The other day we were on our way to Chepachet when I spotted it. It was a sunny and 80+ degree day and there were a handful of cars in the lot. I’m talking about Frank + John From Italy on the Water, a small and unassuming spot on Putnam Pike in Greenville that’s quietly winning people over since they opened a few months ago.

I’m guessing they are an offshoot of Frank + John’s from Italy on Main Street in EG which for the record I’ve never been to, but 5 or 6 years ago a friend of a friend practically recited a dissertation to me about why he loved it there.

That being said, if you’re looking for a casual restaurant on the water — it overlooks a portion of the man-made lake that, I believe, is known as the Waterman Reservoir (named for early 18th century Greenville land-owning-mucky-muck Resolved Waterman) — where you can enjoy some old school Italian comfort food, then you’ll want to add their deck to your July or August agenda.

The service was consistent and friendly. The menu was a little meat heavy for those of us who are more team Forks Over Knives, but there’s always pizza pie! And pasta. Also, the eggplant parm sandwich or meal. We ended up ordering 2 eggplant grinders and 2 of their garden salads. Our food was quite good, the salad was super fresh and the ginormous sub (if you’re a light eater, you may want to split with your lunch or dinner companion) was tasty.

They also have an extensive cocktail menu for those who want to do a little cheers-ing with their s.o. or their best pal. As a matter of fact, the day we were there the hostess let us know that they had no less than 3 different kinds of sangria including a watermelon that sounded so refreshing.

Sidebar: Not sure what kind of fish swan over whilst we were eating and drinking, but the hubs really enjoyed sneaking some of the bread from our sandwiches into the water for them.

Frank + John From Italy On The Water is located at 743 Putnam Pike in Greenville, RI.