16 Incredible Restaurants in Newport, RI You Need to Try
Newport eats like the sailing town it is. Most of the restaurants below sit on or near the harbor, from the wharves off America’s Cup Avenue to Thames Street and Broadway, and the menus lean on what comes off the boats: oysters, littlenecks, lobster and chowder.
This guide covers 16 places, from a tavern in a house that dates to the 1650s and a Victorian mansion dining room to a fishermen’s lobster shack, a British café and an all-day breakfast spot. Ratings and review counts come from each restaurant’s Google listing in October 2026.
White Horse Tavern
The White Horse Tavern stands at the corner of Marlborough and Farewell streets, in a building that dates to about 1652, when Francis Brinley built it as his home. The tavern bills itself as America’s oldest and counts its opening from 1673, when William Mayes bought the house and turned it into a tavern, though a 1967 architectural history of Newport dates his tavern license to 1687. The bar fills the original living room.
Rated 4.5 stars from more than 1,900 Google reviews, it serves a fine-dining menu built on meat, seafood and produce from Rhode Island, Massachusetts and Vermont. Start with the raw bar of littlenecks and oysters, then try the Scotch egg (a sausage-wrapped egg), the Beef Wellington or the lobster ravioli. Steak frites and the rigatoni Bolognese are also on the current fall menu.
Reserve through OpenTable, which is linked from the website. The current hours are dinner only, and the hearths are lit when temperatures fall below 40 degrees, so a cold evening is a good time to go. Entrées are on the pricey side, with the Wellington at the top of the range. The tavern’s own social feed mentions a winter break, so check the website for hours before a cold-weather visit.
Address: 26 Marlborough St, Newport, RI 02840
Website: whitehorsenewport.com
The Black Pearl
The Black Pearl sits on Bannister’s Wharf with three spaces under one name: a dark, nautical Tavern, the more formal Commodore’s Room, and a Waterside Patio on the dock over the harbor. It has been a Newport fixture for more than fifty years. A recent renovation gave the patio a retractable roof and sides, so it works in every season.
The Black Pearl has a 4.0-star rating from more than 1,500 Google reviews, and its clam chowder is the best-known dish. The restaurant calls it award-winning and sells it through its online shop. The raw bar puts native oysters on the half shell in all three spaces, and the kitchen also serves steamed lobster and locally caught seafood. Start with a bowl of chowder, then add oysters to share.
The Black Pearl does not take reservations. The website says seating is first come, first served, so ask for the patio if you want harbor views or the Commodore’s Room if you want the more formal setting. It is open daily from 11 a.m. for lunch and dinner. It has closed for part of the winter in past years, so check before a cold-weather visit.
Address: 30 Bannister's Wharf, Newport, RI 02840
Website: blackpearlnewport.com
Clarke Cooke House
Clarke Cooke House is a colonial house at 24 Bannister’s Wharf that sea captain Clarke Cooke built on Thames Street in 1780. In 1973 David Ray moved it to the wharf. Inside are a harbor-level Candy Store hung with sailing memorabilia, an upstairs Porch dining room, a rooftop Sky Bar and a full raw and oyster bar.
With 4.2 stars from more than 1,500 Google reviews, it is a lively, social spot where oysters and lobster are the classic orders. Lunch menus list a lobster salad roll, a Candy Store burger stuffed with blue cheese, and Newport clam chowder, while dinner brings native cod and steak au poivre. Finish with the ice cream goblet dessert, which is big enough for two.
Book through Resy, and ask for an upstairs table, which has the best harbor views. Expect a high-end check. Hours vary by day and meal, with lunch from Friday through Sunday, and sushi on some evenings in summer. The Porch is a seasonal room, so look at the website for current hours and which rooms are open.
Address: 24 Bannister's Wharf, Newport, RI 02840
Website: clarkecooke.com
The Mooring Seafood Kitchen & Bar
The Mooring sits at 1 Sayers Wharf on Newport’s historic waterfront, with indoor seating, harbor and sunset views, and a mahogany-planked patio that floats over the water. It has been open for more than 35 years and belongs to Newport Restaurant Group, which is 100 percent employee-owned. The focus is New England seafood, with a raw bar.
The Mooring earns 4.5 stars from more than 4,800 Google reviews, and lobster is a good bet. The menu lists a chilled lobster roll with lemon-chive aioli, a warm buttered version on a toasted brioche roll, and baked stuffed lobster with scallops and shrimp. Also try the lobster-shrimp fritters, which the menu calls “the bag o’ donuts,” or the clam chowder, or the native scallop chowder.
Reserve through OpenTable or the site’s reservation page. It is open daily for lunch and dinner, and the dockside patio is enclosed, so a rainy day does not cancel your table. Dinner is moderately pricey, with the lobster dishes the biggest splurge. Hours can change on holidays, so check the website before a holiday visit.
