The Best Seafood Restaurants in Rhode Island
From restaurants to markets to chefs' recipes, here are our favorite ways to get our seafood fix in the Ocean State.
Off the Charts
Ask your fishmonger for these local fish species.
1. Black Sea Bass
AKA: Sea bass, blackfish, rock bass, black bass, tallywag
Seasonality: Year-round; Peak: Jan.–Feb., May, July, Nov.
Taste: Mild, somewhat delicate
Color: Snow white when cooked
Texture: Tender but firm
2. Scup
AKA: Porgy, maiden, fair maid, Ironsides, Northern porgy
Seasonality: Year-round; Peak: April–June
Taste: Mild
Color: White
Texture: Lean and flaky
3. Striped Sea Robin
AKA: Triglidae
Seasonality: May–Oct.
Taste: Mild, sweet flavor
Color: White
Texture: Firm, slightly flaky
4. Longfin Squid
AKA: Loligo squid, winter squid, Boston squid, longfin inshore squid
Seasonality: Year-round
Taste: Mild, slightly sweet
Color: Opaque white
Texture: Firm
5. Spiny Dogfish
AKA: Dogfish shark, Cape dogfish, Cape shark, spring dogfish, spiked dogfish, grayfish
Seasonality: Year-round
Taste: Mild and sweet
Color: White when cooked
Texture: Flaky but firm
6. Tautog
AKA: Blackfish
Seasonality: Year-round; Peak: April–May, Oct.–Nov.
Taste: Delicate, sweet
Color: White
Texture: Firm, dry
7. Monkfish
AKA: Goosefish, monktails, angler, fishing frog, allmouth, molligut, abbot, sea-devil, lotte
Seasonality: Year-round; Peak: Jan.–July, Oct.–Dec.
Taste: Mild, slightly sweet
Color: White
Texture: Tail meat is firm and dense
8. Summer Flounder
AKA: Flounder, fluke, Northern fluke, hirame
Seasonality: Year-round; Peak: Feb.–Aug., Nov.–Dec.
Taste: Delicate flavor
Color: White
Texture: Flaky and fine
9. Winter Skate
AKA: Skate, big skate, spotted skate, eyed skate
Seasonality: Year-round
Taste: Mild, flavor similar to scallops
Color: Off-white
Texture: Firm and stringy (striated wings)
10. Quahog
AKA: Hard clam, quahog, round clam, chowder clam
Seasonality: Year-round
Taste: Flavorful, salty
Color: Pinkish
Texture: Firm
Credits: Illustrations provided by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration at fishwatch.gov. Content provided by Commercial Fisheries Research Foundation from a variety of sources.
