Oberlin opened up towards the tail end of my time in Providence, and I'm regretful that I haven't spent more time with the more casual seafood and wine-focused offshoot of the excellent tasting menu-only Birch. I found myself in town for a night with literally under an hour for a meal and decided to make it Oberlin. Although the place was getting busy around 7 on a weeknight, I was able to snag a solo bar seat. You won't see too much excitement at the chef's counter, as that's where they're preparing their raw dishes, but watching fish being sliced is soothing. They offer very good by-the-glass selections ($10-15), as well as a serious sake, beer, and cider program. This is not a cocktail place. Had an interesting glass of French natural white, as recommended by the super helpful waiter. Every fish on the raw list that I've had here has been amazing, and they give you a pretty good portion for $10. This time I had tautog, a blackfish that largely eats crustaceans. It was dressed with coarse salt and good olive oil, and had a nice texture and an understated flavor. Brandade ($12) was the bulk of my meal, a rich mashed potato and cod dish served with charred bread. Simple and decadent. Prices are Manhattan-style-- I was out about $45 for two dishes and a glass of wine after tax and tip, which I'd classify as a light dinner. Service is excellent, friendly without being overenthusiastic. Pacing is quick; you can order tapas-style and stretch out your meal if needed. Atmosphere is casual yet refined. A real gem in Providence, provided you've resigned yourself to small portions and high prices. read more

Oberlin - Tautog - New American Near Me - Providence, Rhode Island

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Oberlin is leading the pack in transforming the seafood crudo game. Before going here, I really only enjoyed raw seafood in sushi, and now I'm addicted to their crudos. Why? You have super fresh, local, cuts of fish that are thoughtfully prepared with different oils, sauces, and/or citrus to bring your palate to a minimum of 3 different crazy-awesome places. It's a trip. Can't decide what crudo you want? Grab a combo platter to share with a friend! Planning to grab a drink? They have tons of excellent sakes that pair well with your crudo too. The servers are super knowledgable about pairings and will help guide you! Every pasta dish I've had here is divine. The menu rotates frequently so grab your favorite while you can! The agnolotti is one of my favorites, but the gnocchi with littlenecks is also a work of art. Crispy and toasted on the outside and pillowy soft on the inside. A dream in the form of pasta. There's a reason Oberlin was on Bon Appetit's top 10 new restaurants list in their opening year. Try to get there when they open, otherwise you might have a bit of a wait! But hey, they have a great wine and sake selection to enjoy while waiting so grab a seat at the bar and stay a while ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ read more

Oberlin - Agnolettti - New American Near Me - Providence, Rhode Island

I'm going to be that person whom everyone hates because I'm not going to worship Oberlin. But I don't worship Birch either, so at least I'm consistent. Here are my thoughts. 1. The food is really well-prepared. The flavors of the dishes, every one that we tried, were exceptional. 2. Our server (Sam!) and the hostess (formerly from Chomp!) were super helpful and friendly and they deserve kudos. The reason I'm just an A-Ok-er is that I think it's overhyped. The ambiance is crowded and a little strange: it's intimate, but rigid and uncomfortable. The menu is not self-explanatory (I had to ask our waitress to explain what exactly we were looking at and how we should consider ordering). And, similar to Birch, I left feeling hungry, even though I had/shared four dishes, drinks, and ate my own dessert. I didn't mind the small portions this time around because it's the New Year's and hey! Resolutions! But the price-to-fullness ratio is a little steep. Or maybe I'm just a big fat cow and too poor to support my eating habits. I will say it's more satisfying, ratio-wise, than Birch. But the fish and lobster dumplings were so good, I wanted to murder my date and have them all to myself. As it was, I only got two spoonfuls. The biggest dish was actually dessert, and I must say...that does give them an edge. Nice work there. I don't want to be a person who put a price on great food and experience--I SUPPORT AWESOMENESS--but I do consider where to splurge and where to not. Even though everything tasted great, I'd rather splurge elsewhere. read more

