All New England Books

‘CASH MOB’ FLOCKS TO SPARKY’S CONEY ISLAND SYSTEM IN EFFORT TO SAVE STRUGGLING DINER



   
 Journal Staff Writer 

EAST PROVIDENCE — Until George “Sparky” Watts went public with his money worries, he was just another struggling small businessman.
But if he has many more lunchtimes like the one he had Saturday, he might have to rename his diner the Golden Weenie.
A “cash mob” flooded into Sparky’s Coney Island System diner from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., buying paper plates full of hot wieners and other food items in a concerted effort to save his bacon. Most of the wiener sales appeared to be “all the way,” meaning topped with mustard, meat sauce, chopped onions and celery salt.
Standing behind the counter of the diner, a fixture on Taunton Avenue near City Hall since the 1940s, he fought to maintain his emotional composure.
Sparky, 58, a Riverside native who proclaims himself “a Townie, red and white all the way through,” marveled as his 55 seats filled up and then some.
“I’m making a lot of new friends,” he declared.
A cash mob is a group of people who buy en masse from a merchant at a particular time, reminiscent of another phenomenon of the social media age, the “flash mob.” A flash mob, recruited through social media such as instant-messaging, generally gathers to dance in public, or for another kind of performance.
A campaign to save Sparky began when he confided to a loyal customer, Janis Mooradian, that he probably would have to close because business had been so poor.
It would be a sad end for the Coney Island System diner, better known for its former proprietor, the late civic leader James T. Kanelos, who employed Sparky as a young man.
Mooradian, who lives “around the corner” and has marketing experience, would have none of it. She already was a big fan of the Little Rhody wieners from Rhode Island Provisions that Sparky serves up, periodically shipping a boxful in dry ice to her brother in Las Vegas.
“I pulled a Gordon Ramsay on him,” she said Saturday, in reference to the Scottish restaurant turnaround expert known for his tough-love approach on the TV reality show “Hell’s Kitchen.”
She had the diner repainted and began plotting a more extensive re-do, had him begin printing T-shirts with a wiener logo and pressed him to broaden and upgrade his menu selections. Sparky installed a new point-of-sale terminal so he could accept charge cards and expanded his days of operation to Sunday.
“We have to keep Sparky’s,” Mooradian said. “He’s a neighborhood staple.”
After Sparky complained about the plight of small business on his Facebook page and when he was interviewed on TV, he was noticed by Edward Doyle, information technology director for a manufacturing company. Sparky said that despite his 18-year proprietorship of the diner, he had been unable to get a loan to provide working capital.
Doyle, a candidate for the Democratic nomination for the state representative seat in Johnston now held by Democrat Deborah A. Fellela, created a bipartisan team with Rep. Doreen M. Costa, R-North Kingstown.
They made the diner a cause célèbre on Facebook and cooked up Saturday’s promotional event. The effort helps someone in need and, secondarily, draws attention from the State House, Doyle said.
“He’s a symbol,” Doyle said. “We’ve got to fight to keep small businesses in Rhode Island.


The unfairness of it all


Zagat Names Rhode Island’s ‘Official’ Sandwich

Tracey Minkin, GoLocalProv Features Editor


 We love them, and now Zagat has named them Rhode Island's state sandwich... the hearty Italian Grinder.
Rhode Island may be best known for stuffies, gaggas and coffee milk, but now, it's got an official sandwich: the Italian Grinder. At least that's the pronouncement of Zagat, the well-known restaurant rating guide.
In honor of August being national sandwich month, Zagat set out to name one classic sandwich for every state in the union, and for Rhode Island, the honor fell squarely on the humble, but never bland, grinder.
Of course, the Zagat editors felt it necessary to interpret the moniker. "In case you were confused, a grinder is the same as a hoagie, or a hero, or a submarine sandwich," they say. "Basically, it’s a long, soft white roll stuffed with thinly sliced meat, lettuce, tomatoes and condiments. An Italian grinder traditionally consists of hot capicola, pepperoni, genoa salami, provolone cheese, iceberg lettuce, tomatoes, mayonnaise and Italian dressing."
Zagat gives a special grinder shout-out to Hudson Street Deli in Providence, "where they make their grinders in two sizes, large or extra large."
What sandwiches were crowned the state special in New England's other 5 states?
Connecticut: Connecticut-Style Hot Lobster Roll

"While many consider the cold, mayonnaise-driven Maine lobster roll to be the quintessential version of the sandwich, the first lobster roll was actually a hot, buttered one served at a restaurant called Perry’s in Milford, Connecticut, in the 1920s," according to Zagat, sending the curious (and hungry) to Abbott’s Lobster in the Rough in Noank. "They take the simplicity of the Connecticut-style hot lobster roll and turn it into an art form." 