Address: 1 Sayers Wharf, Newport, RI 02840
Website: mooringrestaurant.com
Castle Hill Inn
Castle Hill Inn occupies the Agassiz Mansion at 590 Ocean Drive, a three-story wooden summer house that Harvard professor Alexander Agassiz built in 1875 on 40 acres overlooking Narragansett Bay. Agassiz, known as the father of marine biology, used the house as a field laboratory, and its dining room, Aurelia, is named for the moon jellyfish he studied in the bay. The casual restaurant, the Lawn Terrace, sits outside.
Castle Hill Inn holds 4.6 stars across more than 1,300 Google reviews, and it offers two very different meals. Aurelia, a Forbes Five-Star restaurant for 2026, serves a six-course tasting menu that changes often, with sample menus listing crab with fennel, quail with Concord grape and Hopkins Farm lamb. On the Lawn Terrace, order the clam chowder with cornbread, the lobster roll with tarragon crème fraîche, or the bouillabaisse.
Aurelia requires reservations and seats parties of up to six. It is tasting menu only, so plan on a splurge. Lawn Terrace tables also require reservations, which open up to 30 days ahead for lunch daily and Sunday brunch. In winter the Lawn Terrace moves indoors. Aurelia reopened in May 2026 after a February fire in the mansion’s attic, so check the website for current dinner days.
Address: 590 Ocean Drive, Newport, RI 02840
Website: castlehillinn.com
Midtown Oyster Bar
Midtown Oyster Bar opened on Thames Street in June 2013 and now fills a two-story building at 345 Thames Street, with a first-floor tavern and a second-floor Burgee Bar. It has three dining rooms and three outdoor decks, and the restaurant says it has the largest raw bar in town. The tavern is the casual end of the house, with high-top tables and a bar atmosphere.
With a 4.3-star rating from more than 2,300 Google reviews, Midtown is the place to order oysters, either from the daily list or on the half shell with littleneck and cherrystone clams. For something bigger, try a shared seafood platter such as the Newporter, the lobster and corn chowder, or the warm butter-poached lobster roll. The Fisherman’s Stew, with littlenecks, mussels, shrimp and lobster in a saffron tomato broth, is another strong choice.
Make a reservation through the restaurant’s website, which links to online booking. The bar stays open until 1 a.m., well after the kitchen closes, so late arrivals can still get a drink. A service fee is added to every check. The menus posted online are examples, so check the current offerings and hours before you go.
Address: 345 Thames St, Newport, RI 02840
Website: midtownoyster.com
Newport Lobster Shack
The Newport Lobster Shack is a trailer kitchen and live seafood market at 150 Long Wharf, on State Pier 9, run by the Newport Fishermen’s Co-op. Local fishermen built the Shack in 2009 to sell their catch straight to the public, and the co-op says it sells only what its boats catch. Covered picnic tables sit on the dock with views over the harbor.
It earns 4.6 stars from more than 1,500 Google reviews, and the no-frills lobster roll is the draw, sold with either 3 or 6 ounces of fresh lobster meat. The kitchen also serves lobster bisque, fried lobster bites, fish and chips and calamari, plus full lobster dinners. The market sells live lobsters, Jonah crab (also called rock crab) and conch, and the Shack will steam lobsters for you to go.
Eat at the covered picnic tables or take your food to go. The official site lists kitchen hours Thursday through Monday and says it is closed Tuesday and Wednesday, but the kitchen has run limited weekend hours in spring in past years, so check before you go in colder months. The site says email gets the fastest reply, and it lists a phone number for questions.
Address: Trailer, 150 Long Wharf, Newport, RI 02840
Website: newportlobstershack.com
Brick Alley Pub & Restaurant
Ralph and Pat Plumb bought Brick Alley Pub & Restaurant at 140 Thames Street in December 1980 and ran it for nearly 44 years before selling to Newport’s Heritage Restaurant Group in 2024, which kept the staff and management team. The building holds a casual pub and a separate dining room filled with sports memorabilia, antiques and an old Chevy truck.
Brick Alley holds 4.6 stars across more than 4,800 Google reviews, and the menu covers a lot of ground, from pub food to steaks and seafood. Try the lobster salad roll, the lobster Reuben on grilled rye, or the baked stuffed clams made the Portuguese way, with chouriço, a Portuguese sausage. The baked stuffed sole with lobster sauce is called a 40-year house tradition, and the menu calls its nachos famous.
The restaurant recommends reserving ahead, and its website takes online reservations. The pub pours more than 25 beers on tap. Most sandwiches and pizzas are moderately priced, with the lobster dishes at the top of the range. It is open daily for lunch and dinner, with hours listed on its site.