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Fun place with character and incredible food. Came for a date night and could only get reservations for outside, but sat at the bar when we got there since it was available. The food is incredibly fresh and delicious, we had some crudos, a few appetizers and the Basque cheesecake, everything was spot on. Even though I gave it 5 stars because the food was that good, there were some problems. Outside seating is rickety and the outside view is a parking lot. I would suggest avoiding the outside if you can. One of the bar tenders was absolutely incompetent. She could not answer questions about the drinks (another bartender did an excellent job explaining, the selection is a bit eclectic), served the man first and then took a good 5 minutes for the woman's drink, and to top it all of messed up the bill at the end. The rest of the staff were perfectly professional and used proper etiquette. Come for the food and sit in the dining room. read more

Surprised more people haven't reviewed this place! Seating is limited and they don't take reservations but if you come early, you can definitely get a seat and there are always seats at the bar which is we usually sit anyways. They have an incredible menu and great selection of raw fish. It tastes really fresh and is prepared well with dressings/spices. I got the raw scup with olive and chili and was truly a pleasure to eat. The one thing I didn't like was the potato gnocchi. I'd read food reviews about it and decided to try. The one I got was slightly burnt and the sauce also had bit of burnt taste to it, not sure if that was intentional or not. They have mostly wines, beers and ciders and limited cocktails (about 4 or 5). Overall it was a great experience except for the potato gnocchi. read more

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Service was excellent. The food was just ok. My martini was served in a small glass . Felt ripped off. Would never go back

Mixed review here... Not sure where to start. Maybe at the door... was very thankful to be immediately greeted upon entry at a late hour, and even more happy to learn they were still serving food. This was after a failed attempt at Rosalina for closing the kitchen early (why advertise hours if you're going to close an hour early - don't waste peoples time please). We were all immediately alarmed at the fact that the staff were all wearing masks. Can't help but think that there's something going around amongst the staff for someone to be wearing a mask at this point. Not to mention you can barely understand them when they attempt to talk wearing a mask. Host, and wait staff were all extremely nice. Apps, drinks, food all brought out fairly quickly and delicious however the food portions were unreasonably small. Had a VERY delicious salad, that I would definitely get again but I'd ask them to maybe combine 3 or 4 of them together to make it a reasonable size (I'm 155lbs by the way). The wine selection was dreadful. Personally I like most reds (cab, pinot, merlot, etc) and whites (Grigio, blanc, etc) and after trying two of the three reds, I was very turned off. The mixed cocktails seemed to fair well with the others though. The entire table sat with empty cocktails for an extended time after the first round, but we did get a 2nd. Price wise, it was unreasonable for the portion size. We all got food on the way home because we were kinda done with it. As far as mood, it was an odd combination of a sit down expensive dinner with dance music. No objections, just seemed the restaurant was confused as to what it was. I'd only go back if we had to when the regular restaurant options are closed. Last but not least, not sure how both bathrooms were occupied the entire time we were there. Tried to go three times and both occupied every time. I couldn't figure out if they were "that" popular or they were just out of service read more

Oberlin was a wildly fun dinner. The bar was electric -- a drumbeat of drinks and chatter and dishes -- but so welcoming. Drinks were great and approachable, we had a lovely oyster river cider. The food was uniformly fantastic, from the raw fish, to the salads, to the pasta, and dessert. Such a gem of a restaurant. read more

Worst service ever. Sat at a table for 25 minutes, ignored. Had to grab a waitperson to ask if we could order. She reacted like we were imposing on her. Then the food arrived in waves. Really awful experience. Management take note. read more

Had dinner here with two friends and enjoyed every second. I love walking into a place with signage very clearly showing their values (i.e. inclusivity for all, no tolerance for hate). We had a reservation for 7pm. Our table was not ready when we arrived, but the staff was all so friendly and welcoming that we were happy to sit at the bar and start with some drinks. We did wait some time, but conversation with the bartender was lovely and he recommended a delicious starter that we could enjoy while they got our table ready (spicy marinated mussels). Once we moved to our table, our waitress was very helpful in recommending drinks we would enjoy and in describing the food options. We also shared bread with oil and the grilled oysters. I ended up with the gnocchi for my meal and ate every bite. I am from out of town, but would happily go again if back in Providence! read more

