The chocolate mousse .
engage with diners like matchmakers looking to manifest your dormant dreams . “ You could get the chicken Milanese , which is really done well here ,” Charlie will tell you , “ but I ’ m being honest when I say that the pasta is going to fundamentally change you .” Turns out that young Charlie knows a thing or two .
The single best thing that Viola does is tomato sauce , and if that sounds like a throwdown , it is . This is a kitchen that believes wholeheartedly in reduction and , as a result , every version of sauce is aggres- sive and rewarding . Bolognese is so intense as to take center stage , even when paired with housemade gnocchi ($ 31 ) and strong enough to make room for both mozzarella and Parmesan without giving up the limelight . Even the Amatriciana ($ 25 ) — with red wine and pancetta — is ultimately a distillation of tomato , hearty and multi-layered .
And if you ’ re looking for a culinary cause , consider a pitch to the kitchen to move the lasagna from the specials board to the menu . It ’ s worth a full commit . In this case , it ’ s served as a trio of pinwheels , and though there ’ s bechamel and ricotta involved , it ’ s a dish that remains all about the sauce , punctuated with housemade sausage and crisped bits of pasta .
For those at odds with carbs , lean toward the veal and peas ($ 14 ), which is swimming in a rich hunter ’ s-style sauce . It ’ s an appetizer for now , though one guy , seated at the bar , said he would order a triple portion for his next dinner as an homage to his Italian grandfather . ( Sounds right .)
That ’ s not to say that the kitchen doesn ’ t have a delicate side . Crispy sea bass is served with sunchokes and a mellow tapenade ; swordfish is paired with lemon butter and capers . There are pastas with no tomatoes — one night a tagliatelle with truffle butter , prosciutto and leeks — that place more emphasis on the dough itself . Or you can opt for a Caesar salad with meatballs , which is as good a memory of old-school Italy as any . Even the bone-in veal Parm , which is pounded thin and hangs over its plate like a hubcap , manages to eat light enough to order without ( too much ) shame .
It ’ s no surprise that Viola has quickly become the neighborhood favorite , but there are always a few diners who have traveled from other parts of the state . The center family table seats eight , which is a healthy dose of the whole dining room , and is regularly filled with relatives or friends — with the age gap easily spanning sixty years .
Each generation is happy to call this place their own , though , and in a short period of time , the nightly amalgam of people has quickly grown into a collective , good-willed family which is looked after by Poissant ’ s wife , Ali , who runs the bar . Banter is enthusiastic and , though there ’ s little protection from the front door ’ s burst of cold air , most of the group stays around for dessert .
If Viola is forceful in its savory dishes , the mood shifts to buoyant ebullience when it comes to sweets . Cream is the go-to ingredient and it ’ s whipped into various manifestations of nostalgia . Tiramisu is not novel but it ’ s sublime , a thick wedge of coffee-tinged mascarpone topped with a dusting of cocoa heavy enough to cut through the sugar . The chocolate mousse tastes like unadulterated childhood , impossibly light and sweet and topped with flourless chocolate cake crumbles .
But if you ’ ve sized yourself up to be more mature in taste , Poissant ’ s brought his mother ’ s carrot cake into play and it ’ s as good as the staff proclaims . It ’ s full of bourbon-soaked currants instead of raisins and just a shmear of cream cheese frosting on top and below the cube of cake . It ’ s as much pudding as it is solid , with more than a passing resemblance to a steamed British sweet served in a Dickens novel . The reference will mean something to an older generation and set completely on the very young — but that ’ s certainly Viola ’ s appeal . It ’ s a lyrical and emphatic expression of Italy that manages to speak to ages across the spectrum . 🆁
94 RHODE ISLAND MONTHLY I FEBRUARY 2025