Bites Nearby: Meritage

When it comes to dining in East Greenwich, the restaurant row on Main Street immediately springs to mind. But, just down the road bordering North Kingstown is Meritage, which makes a strong case to permanently expand your dining horizon.

If you enjoy a wide variety of martinis, you’ll find a treasure trove here among the 18 selections, which range from the classics to some downright funky concoctions. For brew aficionados, there are a dozen beers on draft and several others available in bottles. The choices on tap are generally mainstream but high quality and include Stella Artois, Bass, Newcastle and Guinness.   

The food is American-style but infused with a flair for elegant creation. One of the standout dishes is the rib eye steak, grilled to your liking and served with a perfect compliment of sweet potato and bacon hash. Seafood lovers can’t go wrong with the tuna steak, Chilean sea bass or the orange-ginger salmon.

Prices are reasonable for the high-level fare but sandwiches and burgers are also offered for folks with lighter appetites or wallets. For those on the run, a wide selection “Take and Bake” pizzas are also available, ready to eat after nine minutes in the oven at home.

Then again, the atmosphere and dark wood décor is so warm and inviting that you might just want to enjoy your pizza served by one of the attentive members of the waitstaff after all.

P.S. If dining in the lounge (and getting some extra bang for your buck) is your thing, happy hour discounts on select appetizers and pizzas are available every day before 6 p.m. and after 9:30 right up until the kitchen closes.