Oberlin did not disappoint. Sublime food, spot on portion sizes, great service, lovely ambiance. Perfect for date night. First the wines were inspiring. I had a cab franc from NY that was excellent - I've been meaning to try one and was happy to see it featured on their list along with some other unconventional choices. The food was very good. My wife and I both had pasta dishes, Mine came with crisped arugula and lamb meatballs, and fresh pasta - but not an outrageous portion size. Enough that we felt great ordering bread, beets, and desert. Too often pasta dishes are four sizes too big, theirs was PERFECT. Also artful. The desert was transcendent - the tart we ordered was more of a galette but I highly recommend it. Overall Oberlin is a great addition to the PVD dining scene, not a surprise if you know how great Birch is (which has the same owner). read more

Oberlin - New American Near Me - Providence, Rhode Island

I have to say, I've been here countless times and have never taken the time to write a review. This is by far my favorite restaurant in the city. Their ever changing menu and culinary abilities shine. I work in the industry as well and love it here. I wish you had a full bar but we can't have it all. read more

Oberlin - Crudo - New American Near Me - Providence, Rhode Island

Great brunch spot. Nice atmosphere with an open air kitchen. Can't wait to come back!

Service was incredible from start to finish! It was our first time and we enjoyed first, second, and third courses. Their take on a Caesar salad as well as the fluke in olive oil were to die for. Highly recommend! read more

Oberlin - Kohlrabi Caesar - New American Near Me - Providence, Rhode Island

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Beautiful new spot! Absolutely delicious meal and great service! Will definitely be back!

Update: refund was issued quickly by Tock (company that handles reservations), but I still feel like I shouldn't have had to jump through all the hoops. Made a reservation with an annoying non-refundable $20 per person booking fee. When I needed to contact the restaurant about making a change to the reservation, it was ABSOLUTELY IMPOSSIBLE to get in touch anyone -- they don't ever pick up the phone, didn't respond to an Instagram DM, and took more than 12 hours to reply to my email. We wad a pleasant enough meal, but then realized when I got home that the $40 booking fee was not credited toward my check, as they said it would be when I booked the reservation. And of course now I can't get in touch with the restaurant to dispute it. Feels super shady to me...like they hoped I wouldn't notice the double charge. Left a really bad taste in my mouth. read more

Best restaurant in Providence, the food is amazing and the service is exceptional. We had Adam as our server and he explained each dish on the menu and provided such good recommendations that we loved! read more

Foods are noticeably salty and unpleasant. The space is a lot better and ambient,but food is not the same as my first visit. The portion is pretty small compared to other places. read more

Would give 3.5, but that's not an option. My friends and I came for restaurant week and were super excited! While the appetizers were delicious, I think the meal declined as it went on. The roasted carrots were extremely salty, the pasta portion with meatballs was very small, and the duck was pretty dry. I'd maybe come back here to eat appetizers. read more

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2.5 stars. Very friendly staff. Raw menu is not imaginative, then again any raw menu is never imaginative. Their Uni special is what turned me off entirely. I sent it back. Originally was waiting on The rabbit pasta and lamb tartar but I was honestly so turned off by the special I stopped the rest of the order. Then I was thinking about my 3oz pour of Saki which was $10. I can get a carafe 2 blocks away for the same price. The menu seems good but is way overpriced for what you get. Edit: currently getting the wings and white rice at Jackys. Bill is $14. Less than what I paid for the saki and scup $20 read more

Oberlin - Uni Special with Diakon - New American Near Me - Providence, Rhode Island

