Review: Chapel Grille

(TV Diner) - For years, the people of Rhode Island had been hearing about Chapel Grille, a new restaurant being built in Cranston. It finally opened in December, and it's been packed with customers every night since then.

And this is not a small restaurant. It's huge! It's designed to look like a finely appointed English manor with separate dining areas, a very cool onyx bar, and a terrace for outdoor dining in warm weather.

The attention to detail is amazing, starting with the basket of warm breads and not one, but four bottles of olive oil from California, Greece, Italy, and Spain. Everything on the menu is extraordinary. For example, the Caprese Salad is elevated to a higher level with the use of burrata cheese, red ripe tomatoes, fresh basil and a sprinkling of black lava salt. The Baby Clam Pizza is a decadent combination of seaside flavors, spinach and caramelized shallots.

By all means, try one of the pasta courses, which are available in half portions. We recommend the Marsala Buttered Pappardelle with tiny veal meatballs and a dusting of Parmigiano Reggiano.

For the main event, you just can't beat the massive Braised Lamb Shank, falling off the bone and served over fregola sarda, which is a Sardinian pasta that has a nutty flavor. Scallop lovers will go crazy over the New Bedford Sea Scallops, done simply with a drizzle of Meyer lemon and olive nectar.

Desserts are pretty special, too, at the Chapel Grille. The Chocolate Layer Cake is a generous serving of dark chocolate ganache, fudge icing and chocolate crunch. The Tropical Cheesecake with its vanilla-roasted pineapple and mango compote, was wonderful - we just wish there had been more than the tiny serving placed before us.

So it's no surprise that this big, beautiful restaurant is filled every night with curious food lovers. And maybe that's why we found the service to be very slow. Our waiter always seemed to be busy with other tables. With that in mind, we feel we must give the Gold Plate to the Chapel Grille.

Appetizers range from $6 to $17. Entrees run from $14 to $33. Desserts are $6 to $8 each.

The Chapel Grille is located at 3000 Chapel View Blvd. in Cranston, R.I. It is open every night of the week for dinner. There's plenty of free parking in the area. For more information, call 401-944-4900, or visit www.chapelgrilleri.com.