Review: Temple Downtown

Published June 2, 2010 at 11:12 p.m.
From graffiti to Gorgonzola
Temple Downtown certainly has gone through changes...

Temple Downtown certainly has gone through changes.

Temple Downtown  120 Francis St, Providence  401.919.5050 Open Monday-Thursday,6:30 am-10 pm; Friday, 6:30 am-11 pm; Saturday, 7:30 am-11 pm; Sunday, 7:30 am-9 pm Major Credit Cards Full Bar Sidewalk-level access

As a place to grab a bite before catching a performance at the VMA Arts and Cultural Center next door, its previous incarnation boldly acknowledged its earlier condition as, well, a derelict building. Three years ago, local graffiti artists were invited to tag the walls here and there, just as many had done over its nearly eight decades of abandonment. When it was constructed in 1926 as a Masonic temple, only the elegant Greek revival façade was completed before money ran out. Reborn as a restaurant, vestiges remained only in some silly drink names, such as Scottish Rite and Mason's Jar.

Nowadays the self-consciousness is gone along with the graffiti. As befits entering the restaurant through the posh lobby of the Renaissance Providence Hotel, the decor is pleasant to the eye, informal but attractive, with orange curtains at the windows, and fat faux candles on hanging trays that serve as chandeliers.

There is now a decidedly Mediterranean flavor to the menu. The executive chef is David Cardell, and he has consulted with celebrity chef Joyce Goldstein, who has written more than 20 cookbooks on Mediterranean cuisines. Cardell says he's big on not masking flavors.

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