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I've always stayed away from Oberlin because really expensive foodie food is not my thing at all. Birch is pretty inaccessible to me so I always assumed Oberlin would be the same. We were seriously craving a cheese plate one night so we decided "what the hell" and gave Oberlin a shot. I'm very glad we did. We sat outside, ordered a cheese plate and a few other snack type items, and a couple drinks. No snobby attitude from the staff, everything we got was delicious, and the beer and and gin and tonic were very reasonably priced. Would I come back and try dinner? Nah. From what we saw the plates were very small but pretty pricey (which is fine, that's their thing, I just can't justify spending $70 on dinner and walking away still hungry). Would I come back for some more cheese and snacks? Absolutely yes! The prices on those items are definitely doable. read more

Oberlin - Working on our night cheese, and lots of carbs. - New American Near Me - Providence, Rhode Island

My wife and I went to Oberlin last night for my daughter's birthday (who loves the food there), this was our second time there. We had 6 appetizers (small plate), a whole black sea-bass entree and a rhubarb tart desert. Food: excellent and creative Wine: I get that they want to have unusual and organic wines but it seems more to be cool than to accompany the food. We ordered all whites: first a 2019 Greek wine, Momemvasia , then a 2013 French Auksinis Sancerre which we did not like and returned and replaced with a French chardonnay called "Les Tuileries". In general the wines are overpriced, about 3x retail. Service: very slow, it took 45 minutes from the time we sat down until we got our first appetizer: the raw scallop dish, I was not expecting to wait that long for a cold appetizer. After that, things continue to roll slowly. Overall it took 3 hours to have dinner. We ordered the Sancerre by the time we got the first appetizer, Katherine, the waitress poured a taste and I instantly knew it was bad just from the smell, my wife and daughter confirmed. Katherine got the manager (Bethany) who told us the wine was not bad and was supposed to taste that way, she continue by stating it is a different kind of Sancerre and basically there was nothing she could do. I have a lot of experience with Sancerre and all Sauvignon blanc from the Loire valley (My mother is from that region and I have been drinking Sancerre for a very long time) and I was very surprised to be told that a Sancerre's syrupy taste is normal, it actually almost tasted like a Madeira wine. To me that wine was oxidized. Note that the Sancerre was $82. I returned the wine (did not drink any excluding the taste), I was still charged for it, albeit I was not charged for the 3rd wine which was $28. Conclusion: the argument about the wine ruined our experience at Oberlin and I am not sure I will ever go back. I thought the manager (Bethany) handled the situation poorly. A better and more professional approach (which I have experienced at other restaurants) would have been to take the Sancerre back (to serve by glass for other who like it) and not charge us. read more

Excellent. One of the best restaurants in Providence. One of the few places in Providence that is safe to take fussy visitors from NY, SF and LA to. read more

It's a bit pretentious and I didn't really have any food that made me want to go back. With all the rather legit-looking chefs that were in the kitchen, I would've thought that the food would've been better, maybe it was a bad night. read more

Place was awesome! I ordered food and drinks and they brought them to me then I paid and left.

I know a lot of people love Oberlin, and it's won some amazing awards (Bon Appétit Top 10 in 2016). I came for restaurant week in 2020 and was so excited to try it out too, but realized at the end of the night that Oberlin was just not for me. I certainly liked some of it, but mostly wasn't ecstatic by the end of the meal. The vibe is super hipster, dark lighting. I really like how you can see the open kitchen and watch the expeditor evaluate each dish before it comes out to make sure it is up to standard. It's a very professional kitchen. That being said, expect tiny portions. The service is fantastic; we had excellent waiters and waitresses who were quick to give their genuine opinions on the menu. We got the sourdough sesame foccacia bread with olive oil for $6, and it was delicious! The crust was the best part bc it was crispy and salty. For my starter, I got the raw scallops with radish and sesame. Omg yes! This is the best thing I had all evening. So simple but so fresh, the radishes provided a balance of texture, and it was just delicious. Would come back just for this dish, which normally runs at $10. For my main course, I had crusted bass with greens on the side. The fish was cooked beautifully, but the sauce was far too acidic and left me wishing there was another flavor note (maybe some sweetness?) to balance out the acidity. The dessert was where I was just sadly disappointed. My friends got the apple tart with ice cream, which was warm and full of hearty goodness, much better than my orange mousse dessert. The actual mousse was very yummy, but it was sitting on a bed of an orange flavored base that had a very mushy consistency. I brought it home hoping I would like it more when I got home, but couldn't even bear to finish it. I think it was bc of what I ordered, but the meal started out great but progressively became more disappointing. If we hadn't gotten the bread, I probably would've still been hungry bc the portions really are tiny for the amount you are paying. There are definitely parts of Oberlin I enjoyed (the raw menu!), but at the end of my meal, I certainly felt a little left to be desired. read more

