Providence restaurant makes New York Times best list. Why it's compared with places in NY, LA

The New York Times revealed its list of the best restaurants in America on Wednesday, with Gift Horse in Providence selected among the 50, just as it was for the USA Today's Best Restaurant list back in February.

There's no denying that owners Ben Sukle , his business partner and general manager Bethany Caliaro, and chef Sky Haneul Kim have created a wonderful place with local seafood, superb cocktails and excellent service.

Here's what The Times' Pete Wells wrote about Gift Horse .

"On any given night, the shuckers behind the horseshoe bar at Gift Horse are prying open oysters grown in about a dozen spots along the Rhode Island coast. The quality of the shellfish is impressive even before you dress them with kimchi mignonette or a few jade-colored drops of hot sauce drawn from fermented green chiles. Sky Haneul Kim, the chef, reworks the traditional New England raw bar using the flavors of South Korea, where she was raised. Kimchi of crisp spring asparagus is piled over steamed littlenecks dug from Narragansett Bay. Whipped smoked fish pâté is served with puffed sheets of fried nori. Butterfish, standing in for mackerel, is broiled under a dark glaze of sweet-potato miso."

"Gift Horse deserves to be talked about in the same breath with Yangban in Los Angeles, Atoboy in New York and a handful of other restaurants that are busy bringing American ways of dining into the orbit of Korean cuisine," he concluded.

Wells, who grew up in Rhode Island, just left his post as dining critic at The New York Times after 12 years.

Gift Horse opened at 272 Westminster St. during the summer of 2023 after Bon Appétit placed it on its list of 12 national restaurants to watch for 2023. The raw bar and seafood specialty restaurant was the concept from Sukle, a James Beard-nominated chef who offers it as a "gift" of the best catches in Rhode Island waters.

Sukle's restaurants have always made a splash, from Birch to Oberlin and even as the opening chef at The Dorrance. He's been honored with many James Beard nominations , from Rising Star to finalist of Best Chef Northeast.

Only three other New England restaurants made the list. They are Somaek , in Boston; The Shipwright's Daughter , in Mystic, Connecticut; and The Alna Store , in Alna, Maine.

This story first appeared in Gail Ciampa's newsletter "Gail's Food Feed." To sign up and get the latest food and dining news in your inbox every Wednesday click here .

This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Providence restaurant makes New York Times best list. Why it's compared with places in NY, LA