Address: 140 Thames St, Newport, RI 02840
Website: brickalley.com
Bar ’Cino
Bar ’Cino fills a narrow corner room at 22 Washington Square, with a single large front window onto the square and an open kitchen beside a stooled bar. It is part of Newport Restaurant Group, which is 100 percent employee-owned, and it serves Italian-inspired food for lunch and dinner every day. The room is small and has no water view, which gives it a neighborhood feel.
Rated 4.7 stars from more than 1,100 Google reviews, it is known for grilled pizza, which arrives whole with a pair of shears to cut it. Try the spicy sausage pizza with kale and lemon ricotta, the spaghetti carbonara or the rigatoni Bolognese. For a bigger meal, the roasted lemon chicken is made for two, and the pistachio-ricotta layer cake is worth saving room for.
Reserve through OpenTable, which the restaurant’s website links to. It is open daily for lunch and dinner, with the kitchen closing a little later on Friday and Saturday. It is moderately priced, with most pastas and pizzas in the same range. Menus change, so check the current one before you go.
Address: 22 Washington Square, Newport, RI 02840
Website: barcino.com/newport
Giusto
Giusto sits on Commercial Wharf at Hammetts Hotel, on the downtown waterfront. It opened in 2020 as the first independent restaurant from Rhode Island native Chef Kevin O’Donnell, and its name is Italian for “just, fair and right.” The kitchen calls its cooking Freestyle Italian, mixing traditional Italian dishes with Rhode Island farm and fishing ingredients, and the wine list is all Italian apart from Champagne.
Giusto’s 4.4-star rating comes from more than 700 Google reviews, and pasta is the main event. The current dinner menu lists bucatini with scallop, mussel and chouriço (Portuguese sausage), garganelli with a pork ragù bianco, and street corn ravioli with feta. Start with a rotating local oyster or the Scotch meatball, and consider the shared Freestyle Tasting Menu if you want to try several dishes.
Book through the restaurant’s website, which uses Resy. Dinner is served nightly, with lunch and a late-afternoon aperitivo on Saturday and Sunday, but check the current hours. Parking is available at the Hammetts Hotel valet for a fee that changes seasonally. Pastas run on the pricey side, and the tasting menu is a fixed-price shared meal.
Address: 4 Commercial Wharf, Newport, RI 02840
Website: giustonewport.com
Thames Street Kitchen (TSK)
Thames Street Kitchen, known as TSK, is a boutique steakhouse at 509 Thames Street, on the southern end of lower Thames. The restaurant first opened in 2010, closed for about two years, and reopened in 2018 at the Revolving Door at the Bouchard Inn. Chefs Chad Hoffer and Tyler Burnley and partner Anna Burnley own it, and in 2024 they described a third chapter built around steaks.
With 4.5 stars from more than 300 Google reviews, it is built for steak. The menu lists a filet, a bone-in New York strip, a hanger steak and the Mission Cut rib eye, sold by the ounce, with sauces and sides ordered separately. Start with the egg-yolk raviolo, a single stuffed pasta filled with ricotta, serrano ham and yolk, or the bone marrow with escargot or the steak tartare. Halibut and half chicken are on hand for non-beef eaters.
Reservations are on Resy. Dinner is served Tuesday through Sunday starting at 5 p.m., and the restaurant is closed Mondays. Expect a steakhouse check, with steaks priced by the cut and sides extra. A small kitchen appreciation fee is added to the bill. It has taken a few weeks off in January in past years, so check hours before a winter trip.
Address: 509 Thames St, Newport, RI 02840
Website: tsknpt.com
Pescadou
Pescadou is the signature restaurant at Hotel Viking, at 1 Bellevue Avenue, which reopened in May 2026 after an eight-month renovation. The century-old hotel’s new restaurant is a coastal French brasserie inspired by the south of France. It has a main dining room, an outdoor patio, and a back sunroom that feels like a greenhouse, with white-painted brick walls and flowered wallpaper on the ceilings.
Pescadou already has 4.9 stars from more than 100 Google reviews, and it is led by Chef Will Rietzel, a two-time James Beard nominee. Nearly half the menu is raw bar, including Block Island oysters and razor clams. Order the house-made fazzoletti pasta with Jonah crab, the bouillabaisse, a fish stew served here as a composed entrée with lobster and rotating fish, and the lemon croustillant for dessert.
Book through Resy, since the hotel recommends reservations, especially on weekends and in peak season. Breakfast, lunch and dinner are served daily, and breakfast is in the sunroom. Dinner is on the pricey side, with the bouillabaisse the biggest splurge. The menu follows the seasons, with a fall menu of squash and apples arriving in early October.
Address: 1 Bellevue Ave, Newport, RI 02840
Website: pescadou.com
Corner Café
Corner Café is a busy neighborhood spot at 110 Broadway, with window baskets of plants, sidewalk tables with umbrellas, and a mix of counter and table seating inside. It serves breakfast all day, every day, from a menu with more than 50 breakfast items. Owners Jamey Simoes and Mary Odonohoe blend Irish, Portuguese and West Coast influences, which shows up in dishes like the Irish fry-up and Portuguese sweet bread French toast.
