My friends and I rented a house in Newport, RI for the summer and so far it has been the best decision we have ever made!

If you are familiar with the area at all you know that America’s Cup and Thames Street are the hot spots to check out with plenty of shopping, great restaurants, and fun bars all on or steps from the water.

Since this is why there haven’t been many posts this summer I figured it was time to share some photos of the awesome places we’ve been and food we have eaten. I have so many pictures I am going to break this up into a few posts.

Diego’s was a favorite from last summer and we have stopped in here a few times already this this year. They have really creative cocktails and their portions are huge. While everything looks amazing I have a hard time not getting their famous Fish Tacos. They are stuffed with fried or grilled cod, black beans, baja cheese, pineapple jicama salsa and tomatoes and topped with salsa fresca and guacamole.

We love the beach and if you are renting in Newport you can buy a summer beach parking pass. Totally worth it to be able to spend every weekend day here:

The Atlantic Beach Club is a daytime Newport hot spot. It has been around since the 1930’s and located right on First Beach. The ABC patio is always jam packed on Saturday and Sunday afternoons and features DJ’s and live bands. Be prepared to be smack in the middle of a giant beach dance party! While they are famous for their Astro Bomb drinks (a frozen concoction that is layered red, white and blue) my favorite drink on the menu is the Sweet Tea Vodka and Lemonade. Order them by the pitcher – they will be gone FAST.

Beware: they are strong – just how we like them 🙂

he Smoke House has been a staple on America’s Cup for quite some time but they got a major face lift between this summer and last and the menu does not disappoint! We love this restaurant we have been back multiple times. The pictures below were from a lunch visit. On the left is the Grilled Vegetable Caesar Salad and on the right is the side of Cajun Corn on the Cob.

These pictures are from our second visit when we went back for dinner. It was outta this world! In the top left corner are the BBQ Pork-Cheddar Potato Croquettes. Our table ate them up in a about 2.5 seconds they were so delicious!

For my dinner I tried to Pulled Pork platter served with cornbread, slaw and a trio of their house-made BBQ sauces. The cornbread is a must try if you are eating here. It was unreal! I washed the meal down with a Texas Mule – the Smoke House version of a Moscow Mule made with vodka, fresh lime juice, agave nectar and ginger beer. All of their drinks are served in mason jars which I love!

If views of boats and the harbor are what you are looking for The Landing is a great spot! Located in Bowen’s Wharf, they have plenty of outdoor seating and feature a DJ in the upstairs portion of the restaurant on the weekends.

The Red Parrot, located right on the corner of Memorial Boulevard and Thames Street, has one of the largest menu’s I’ve seen in Newport! We were in for lunch and I ordered the Fire Cracker Shrimp salad but substituted for Coconut Shrimp. The shrimp were huge and the entire meal was very good. I need to go back and try their Stoli Doli’s as well.

There are SO many good ice cream spots in Newport but for me it’s always Kilwins. As well as serving ice cream in freshly made waffle bowls and cones (you can watch them make them!) Kilwins has candy, fudge, toffee, caramel, salt water taffy, and great gift baskets. Walk by the door and smell the fresh waffle cones being made and you will be sucked right in!

See you soon for Part 2 – in the meantime you can follow our Newport adventures on Instagram!

Let me know if you have any favorite spots in the Newport area that we haven’t checked out