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So happy someone suggested that my husband and I try this place. A total Gem from service to food! The ambiance is inviting and perfect for any occasion. read more

By far my favorite restaurant in PVD. Fresh pasta, alongside a seasonal menu has never let me down. Their takeout system is foolproof and their staff is always friendly and attentive. Don't miss out on the apps either, their marinated olives as well as the homemade focaccia are equally delicious. read more

This is very delicious, creative and inventive food! Sublime! Out of the box thinking, a very unique experience! My salad and cheese plate were incredible. Group of 6, everyone loved their food and even ordered more food! (small plates). The homemade pasta was Amazing!!! i'm not a dessert person but since it was my bday i had pie with homemade icecream and it was insanely delicious! They have wine and beer and offer a signature cocktail which i had and was perfect! read more

Oberlin - the best salad! - New American Near Me - Providence, Rhode Island

Amazing! The food here is unbelievable. The raw scallops, mussels, and raw assortment of fish are everything i want in life. We also got the whole grilled fish- black sea bass, crab gnocchi, cavatelli w/squid and pork, all which were incredibly delicious. Even the focaccia and olives are worth mentioning. Save room for desert, the tart is not to miss, and pavlova is melt in your mouth delicious. All of this would not be possible without the incredible kitchen and waitstaff. What a great experience, we will be back soon! read more

Oberlin - Raw fish platter - New American Near Me - Providence, Rhode Island

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Cool, hip, casual little place with some terrifically fresh food. I started w/ black bass on olive oil & cheese plate. Entree was a carbonara, sauce had excellent flavor and you can taste the freshness of all the ingredients. Dessert was a goat cheese, cheesecake...Yummo! I'll definitely be coming back. I'm sure the menu will have frequent changes. I look forward to many delicious & different dishes. read more

Oberlin - New American Near Me - Providence, Rhode Island

Oberlin was warm and welcoming on a very cold Sunday night in Providence! I sat at the bar and had great service, along with good food (which I expected). The bartender was quick to answer any of my questions, particularly about ingredients in some of the dishes, and even let me taste a few of the wines before I decided what to get. I went with the restaurant week menu, which was $35 for three courses: the roasted root vegetable salad, the potato gnocchi with crab, and the apple tart. They were all good but only the apple tart was the level of excellent that I expected based on the reviews. I will say that the gnocchi stood out to me as lighter than most I've had, with a nice crisp, but the flavor wasn't really anything special. Still, I enjoyed it and would come back because the atmosphere was just perfect. read more

LOVE AT FIRST BITE Oberlin is the more casual little sister to Birch up the road. The food is tapas style here--small plates meant to share (although your dishes might be so good you might not want to share). A few of the dishes like the Toasted Cereals dessert were classics served at Birch What a treat, at Oberlin you get the food creativity by the chefs w the mad skills up the road but since it's casual you don't feel bad reaching over and stealing bites from your neighbor's plate either. Oink freaking oink. It's GOOD. Come. Now. But don't be alarmed if you see a rabid good food enthusiast with propensities for posting on social media sucking out fish heads from the whole grilled fish dish in the corner. I can't wait to get to know this little spot better. Yummy yum yum. Congrats Ben, Heidi, Ed and the rest of Team Oberlin, I'm smelling the wonderful aromas of a winner! read more

