Smoked Sardines at French Louie

The back of a small church reflects the glow of twilight. You can see it through the backyard if you sit at any of the tables near the back of French Louie, the new restaurant on Atlantic from the Buttermilk Channel team. There aren't any chairs outside yet, but there will be as the weather warms. You'll want to eat there when that happens. Though it'd be a good idea to go now too, and make sure to order the Smoked Sardines ($9).

Doug Crowell and Ryan Angulo call on Gabe the Fish Babe for their fish. That includes the meaty sardines that are caught in Point Judith and shipped to Atlantic Avenue, where they get cleaned, gutted, scaled, and smoked over Hickory for three minutes. A generous pad of dulse butter and dense, chewy rye bread from Bien Cuit complete the dish.

Dulse is a type of seaweed that grows in the cooler waters along the northern Atlantic and Pacific coasts. It's purple, so along with its visual appeal is the whisper of salinity it lends the fresh butter. The dish is served cold, but if you're patient enough to let that butter whimper and soften to room temperature, and enjoy it with a vibrant glass of Edelzwicker from Bloomer Creek, the experience will be one you don't forget anytime soon.