Fork in the Rhode names 51 restaurants for RI NY System wiener

 


Fork in the Rhode, a local RI food blog, says Stykee's New York System on Elmwood Avenue in Cranston offers the best wiener in the state. It  was named one of the 10 best places in the state to get a NY System wiener. A total of 51 restaurants were visited by judges, who ordered the dogs "all the way." (meat sauce, chopped onion, mustard and celerey salt)

Here's the blog's top 10 list in full:
Cosmic Steak, Pizza & Weiners
1141 Post Road
Warwick

Dot’s Dairy Bar & Grille
1476 Newport Ave.
Pawtucket

Jesse's N.Y. System
710 Main St.
West Warwick

Liberty Lunch
732 Central Ave.
Pawtucket

New York Lunch
8 Main St.
Woonsocket

Olneyville N.Y. System
18 Plainfield St.
Providence

Rod’s Grill
6 Washington St.
Warren

Stykee's New York System
1617 Elmwood Ave.
Cranston

Timmy's Restaurant
644 W Shore Road
Warwick

Weiner Genie
80 Higginson Ave.
Lincoln

ALL THE OTHERS


Athenian Deli & Restaurant 1242 Oaklawn Ave           Cranston

Athens Pizza House 1 Austin Ave            Greenville

Barbara’s Place        77 North Main St.    Woonsocket

Ben’s Chili Dogs      158 Broadway           Newport

Bucci’s Café   37 Main Street         Lincoln

Chepachet Deli         842 Putnam Pike    Chepachet

Coffee King   66 Fountain Street  Providence

Connie and Nikki’s Restaurant    526 Pawtucket Ave. Pawtucket

Ferrucci’s Original New York System     1246 Main Street, Arctic    West Warwick

George’s Grill New York System  716 Reservoir Avenue         Cranston

George’s Pizza ‘N Pub         60 Main St    Pascoag

Indigo Pizza Lounge           599 Tiogue Ave        Coventry

John’s New York System   827 Park Ave.           Cranston

John’s New York Systems 326 Cranston Street            Providence

Kingston Pizza         1283 Kingstown Road         Peacedale

Kip’s Restaurant      826 Newport Ave     Pawtucket

Little Rhody Brand Frankfurts    5 Day Street  Johnston

Lumber-Jacks-Pizza ‘n Wieners   1402 Victory Hwy    North Smithfield

M & M New York System Restaurant      361 Waterman Ave  East Providence

Moonlight House of Weiners       32 Rathburn Street Woonsocket

North Kingstown House of Pizza 6170 Post Rd North Kingstown

Norwood Grill          1325 Post Rd.            Warwick

Oak St. B&B  87 Oak Street           Westerly

Oatley’s Family Restaurant           171 Ten Rod Road    North Kingstown

Original New York System            424 Smith Street     Providence

Peter’s Coney Island System         2298 West Shore Rd.          Warwick

Plouffe’s Cup n Saucer        267 Main St  Pawtucket

Poppy’s Family Restaurant            3344 Mendon Road Cumberland

Quick Rick’s  58 High St     Wakefield

Right Spot Diner      200 South Bend St. Pawtucket

Riverside Kitchen New York System       467 Willett Ave        East Providence

Rod’s Grill     6 Washington Street           Warren

Royal Lunch 1179 Westminster St           Providence

Sam’s New York System    1031 Mineral Spring Ave    North Providence

Sam’s New York System    Sandy Lane   Warwick

Santoro’s Pizza         687 Tiogue Ave        Coventry

Silver Lake Pizza      1146 Main Street      Coventry

Snoopy’s Diner         4001 Quaker Lane   North Kingstown

Sparky’s Coney Island System      122 Taunton Avenue,         East Providence

Taso’s N.Y. System  1500 Atwood Avenue          Johnston

Wein-O-Rama          1009 Oaklawn Avenue       Cranston


Gaggers


Written by Amanda MacArthur | @amaaanda on

If you’re not a Rhode Islander, you might not understand our love for RI weiners, which aren’t just hot dogs with a sexy name and represented by hilarious neon signs that say “hot weiners”.
No, they’re so much more. Wikipedia says it best, although they’re the only ones spelling it with an i before the e around here:
The traditional wiener is made with a small, thin frankfurter made of veal and pork, giving it a different taste from a traditional beef hot dog, served in a steamed bun, and topped with celery salt, yellow mustard, chopped onions, and a seasoned meat sauce (the spices vary by vendor but commonly include cumin, paprika, chili powder, and allspice). A preparation including all of the above is often ordered by patrons as “all the way.”

When I was new to Rhode Island, I even did a little weiner foodtrip and wrote about it for Examiner. They’re also called “gaggers”, which is, you know… er… strange… Rhode Island. Derp.
I haven’t learned the ordering lingo yet, but I think it’s something like “one dog, all the way”. I learned this from an old fella today and I figure he must know what he’s doing by now!

For the complete article go to Buzzfarmers at the link below
http://buzzfarmers.com/buzzfarmers-adventures/best-rhode-island-ri-weiners-ice-cream/