Fire and Ice is located in the Providence Place Mall in Providence Rhode Island. I went to school in Providene for four years. Through word of mouth from my classmates I learned of this unique and fun restaurant. Located on the ground floor of the immense mall it's hours are Monday through Thursday 11:30 am to 10pm, Friday and Saturday 11:30 am to 11 pm and Sunday 10 am to 10 pm. This place while being a chain is fairly spread out across the country. I have visited it often in the past during my college years so I expected a fairly large spread of ingredients. I would classify it as a buffet catering to college aged people as well as couples and businessmen. Very rarely do you see families with small children or people over the age of 40.
The dining area is set up with numerous booths and tables. In the center is a large circular flat-top grill and counter space where the employees cook your food. Beyond the stove area is a number of counters with buckets and bowls of various ingredients on ice. Even the pickiest of people would not have a hard time finding something they like, from vegetables to seafood to various noodles. After you've filled a bowl with the ingredients you may select one of their pre-made sauces or mix a few of your own and head to the grill to have them cooked together. They can seat roughly between 100 and 150 people between the dining area and the bar. The areas are generally kept well stocked and clean. The decor is fairly modern and trendy but over all suits the place. I give the dining room a 13/16 points. It is fairly well set up but because of the function of it you some times get a lot of traffic passing your table which can be bothersome.
The desgin and content of the menu is hard to judge as it is not set. They do generally stick to a rough outline of a couple types of salads and dressings. Then they have noodles, vegetables, seafood and finally meats. The sauces tend to match a certain item or items in the other stocks. Despite its departure from normal set ups I enjoy their creativity and give it a 13/16. While its hard to plan on going and getting the same thing every time, you can hardly say they don't have anything you life..
The servers act more as tour guides explaining everything and bussers removing dirty plates. The cooks however are more on display than even kitchens with open walls or glass viewing areas. They work methodically and very clean to appease the flow of guests. Due to the way the food is laid out and the progression you generally follow the food tends to be all cooked to the right doneness. Even if you have wide ranging items from noodles to raw meat to carrots. I give Fire and Ice's staff a 12/16 because of the servers tend to be spread thin and a little lax on attention as they don't perform like normal servers. Also while the food is cooked well it often looks like a stir-fry or chili slopped onto your plate. While I completely understand given its nature their plating and presentation isn't what you tend to frequent this establisment for.
Being in the business and seeing the items I see a lot of the same ingredients that I work with, a lot of the vegetables being either par-cooked products that come in vacuum sealed or canned products. The meats and seafoods are often still partially frozen as they sit on the line. The quality however it may sound like I am critiquing it works for the application. After being combined and cooked only professionals or people who spend a lot of time with food could tell the difference. Due to the reasons I give the food a 12/16 as is it not top notch, it is an all you can eat buffet and the food provided is very tasty and enjoyable.
The servers act more as tour guides explaining everything and bussers removing dirty plates. The cooks however are more on display than even kitchens with open walls or glass viewing areas. They work methodically and very clean to appease the flow of guests. Due to the way the food is laid out and the progression you generally follow the food tends to be all cooked to the right doneness. Even if you have wide ranging items from noodles to raw meat to carrots. I give Fire and Ice's staff a 12/16 because of the servers tend to be spread thin and a little lax on attention as they don't perform like normal servers. Also while the food is cooked well it often looks like a stir-fry or chili slopped onto your plate. While I completely understand given its nature their plating and presentation isn't what you tend to frequent this establisment for.
Being in the business and seeing the items I see a lot of the same ingredients that I work with, a lot of the vegetables being either par-cooked products that come in vacuum sealed or canned products. The meats and seafoods are often still partially frozen as they sit on the line. The quality however it may sound like I am critiquing it works for the application. After being combined and cooked only professionals or people who spend a lot of time with food could tell the difference. Due to the reasons I give the food a 12/16 as is it not top notch, it is an all you can eat buffet and the food provided is very tasty and enjoyable.
I have pretty much covered the unique features of Fire and Ice in my opening descriptions. It is hard to describe without seeing it yourself but I believe I have done the place justice. In all my travels in the culinary world I have yet to run into a place with a similar style. It could be considered an upscale buffet. The price tag runs about 15 dollars usually with a special 9.95 dinner on mondays with a valid college id.
I give Fire and Ice a total of 50/64 possible points, I feel they do real well in targeting their desired clientel versus the crowd they draw in. The times that I go the people tend to be in their 20s or 30s. Generally mall shoppers or people visiting the town as well as college students. The staff does well with the concept offering a more upscale buffet than most of us are used too. While it could use some work I suppose the old adage of "If it's not broke, don't fix it." applies in this case as well.
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