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This is my first time in Providence and had no idea that downtown Providence could be so dead on a Monday night. Many of the restaurants were closed and I didn't want to eat burgers, sandwiches, or fries for dinner so here I am at Oberlin. From the outside, this restaurant definitely looks like a place where you wanna be at in a cold winter night given the warm lighting and the woody design. Upon entrance, you'll see a bar area to the right and dining area to the left. The dining area isn't huge, there is a table in the middle that can seat 8 people, and maybe another 6-8 tables that can seat 2-3 people. Ok, quickly to the food, the menu isn't huge. It first starts with the raw seafood up top, then misc appetizers, pasta, veggies, cooked protein, and dessert. For just myself, I ordered the raw winter flounder, fettuccine with spinach and anchovy, and apple tart with ice cream. The combined portion is just enough and you can definitely share these dishes. The winter flounder's texture was a little weird, I was a little bit uncomfortable with this "adventure" and dipped the fish heavily into the olive oil and lemon sauce, after all it was my first time tasting raw winter flounder. It does not taste like the sashimi you'd eat at a sushi restaurant. The pasta was good, the noodles tasted fresh and the anchovies provided crunchiness. The one part that I don't like about it is the overdo of lemon juice. My favorite part was the apple tart. It's nice and warm and paired perfectly with the ice cream. I wish I had ordered two of those instead of the flounder! The service was alright, staff was friendly but they were slow. I had the empty plate with me for more than 10 mins and they didn't bring me the new dish nor refilled my water without my request. read more

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Food was quite tasty, well spiced and delivered in a timely manner. Waitstaff was top notch. Wine choices were good. However, meals were way overpriced and shockingly had no vegetables included in all 4 meals. Never before had I had that happen. read more

One of my favorite restaurants in providence. I would consider this place new American. It is a very romantic spot that has soft lightening and rustic furniture. Since they don't take rezzies, there's a combination of shared tables, private tables and a counter that faces the open kitchen. I've sat at all and they all give a different experience ! They change their menu seasonally but a couple staples for me remain the kohlrabi Cesar ( I literally dream about this...) and the raw scallops (the presentation and flavor combos are perfection). At my latest visit we received complimentary tortellinis which were heaven Only side note is some dishes can be overly salted. But this hasn't stopped me from coming back. read more

I've come here a few times since my first review - and this place is so damn good. Every. Single. Time. So fresh and innovative. This is a place I am confident taking friends and family to for a laid-back, but still high impact experience. read more

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If you're looking for a hip wine bar to head to in the city look no further. Oberlin is an awesome spot to come and grab some tapas that pair nice with a tasty wine. Located on a side street off of Westminster Street, Oberlin has everything you could look for. It has an upbeat staff, it has delicious wines (Side Note: I think all wine generally tastes the same, but it was great!), and it even has tiny bar you can have drinks and dinner at. Oberlin is not very big, it probably can seat around 30-40 people and typically the parties are no bigger than 4 people. They do offer indoor and outdoor seating. They do not have a parking lot, so you would need to find parking elsewhere, and I do not think they do Valet parking either. The food we had was spectacular. We started off with the Bread and Olive Oil. The bread came out warm and smelled so fresh and it went so well with the Olive Oil. Next was the Gnocchi and it was very flavorful. The red sauce was light and simple and the basil made the dish perfect. We also ordered to other pasta dishes, one was the Cacio Y Pepe and the other was the Strozzapreti with Duck Leg. Both of these were amazing as well. Now keep in mind it was just my fiancé and I and we ate all of this food. The portions are not large unless you get one of the giant fish to share. However, it is fun to get various items and share them all. I will certainly be coming back to Oberlin for another evening. read more

wow!! Really really good food, some of the best fine dining in providence:)) I didn't take a picture but my favorite was the raw albacore tuna - super simple flavor profile but rich, clean, and delicious! the lamb tartare, cacio e pepe, and spicy sweet potato were all close seconds. hope to come back !! read more

Oberlin - Lamb Tartare - New American Near Me - Providence, Rhode Island

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I am a big fan of Oberlin. Food is fresh (and a large portion of it raw), and their desserts are absolutely delicious! If they have a tart on the menu, make sure you try it! read more

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