The café’s 4.7 stars come from more than 1,900 Google reviews, and the menu is big enough to reward a close read. Try the ovos açores, a Portuguese take on eggs Benedict with chouriço, a Portuguese sausage, or the California Benny with avocado and spinach. The sweetbread French toast comes with maple pecan butter, and the Irish fry-up has bangers (sausages), rashers (bacon) and black and white pudding.
There are no reservations during the day, and lines form on busy mornings, so go early or off-peak. Thursday through Saturday the café serves dinner with the full daytime menu plus specials and pizza, and reservations are accepted after 5 p.m. It is BYOB, with a small corkage fee. Check hours, since the café closes in mid-afternoon on most days.
Address: 110 Broadway, Newport, RI 02840
Website: cornercafenewport.com
Kellie’s Cafe
Kellie’s Cafe is a small British cafe at 27 J.T. Connell Highway serving traditional British breakfast and lunch. Kellie Cooper became the owner in 2018 and built it into a local favorite, even developing her own line of sausages, sausage rolls and bacon. Lindsey and Matt took over in September 2025, kept the British menu, and still sell pantry staples, pies, pastries and chocolate in the shop.
Kellie’s has 4.9 stars from more than 500 Google reviews, and the classic order is a full English breakfast, with eggs, bacon, sausages, baked beans, toast and optional black pudding, a type of blood sausage. For lunch, order sausage rolls, a Scotch egg, which is a boiled egg wrapped in sausage meat and breadcrumbs, or a steak pie. Scones with Devonshire cream and Tiptree jam are baked daily.
It serves breakfast and lunch only, from about 8:30 a.m. to 2 p.m., and several listings say it is closed Wednesdays, so check before you go. The room is small, so expect a wait at busy times or take your order to go. Afternoon tea is offered on weekdays, but it needs advance booking and a deposit.
Address: 27 JT Connell Hwy, Newport, RI 02840
Website: kelliescafenewport.com
Drift Cafe
Drift Cafe is a below-street-level cafe at 190 A Thames Street, marked by a white and orange awning and furnished with swing chairs and a “Coffee n’ Chill” neon sign. Rob and Samantha DePaola opened it in summer 2020, and it is locally owned with a second shop in Narragansett. The menu leans healthy, with organic, local and ethically produced ingredients where possible and most sauces made in house.
Drift holds 4.8 stars across more than 400 Google reviews and is known for all-day breakfast and blended bowls. Try the Sunset Bowl, an açaí bowl topped with strawberries and house-made granola, or the Spicy Bird, a Buffalo chicken-inspired egg scramble. The sweet potato hash with fried eggs and the Harvest lunch bowl are also good choices, and the coffee is from Necessary Coffee, a specialty roaster in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
Drift is open daily from about 8 a.m. to 3 p.m., with breakfast served all day, though you should check hours before you go. You can order online or by phone, which helps on busy mornings. Egg sandwiches come on toast, a bagel, a wrap or gluten-free toast, and the Malta and Buddha lunch bowls are built on vegetables, chickpeas and tofu.
Address: 190 Thames St, Newport, RI 02840
Website: driftri.com
Root
Root is a small, bright plant-based cafe at 6 Broadway, where the food is made in house and to order. It describes itself as Newport’s only exclusively plant-based restaurant, and the owners are often out chatting with customers. Yelp ranked it No. 59 on its 2023 list of the top 100 places to eat in the country, one of only five New England restaurants on the list.
Root has 4.8 stars from more than 400 Google reviews, and it is known for grain bowls and fresh juices. Try the Glow Bowl, with sweet potatoes, white beans, beets, avocado and house chickpea salad, or the Arriba bowl with black beans and pickled jalapeños. Avocado toast with pea shoots, a peanut butter toast with banana and cacao nibs, açaí bowls and the chickpea salad sandwich round out the menu.
It is open daily from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., and you can order online if you are in a rush. The space is small, so it works best for a quick breakfast or lunch. Coffee drinks and matcha lattes come with oat or almond milk. The menu runs from smoothies and juices to toasts, bowls and sandwiches, so a group with mixed tastes can usually find something.
Address: 6 Broadway, Newport, RI 02840
Website: rootonbroadway.com
Final Thoughts
Newport is busiest from late spring to early fall, when the waterfront tables fill fast, so book ahead for dinner and go early for breakfast. In winter, several places shorten their hours or take a break, so check before you go.
Planning the rest of your trip? See our guide to the best things to do in Newport, RI.
Main photo, from left: Crunch, Mitili Mitili and Do mee / Unsplash
