Side of the Rhode: Who’s Hot and Who’s Not - May 22, 2026

HOT

YUM in EP

The owners of the popular Providence restaurant Los Andes are expanding to another city.
 

Cesin, Diego, and Omar Curi will be opening a new Brasa and Chifa at the location of the former Pizza Amore on Pawtucket Avenue in East Providence. 

The Curi brothers opened their first “Brasa and Chifa” in Providence in 2023.

Latest for Curi Brothers

As GoLocal reported, Cesin Curi described the Brasa and Chifa concept as “a cool Peruvian-Chinese rotisserie…kind of like Boston Market — but awesome.”

East Providence Mayor Bob DaSilva celebrated the news this week. 
 

“Another new business choosing to call East Providence home,” said Da Silva. “Can’t wait to help cut the ribbon on this great new addition to our East Providence culinary scene.”

HOT

RI Connection Gets His Due: From Tech Exec to Boston Celtics President - Kevin Stacom

Stacom's great column on the remarkable success of PC grad Rich Gotham:

Gotham, President of the Boston Celtics, Providence College Class of ‘86, is slated to receive an Honorary Doctor of Business Administration degree on Sunday at graduation exercises.

Gotham is the lesser-known “other” strong Rhode Island connection to the Boston Celtics.

Justifiably, every Rhode Island Celtics fan can take a lot of pride in the fact that one of its native sons, Joe Mazzulla, from the town of Johnston and Hendricken H.S. graduate, has been the head coach of the Boston Celtics since September of 2022, and has already, in his young career, won an NBA Championship in 2024.

Obviously, being the head coach of the Celtics is a very high-profile job, and Mazzulla’s relatively meteoric rise to that position is an interesting story in itself, but there is another unlikely tale to be told of a Providence College graduate.

Gotham, who’s held other key positions for the Celtics at the other end of the organizational spectrum since April of 2023, was initially hired as Executive VP, promoted to Chief Operating Officer in June of 2006, and finally team President in April of 2007 - a position Gotham has held to the present day.

It’s been my experience, having been around the NBA front office side of the business for many years, that many people within most organizations had a strong personal friendship or familial relationship with someone who was able to initially get them started in the professional sports business, and nepotism abounds.

When I recently had the opportunity to speak with Rich Gotham, he readily explained that it was not the case for him. 

Rich explained to me that his business career began when he was recruited later in his senior year (1986) at a job fair venue at Providence College by NCR Corporation located in Dayton, Ohio. He said he was one of about 80 guys that NCR brought in from around the country for sales positions. He quickly rose to a management and business development position.

READ MORE PHOTO: USDOE

HOT

The New York Times features Providence in its 36 Hours column.

The paper wrote: "One of America’s oldest cities, free-spirited Providence is a playground of history and creativity with a long tradition of resistance. You can easily stroll from Downtown, enlivened with new public art, across the Providence River, to see well-preserved 18th- and 19th-century architecture."

No mention of Buddy Cianci or the Mafia, so Providence has come a long way in the Times.

HOT

A Good News Bad News Story

People want to live in Providence.

On Monday, a report for Zillow finds that Providence is the “hottest” rental market in America. Great news for landlords and bad news for renters.

"Providence is turning up the heat this summer. The Rhode Island capital tops Zillow’s hottest rental markets list, edging out New York and San Francisco for the No. 1 spot. For renters in these markets, competition is fierce,” writes Zillow.

“In Zillow’s most competitive rental markets, demand continues to exceed the number of available homes. Many renters are drawn to these areas for amenities, job opportunities or to stay close to family, which increases competition for a limited supply of housing. Although 2024 saw a surge in new construction, the highest in decades, much of that development did not reach the Northeast or coastal California, contributing to especially tight conditions in those regions,” writes the real estate company.

“In hot markets, rents climb fast, vacancies are low, and property managers rarely offer concessions, such as free rent or waived fees. That stands in contrast to Sun Belt markets like Austin, Tampa and Phoenix, where a wave of new rental construction has kept rent growth in check,” writes Zillow.

Providence — “Rents are up 5% year over year, and with just 12.9% of property managers offering concessions — the lowest share in the top 10 — renters find little room to negotiate. The typical rent is $2,154 a month, and renters need to earn about $86,000 a year to comfortably afford it.”

NOT

No One Changes Positions More Than This Guy

Providence City Councilman John Goncalves has changed positions on:

Defund the Police

Development

Liquor Licenses

Rent Control - actually, he just didn't show up to vote.

And then there was the time when he couldn't answer where he went to elementary school. Oops, almost forgot, the time he plagiarized his policy platform. He didn't actually change that position; he borrowed someone else's.

NOT

Reform Is Good, Exempting the Legislature from Oversight Is Bad

GoLocal reported:

Newly elected Speaker of the House Chris Blazejewski on Tuesday introduced legislation to create an office of Inspector General.

The 12-page bill exempts the legislature from review by the proposed new investigative office.

The bill has been a political football in recent weeks. Legislation to create an inspector general has been before the Rhode Island legislature for two decades, but Democratic legislative bosses have killed the initiative year in and year out.

When GoLocal raised questions about the legislation not including the legislature, Blazejewski's office said there was a legal opinion that outlined that both the legislature and the judiciary had to be exempted due to Rhode Island’s separation of powers.

GoLocal asked for a copy of the legal opinion. A few hours later, no opinion, just a statement from Blazejewski.

NOT

Kids Are Not Alright

1) Two students have been arrested for possessing weapons at a public school in Providence, GoLocal has confirmed.

Police responded to E-Cubed Academy on Branch Avenue on Tuesday afternoon to investigate - and make the arrests. 

“One student had a handgun; one had a machete - both were taken into custody,” said Providence Police Major David Lapatin when reached for comment.

2) Fight and Stabbings at Narragansett Town Beach

3) Fights at Middletown's Second Beach 

PHOTO: City of Narragansett

NOT

Trump's Proposed Legal Defense Fund for Criminals

One of the worst ideas ever proposed.

PHOTO: ITV