Vine Yard East Owners Hope to Set New Standard

"If I had it my way, I'd throw these table clothes out the window in favor of some old wooden tables."

Not the kind of statement you'd expect to hear coming out of 315 Waterman Avenue, a place whose former occupants provided a fine dining experience without the hassle of the congested capital city.

Even so, Jeff Boisseau, along his wife and partner, Donnalee, are committed to revamping how people see the building that was once home to Cattails City Grille. And with friendlier prices and a laid back take on customer service,  and its owners seem well on their way to providing a "new take on the white table cloth."

Vine Yard East is not, by any stretch, Jeff and Donalee's warm up act, nor does it promise to be their swan song. Jeff is a seasoned entrepreneur with a long list of culinary credits and start-up successes. After graduating from Johnson & Wales University, he "followed" his now-wife to Sin City, where she was a student at the University of Las Vegas. He soon opened a pub in a reputable casino (which is still going strong) and later worked with Disney to open an ESPN Zone restaurant on the Strip.

A series of life lessons and one child later, and the couple was ready to return to their New England roots, but not without some cordial disagreement. Donnalee, an East Providence native and self-professed Townie, wanted her daughter to experience a similar life to that she had growing up in Riverside. Jeff, on the other hand, was eager to return to his native Massachusetts, where the couple now owns three restaurants.

Ultimately, they chose the land of red and white, settling down in Rumford.

"I loved growing up here," Donnalee said. "I didn't want my daughter growing up and not knowing her family."

The couple's commitment to crafting a down-home feel doesn't end with their choice of location. It's also found in the philosophy they're injecting into their newest venture. Due to a sponsorship by Converse, the servers will be provided with Chuck Taylor sneakers. The bar has been outfitted with a new flat screen TV, and gone is the cumbersome built-in lounge seating that made sidebar chit-chat impossible during cocktail hour. New artwork is on the way to further establish the restaurant as a unique character on the local scene.

Still, much of Vine Yard East's interior finishes are left over from Cattails' days of occupancy. It remains to be seen how the laid back street flair will mesh with the upholstered banquet seating and high-gloss granite, although, Jeff promises cosmetic changes once the restaurant hits its stride.

"For right now, we are doing everything we can to say that we're the new guys in town," he said. "We've already done so much to this place, and we'll do even more as time goes by. This should be a place where people feel comfortable and want to come every Friday night."

If Monday night's VIP event was any indication, the buzz seems to already be swarming in the Boisseau family's favor. Many East Providence residents came out to support the opening, trading "remember when?'s and words of encouragement.

Among them was Lisa Costa, a high school friend of Donnalee's.

"It's great to have [Donnalee] back," Costa said. "This place already feels different. It's local people looking to add to the community."

With most dishes priced at somewhere around $10, it's the little extra mixed with hints of the refined that have Vine Yard East poised to don the mantle of East Providence's most eclectic eatery.