Where do I begin about Cornerstone? This is a little restaurant in Swansea that we've passed by many times, but had never been in. The parking lot is rarely full (actually almost always empty) and I think I found out why. Laura, myself, and young ... more

Where do I begin about Cornerstone? This is a little restaurant in Swansea that we've passed by many times, but had never been in. The parking lot is rarely full (actually almost always empty) and I think I found out why. Laura, myself, and younger daughter, Mallory, went there one Saturday morning for a nice breakfast. We didn't get it. I ordered scrambled eggs, toast, and coffee. Mallory ordered the same, but with a side of bacon. Laura ordered strawberry topped pancakes. First of all, the waitress we had that morning really didn't want to be there. She shuffled over to us, dragging her feet, took our order and other than bringing our food and check - that was the last time we ever saw her. My so-called bottomless cup of coffee bottomed out. Not once did she come to refill it. It was a long wait to get our food, and when we finally did, it must have been sitting around for a while. Everything was kind of cold. Actually, Mallory's bacon seemed like it just came out of the refrigerator. It was cooked, but ice cold. Laura's pancakes with the "fresh strawberry topping" had no fresh strawberries. It was strawberry jam. Sticky and sweet, it was spread all over the top. Our toast was luke warm, the eggs were luke warm - it was a horrible breakfast. We would have complained, except our waitress never came back. Disgusted, we left most of it there and waited for our check. And waited .... and waited ... When we finally caught her eye, she slumped back over with our check. We were so disgusted, we just paid and left. Thinking back on it, we really should have complained, but we just wanted to get out of there. Never again! PS - Their bakery sells really good Portuguese sweet bread. VISIT US ON THE WEB AT WWW.NEWENGLANDBITES.COM. less

The only reason that Benjamin's got one star from us is because they wouldn't let us in. Laura and I had heard about this place and decided to go one Saturday afternoon for lunch. When we got there, we saw that the restaurant was very large a ... more

The only reason that Benjamin's got one star from us is because they wouldn't let us in. Laura and I had heard about this place and decided to go one Saturday afternoon for lunch. When we got there, we saw that the restaurant was very large and beautiful. There were a ton of cars in the parking lot. Our only concern was that we'd have to wait long for a table. No need to worry! We went in and walked over to the hostess desk. We didn't see any people waiting around, so we thought we'd have a good chance of getting right in. We told the hostess, "Two please." She said, "What party are you here for?" We said, "What?" I then said, "We're here for lunch, " and that's when she informed us that they don't do lunches on Saturday afternoons. It's all parties. Well, great. That didn't help our hunger any. Laura and I left, dejected, hungry, and mad at Benjamin's. We don't like being told that we can't have food. So, although the food may be great, we don't know. They just got one star for their attitude. VISIT US ON THE WEB AT WWW.NEWENGLANDBITES.COM! less

On our first visit to Bella Roma, we had a five star experience. We arrived at early dinner time and helped ourselves to the soup and salad bar. Everything was hot, fresh and delicious. The cheerful waitress brought over a loaf of nice hot Italian br ... more

On our first visit to Bella Roma, we had a five star experience. We arrived at early dinner time and helped ourselves to the soup and salad bar. Everything was hot, fresh and delicious. The cheerful waitress brought over a loaf of nice hot Italian bread to our table, which we throughly enjoyed with our soup and salad. The salad bar was tremendous; lots to choose from. For our entrees Laura had stuffed shells in broccoli alfredo sauce, which she declared to be delicious. I had angel hair pasta bolonase, which was also delicious. Both dishes were served hot and they were plentiful. We couldn't wait to go back. However, on our second visit, we were very disappointed. We arrived near closing time (which we didn't know they closed at 8 p.m. on Wednesdays) but were promptly seated and again took our place at the soup and salad bar and everything was delicious as usual. We ordered our entrees and we both had the Italian platter special ($10.95) which consisted of two manicotti, two stuffed shells, half dozen ravioli and two meatballs. It certainly was a bargain. Laura's food arrived and she found parts of it to be an uneven temperature. Parts were steaming; parts were luke warm/hot. My meal, however, was not even luke warm. It seemed to me that it has been put into the microwave to heat it up and it wasn't heated long enough. The meatballs in both our meals were ICE cold. We were very disappointed. Also, the strawberry shortcake that was supposed to be part of our meal was never given to us and we left a little disappointed. I would give Bella Roma another try because of our wonderful experience the first time. I'd definitely try not to go near closing time, but I think it deserves a second chance. less

