(The DownCity location of Stanley’s closed in the spring of 2011. Their original Central Falls location remains open, however.)
A few weeks ago I was visiting my grandfather in Rhode Island along with my brother, and we decided to pick up lunch in Providence. One place that has been on my list for a while was Stanley’s. Stanley’s Hamburgers has been a venerable burger stand in Central Falls, RI for decades, and they opened a new Providence location this last spring. I’ve been meaning to check it out, but since my previous trips to Providence were on holidays, Stanley’s was closed. This time they were open.
Stanley’s is pretty much a burger bar. The main attractions at Stanley’s are the burgers and the fries. The burgers are fairly thin patties, that are cooked by smashing them into the grill to get a good char on them (a technique familiar to people that have been to Steak n’ Shake). The result is a nicely crisp burger, albeit a little on the light side, so I usually get a double burger at these sorts of places.
While definitely a grease-fest, I rather liked my double tomato burger, with a patty that was both juicy and crispy at the same time, and the same burger I remember from the Central Fall’s Stanley’s. The fries were “Quebec-Style”, which were french fries with cheese and gravy. I’m not sure why places in the US are so afraid of the word “poutine”. Then again, this isn’t really poutine since they used grated cheese instead of curds. But, overall I enjoyed them almost as much as real poutine.
Overall, I really enjoy Stanley’s, but it’s definitely one of those places you don’t want to visit too frequently, it is definitely one of the greasiest places I’ve been in recent history. But, for a good burger and fries, they deliver.
