For roughly six years, the building at 14 Narragansett Ave sat between identities. Jamestown Fish closed at the end of 2018. A receivership auction followed in 2020. New owners tried and failed to get traction. A bookstore-wine bar opened, then didn't survive its first winter. A deal to bring a Tuscan restaurant collapsed in spring 2025, when a neighbor enforced deed restrictions from 2003 that cap service hours and prohibit amplified music. By last fall, most longtime residents had quietly filed the address under "promising but stuck."
Then Crudo Oyster Bar & Coastal Italian Kitchen opened on December 17, 2025.
That address is not a footnote. It is a compressed history of how Jamestown absorbs new things: slowly, on the town's terms, with sustained friction — and then, once something actually fits, completely. The past 18 months on Narragansett Avenue have brought more new dining to the village than the previous decade combined. That is not coincidence, and it is not a sudden discovery of the island by outside operators. Every addition was shaped by Jamestown's approval process, its deed restrictions, its neighbor objections. What opened is what fit.
What's on Narragansett Avenue Right Now
| Address | Name | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 14 Narragansett Ave | Crudo Oyster Bar & Coastal Italian Kitchen | Opened December 17, 2025 |
| 22 Narragansett Ave | Mindy Galley | Asian fusion/sushi/hibachi, in final permitting |
| 23B Narragansett Ave | Angel's Kitchen | Reopened fall 2024 after an 8-month closure |
| 40 Narragansett Ave | Standards Jamestown | Opened late 2024 at the former Chopmist Charlie's |
| 53 Narragansett Ave | Our Table Jamestown | Established, seasonal menu |
BEECH and JB's on the Water are the other anchors. BEECH was conceived by a group of Jamestown locals specifically as a community gathering place, with five dining areas ranging from a bar scene to intimate twinkle-light tables. JB's holds down the waterfront with bay views toward the Newport Bridge and a dog-friendly patio that opens with the season.
Why Crudo at #14 Is Different from the Last Three Attempts
The deed restrictions that killed the Siena deal are still fully in force. No food or drink past 9 p.m. Sunday through Thursday, 10 p.m. on weekends. No amplified music. No large outside tables. Owners Jeff Merlino, Anthony Quetta, and Tony Lanni didn't negotiate around those terms. They built a concept around them.
Crudo runs Monday through Saturday, 4 to 9 p.m., and its kitchen doesn't need late-night volume to work. The raw bar anchors the menu — local oysters, littlenecks at $2.50, shrimp cocktail — alongside crudo preparations (sushi-grade tuna with peach ponzu, pickled mango, and basil), a shellfish tower, bone-in veal parmesan, pasta Bolognese, and an outdoor pizza oven the team plans to use through the warmer months. Merlino's homemade desserts cross over from the Smithfield location, which debuted in March 2024. The Jamestown build also includes 36 climate-controlled wine lockers available for annual rental, letting regulars keep a private stock on-site — the kind of feature that signals the owners are thinking about return visitors, not bridge traffic.
The trio already runs Merlino's Pizzeria in Cranston and the original Crudo in Smithfield. What they brought to Jamestown wasn't a transplant of an outside concept. They found the contours of what the village would allow and built inside them.
What Else Opened, and What's Still Coming
Standards Jamestown arrived at 40 Narragansett Ave in late 2024, replacing Chopmist Charlie's, which had been an institution on that block for years. It runs as a home-style American restaurant, open seven days a week from noon to 11 p.m. — draft beers, familiar entrees, no-pretense atmosphere. It covers the daytime and early evening hours that Crudo's dinner-only format leaves open.
Angel's Kitchen at 23B Narragansett Ave came back online last fall after roughly eight months closed. Our Table Jamestown, two blocks north at 53 Narragansett Ave, continues with Chefs Marc Alexander handling the savory side and Marla Romash on pastry, operating a seasonal menu that follows local produce. It has built a consistent following without much noise.
The address still moving is 22 Narragansett Ave. Mindy Zhang, who has owned Mindy's Restaurant and Sushi Bar in Portsmouth since 2021, appeared before the Jamestown Zoning Board of Review in late April 2026 for a liquor license approval for Mindy Galley, her planned Asian fusion restaurant at the former J22 Tap & Table. The menu will cover sushi, hibachi, poke bowls, bento boxes, and a full range of traditional and inventive Asian dishes. Zhang originally targeted February for the opening; permitting delays pushed that timeline. If Mindy Galley opens this summer, it will be Jamestown's first dedicated Asian restaurant since Peking Garden closed in 2016 when the Bomes Theatre was renovated — a nine-year gap. Watch the Jamestown Press for updates on her licensing status.
The Rest of the Summer Calendar
The Narragansett Avenue cluster is the most concentrated change, but it lands in a summer calendar that doesn't need much introduction to longtime residents.
Watson Farm on North Road is still operating this season, including its walking trails across 265 acres. The 230-year-old working barn that served as the farm's public face since it opened to visitors in 1979 was destroyed in a fire on April 23 — a genuine loss, described by Historic New England site manager Jane Hennedy as "a significant piece of agricultural history." The farmland and seasonal programming continue; check the Historic New England listing directly for current event schedules before visiting.
Beavertail Lighthouse and Park runs a free catch-and-release aquarium alongside the lighthouse museum during park hours. It remains one of the few places on the island where a full afternoon costs nothing.
Fort Getty Park (41 acres, terminus of Fort Getty Road) has its rocky beach, public boat ramp, and the Kit Wright walking trail along Fox Hill Marsh. The 2026 camping season — 75 seasonal RV sites and 26 tent sites — filled by waitlist, as it does every year. Day visitors pay a parking fee; residents use a beach sticker.
Mackerel Cove Beach is the island's best sandy option for swimming.
For runners, the Jamestown Rhode Race on September 26, 2026 circumnavigates nearly all of Conanicut Island: from Fort Getty past Mackerel Cove, through the village, along the east shore, and back. The course passes Watson Farm and carries views of Narragansett Bay and the Newport Bridge for most of the route.
On the arts side, the Jamestown Arts Center is presenting "Next," a current exhibition with a game-show-style artist discussion event on the calendar this month. The Jamestown Philomenian Library is hosting "Climate Conversations," a 30-photograph exhibition documenting coastal change along Rhode Island's shoreline, organized by a North Kingstown group and on display through the spring.
One Practical Note Before You Head Out
The Rhode Island Turnpike and Bridge Authority began replacing joints on the Jamestown-Verrazzano Bridge this spring, with westbound traffic reduced to a single lane during the work. Build extra time into your westbound trip on summer weekends. Senator Dawn Euer has also introduced legislation requiring the RITBA to waive Pell Bridge tolls triggered by dead transponder batteries — and to notify drivers before violations escalate. If you use E-ZPass on the Newport crossing, it is worth confirming your transponder battery is current before the season gets busy.
Jamestown changes slowly, by design and by temperament. The friction isn't a bug. It is the reason the village looks and feels the way it does, and why the additions arriving on Narragansett Avenue this summer carry the character of the island rather than working against it.
If you are thinking about what all of this means for the market here — or if you have been watching a particular property on the island and want a candid read — Eric Kirton has been part of this community long enough to give you one. Request a private consultation when you're ready.