I am in love with this place! We went for the first time for Laura's 28th birthday and I know we'll definitely be back. The restaurant is in the middle of historic Newport right on busy Thames Street. You have to go up a small flight of stair ... more

I am in love with this place! We went for the first time for Laura's 28th birthday and I know we'll definitely be back. The restaurant is in the middle of historic Newport right on busy Thames Street. You have to go up a small flight of stairs to reach it and if you're lucky enough to get the window city you can watch the busy goings on on Thames Street while you eat. It's a BYOB restaurant, but there is a little package store right around the corner. If you decide to go get a bottle of wine, Lucia's will provide you with the glasses to enjoy yourself. This is authentic Italian cooking. The menu is small but diverse. We started with a pepperoni bruschetta which was hot and delicious. Then Laura had manicotti which she found to have one of the best sauces she ever tasted. I had the farfalli bolonase and it was outstanding. We shared a piece of chocolate mousse and marscapone cake and two cappuccinos. Everything was outstanding. I like the way the waiter brought over a large platter showing us the various desserts they had for us to choose from. The whole experience was really pleasant. The restaurant is small, intimate and you feel like you're in an Italian trattoria. A very cute, relaxing, delicious place to have lunch or dinner and I can't wait to go back! less

Although I haven't eaten here yet, my daughter Laura orders here when she's at her office in Taunton. She loves their buffalo chicken salad and they have a very tasty stuffed jalapeno appetizer. She's also had a Greek salad and a cheesebu ... more

Although I haven't eaten here yet, my daughter Laura orders here when she's at her office in Taunton. She loves their buffalo chicken salad and they have a very tasty stuffed jalapeno appetizer. She's also had a Greek salad and a cheeseburger meal from Pepperoni's and they were both delicious. They have a good sized menu and I'm sure she'll be going back for more delicious lunches. less

This cute little shop in Portsmouth, RI, has some great homemade gelato. They have many unusual flavors to choose from and it's all made on the premises. The man who owns it learned how to make the gelato from frequent trips to Italy and he impor ... more

This cute little shop in Portsmouth, RI, has some great homemade gelato. They have many unusual flavors to choose from and it's all made on the premises. The man who owns it learned how to make the gelato from frequent trips to Italy and he imported a lot of his machinery from there. The gelatos come in three sizes and I tried to choose a different flavor each time I go. I haven't been disappointed yet. less

Watch out for the small size! A small size is nearly a pint of ice cream. I've never had the nerve to even look at the large. Simcock Farm is a nice little dairy stand in the backroads of Swansea, MA. A little difficult to find but well worth the ... more

Watch out for the small size! A small size is nearly a pint of ice cream. I've never had the nerve to even look at the large. Simcock Farm is a nice little dairy stand in the backroads of Swansea, MA. A little difficult to find but well worth the drive. It is in a quaint little setting with dairy cows in the back and homemade ice cream inside. They have lots of flavors to choose from for such a small place and each one is absolutely delicious, and you sure get bang for your bucks! They are very generous. less

Typical pizza delivery place, also carrying great grinders. As a matter of fact, we tend to like the grinders more than the pizza. Also have a few typical appetizers and a few pasta dishes. Pretty good for a quick dinner when you're too busy to c ... more

Typical pizza delivery place, also carrying great grinders. As a matter of fact, we tend to like the grinders more than the pizza. Also have a few typical appetizers and a few pasta dishes. Pretty good for a quick dinner when you're too busy to cook. less