COAST

Positively heavenly!!!!!
Love it

Very nice, but snooty

If you were to ask me to name my most surprisingly excellent meal in this past year of many memorable meals, I'd easily say COAST. I suspected COAST was going to be good, but I was not expecting it would be among the top 5 dégustations I had in 2017.

COAST is a new fine dining restaurant located inside the iconic Ocean House seaside resort in Rhode Island's southernmost community -- the "old money" summer colony of Watch Hill. Like the community around it, COAST is restrained in its projection of opulence, preferring a quiet and sensible splendor to a louder, self-indulgent ambience. So too would I describe the reticent grace of my waitress, Stephanie, my dependable guide through an unforgettable evening of eating and drinking.

As for the food, my 6-course fall prix fixe menu at COAST featured many great dishes, but the clear highlight was the magnificent Atlantic Monkfish, which was covered with shaved Alba white truffles. Aside from the perfectly-cooked monkfish sauteéd in shallot butter, I consumed a plethora of powerful flavors and contrasting textures off my plate, including crispy pancetta, rich creamy beans, tart red beet sauce, and musky truffles, all perfectly balanced but diverse such that each successive forkful competed with the previous one for the best thing I tasted that day.

I also had two "raw" plates that were equally outstanding. I was delighted by the cleanness and clarity of flavor from the oyster liquor in the East Beach Blonde Oyster, and I was similarly pleased with the Nantucket Bay Scallop ceviche, featuring supple slices of local scallop in a tart golden pool that transformed into a tantalizing "leche de tigre" as I ate it.

My experience at the Chef's counter allowed me a kitchen-side seat to observe the culinary magicians at COAST work their craft. Since it was not very busy on the Sunday night I attended COAST, I was able to engage with Kyle in the kitchen, a friendly cook who indulged me with excellent explanations as to what was going on, where ingredients were sourced from, local dining scene gossip, and all topics epicurean in general. I loved the enthusiasm that Kyle had for his work -- for example, his excitement about the rutabega purée used with the lamb dish (and for good reason -- it was dank!) and the process they use to make the ceviche. I had the opportunity to witness the level of care and detail that goes into creating these high-end dishes close-up, from Kyle tilting his pan almost vertically and rapidly butter-basting my monkfish in what he defined for me to be "angry butter" to Chef Backman herself finishing the dish by delicately and precisely placing shaved Italian truffles on it.

As someone who has dined at 6 of the 40 Forbes "5 Star" restaurants in the U.S. this year, I can say affirmatively that COAST absolutely belongs on that exclusive list of the country's best fine dining enterprises. I look forward to visiting COAST as the seasons turn so I can more fully experience this kitchen's ever-changing menu.

NOTE: Please be warned that Uber and Lyft rideshares are not widely operated in the Watch Hill area. I ended up getting a very costly cab back to Providence, which COAST's maître d' helped me with. You'll want to pre-arrange transportation out of Watch Hill -- and you definitely don't want to try to drive if you order the wine pairing.