First Look at the Interior Design for Claudine in Providence
Josh Finger and Maggie McConnell met at Thomas Keller’s three-Michelin-starred Per Se in New York City and are opening their first restaurant together here in Providence.
The Interior of Claudine in Providence. Photos by Maurisa Arieta.
Claudine is officially open in Providence with an exceptional eight-course tasting menu. Located in the former Ellie’s space at 225 Weybossett Street, the restaurant is owned by fine dining restaurant veterans Josh Finger and Maggie McConnell. The couple met at Thomas Keller’s three-Michelin-starred Per Se in New York City, and each went on to broaden their culinary careers in other places, including Momofuku and The French Laundry, then came back together again in the kitchen of the place where they met. McConnell is originally from Providence and the couple loves the city’s culinary scene, which is why they settled on the city for their first restaurant launch.
Claudine is not just a “love letter to New England” and to each other, but “an expression of their shared passion for intentional hospitality, mastery of classic technique, and modern vision of exceptional fine dining in a lively, vibrant setting.” Claudine serves only a signature eight-course, $165 chef’s tasting menu that will evolve each night, with an optional signature $100 wine pairing. Reservations are now available for seatings through August at the Tock link here.
The execution of the elevated fine dining menu and the restaurant design set Claudine apart from restaurants that are already established in Providence. The owners refrain from comparing their restaurant to Per Se, although that is the restaurant where they credit gaining valuable culinary experience. “Our restaurant is more focused on elevating local produce as opposed to sourcing far and wide for luxury ingredients,” Finger says.
An example of a dish at Claudine: celeriac cream crepe cake with Burgundy wine and date puree and Ossetra caviar.
Adds McConnell, “We both trained at Per Se, and we obviously love that food, but we are not making like a mini Per Se here. I’m careful to draw that comparison too closely,” she says. “It’s a tasting menu that’s very comparable to where we previously worked, but it is a little more abbreviated.”
They chose Providence as the location to open their first restaurant because McConnell is a Providence native, and she and Finger made many trips to the city together. They love the culinary scene here, and only hope to add to the sense of camaraderie amongst chefs and restaurants as the Creative Capital adds to its accolades.
To accommodate the theater-going crowd, Claudine opens at 4:30 p.m. on show nights to allow for a ninety-minute to two-and-a-half-hour dining experience, depending on guests’ preference for timing.
There is only one menu per night, but they can accommodate all allergies, execute a vegetarian version, or make slight accommodations for proteins, if necessary, with forty-eight hours notice.
“It’s eight courses, and there’s a bread course on top of that. There’s one menu that is presented to guests each night, and it features various styles of proteins and vegetables, including shellfish, raw fish, cooked fish, various kinds of meat,” says Finger. “There are a couple of selections of dessert. You also have an option to supplement with different types of caviar for an upgrade.”
The menu “evolves daily and incorporate New England’s finest seasonal ingredients.” Expect dishes like bacon chowanmushi with braised greens and trout roe; olive oil poached black bass with Cerignola olive puree, basil pistou and petite cucumbers; Ris de Veau tortellini with roasted lobster cream, morels and Parmigiano Reggiano; duck a la Caesar with Castelfranco chickory, summer squash and sauce anchoiade; and citrus pavlova for dessert.
Wines include low-intervention, old-world varietals. A signature optional $100 wine pairing features daily rotating French varietals based on the current menu selections. There is also a non-alcoholic pairing menu, wine by the bottle, a selection of classic cocktails, and after-dinner digestives and spirits.
“We are thrilled to plant our own roots here in Providence and bring something unique to the city I grew up in, and the one we both love.” Maggie says.
“We’ve been working really hard to make Claudine a very special, inviting space, and we are so excited to finally share it with the community and our neighbors. This city is full of exciting culinary opportunities and innovation, and we are proud to be one part of it,” Josh says.
The design of Claudine is part of the culinary adventure. Interiors were executed by Washington, D.C.-based Edit at Streetsense, including opulent drapery in the windows of the twenty-six-seat space that block off the dining room from the bright lights of the city. Dark green velvet textures, leather, Rosso marble and wood accents abound, however the showstopper is the glowing gilded ceiling. Guests observe chefs cooking in the open kitchen, where they can watch all the action unfold and become part of the culinary adventure.
The Rosso marble countertop is part of the design at Claudine. Florals designed by Bramble Florals. Photo by Maurisa Arieta.
Claudine is open Thursday through Sunday evenings from 4:30 p.m. to midnight, with dinner reservations available from 4:30 to 8:30 p.m. ClaudinePVD.com; @ClaudinePVD
