping sundae seemed to disappear in mere seconds.  My friend and I had both decided after our salads that we would only be eating a few bites of our dinner, taking the rest of it plus our desserts home but we were only half right.  Once the “hot apple pie” (more like individual apple fortune pastry) with fresh whipped cream arrived, we needed to give it a try. One bite turned into two, two into three, etc.  These apple pies were pure heaven.  Yes, we only brought home our leftover dinners to be enjoyed once again later.

For family dining, Christopher’s presents a great value.

Dinner for five at Christopher’s (four adults and one child)

•  Four 20 oz. soft drinks and one choc milk:  $10.45

•  Child’s cheese stick dinner:  $4.99
•  Four Tuesday Combo Specials @ $12.99 each:  $51.96 (saved $29.52)
• Total bill:  $72.79 (plus tip)

We all agreed that the dinner was worth every penny!

Best bet: try Holly’s recommendation of the boneless stuffed chicken.  Actually any of their chicken dishes are awesome.  You won’t be disappointed.

For the future, Tuesday nights are not the only night where specials are offered.  They offer $1 kid’s meals every Sunday and Wednesday.  On Monday, they offer a variety of specials for “Monday Madness.”  Christopher’s is open seven days a week:  11:30 a.m. -10 p.m. Mon.-Sat., and 12-9 p.m. on Sunday.

In the words of my finicky daughter when asked about her meal “Really Good!”  That’s what we all thought of the overall experience at Christopher’s.  Would I recommend it?  Absolutely!

Christopher’s – tasty food, huge portions, excellent service, family fun atmosphere, convenient and great value!  What’s not to like?  I give it a 5 out of 5 star rating!  *****

Until next time, “Good Eating!”