The view from inside the Broadway Bistro.

As I pulled up to the Broadway Bistro, one of the newest spots on increasingly trendy Broadway, my dining companion looked askance at the enormous painting on the side of the building of a black Labrador retriever holding a huge white star in its mouth that was emblazoned with the word ‘sit.’

“What kind of place are you taking me to?” was the question.

Well, a very hip, very cool one as it turned out, with creative dishes from owner-chef Patrick Lowney, previously of the funky Salvation Cafe on that other Broadway — the one in Newport. Broadway Bistro’s menu is executed with panache by a crackerjack kitchen staff … obvious because we later learned that the night we dined had been one of the few that Lowney was not in the kitchen.

The clientele mirrors the slightly bohemian crowd that ambled, or sometimes bicycled, by on a warm summer night. With only 32 table seats, plus 8 more at the bar and several more on the sidewalk, Broadway Bistro is a cozy place that, in the Rhode Island parlance, is where La Prima Caffe used to be. There are polished wood floors, dark brown wainscoting, and walls that are painted a warm red-orange sunset shade and filled with pictures from another era. A pass-through space between the dining room and the small kitchen affords a glimpse of the chefs hustling orders.

Open since January, Lowney says business has been expanding nicely, even beyond the many locals who congregate, thanks to good word of mouth.

And why not?

The menu may be small, but it offers an impressive range — watermelon soup, Thai beef salad, ribs & grits among the appetizer choices; a deconstructed pot pie, Baja fish tacos, seven-spice tuna, a lamb rack with house gnocchi, a duck leg salad with duck-fat fries, local cod cakes, and risotto primavera among the entrees — with just about everything on land and sea covered in some way.

Lowney says he changes the menu every few weeks (please don’t take away any of the things we ordered and would love to eat again!). The limited menu may be because the kitchen offers limited space to fix too many dishes, although I’d prefer to think that this is a case of doing a few things really, really well.

The bread, sliced off a big loaf from Palmieri’s, was warm, crusty and flavorful, with an olive oil dipping sauce that had been gussied up with garlic and pepper and thyme.

Because only wine and bottled beer are served, my dining companion had a glass of Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand ($9) while I chose a Brooklyn Lager ($4) that I hoped would be a muscular one from Brooklyn, N.Y., but turned out to be a muscular one from Utica, N.Y. It proved to be a good choice to accompany our appetizers — Pabst-braised mussels with chourico ($9) and the ribs & grits ($8).

The spicy chourico spiked up the fat, sweet mussels and added an extra zing to a broth that included thin slices of leeks, herb butter and thyme. We ordered more bread for dunking. Then, after the only thing that was left of the generous serving of mussels was their shells and our good memories, we wished aloud that we had some spoons to finish off the broth. Our cheerfully accommodating waitress, who also did bar duty and bread slicing and playful schmoozing with the customers, offered to bring a pair of spoons. But we had second thoughts, even after she said that recently one diner wondered if it would be good etiquette to lift the big bowl and slurp down the remaining broth.

Much as we loved the mussels, we’d have needed a coin toss to decide whether we liked them more than the ribs & grits. Actually, there were no rib bones on the plate, just succulent, extraordinarily fork-tender meat that had, indeed, seemed to have fallen off the bone, as they say. Attractively presented on a square white plate, they sat atop a bed of non-gritty grits with a slightly sweet yet savory orange-soy marinade, with a toss of sesame seeds.

Just as we’d ordered our entrees, we had a second thought — that watermelon soup ($5) sounded like just the ticket for a warm summer evening. And it was. A big bowl of deep pink soup had a bit of zip from its sweet ginger and a cool scattering of fried (yes, fried!) mint. It looked, and sort of tasted, like a melted Popsicle. Next time we’ll each order a bowl rather than sharing.

We also had second thoughts when we spied a pair of enormous salads heading for another table, as well as the seared scallops appetizer going to another. The three plump scallops on the plate looked delicious.

But they would have to wait for a later visit. My dining companion had had an eye on the steak & cheese ($20) ever since we looked over the menu that hangs outside the Broadway Bistro. I, however, flirted with the Baja fish tacos ($15) in Dos Equis beer batter and served in soft corn tortillas, which sounded intriguing and which our waitress said would make a light meal. But in the end, the seven-spice tuna ($20) won out.

Again we picked a pair of winners. The roasted flank steak was cooked to perfection at just a step below medium. On the side, a large Gorgonzola fritter offered a husky flavor that paired well with the richness of the steak, offset by a sweet shallot sauce. Also on the side was a tasty portion of hearty Swiss chard, whose annoying tough red ribs were, happily, nowhere to be seen.

My seven-spice tuna had several slices of rare tuna steak that were tender and moist, cooked in a ponzu beurre blanc (a winning marriage of traditional Japanese and French sauces). There were a couple of dollops of surprisingly not-too-fiery wasabi on the side. Lowney said in a later phone call that he waters down the green Japanese horseradish a tad, so that it won’t bring stars to your eyes the way it can if you slather it on your sushi.

A deep green slithering mass of crunchy seaweed salad on the side had been prepared elsewhere, but Lowney said he dresses it up with extremely thin slices of English cucumber cut on a mandoline, plus rice wine vinegar, sesame oil and sesame seeds. It was topped with even crunchier slivers of wonton chips for a dish that was unique and offered a satisfying array of Asian seafood flavors. There are no desserts on the menu at Broadway Bistro. Not one. But our waitress brought us complimentary cups of a sweet chocolate mousse that was light, refreshing and a fitting end to a wonderful meal.BILL OF FARE

Dinner for two at Broadway Bistro might look something like this:

Brooklyn lager…$4.00

Sauvignon blanc…$9.00

Pabst-braised mussels…$9.00

Watermelon soup…$5.00

Steak & cheese…$20.00

Seven-spice tuna…$20.00

Total food and drink…$67.00

Tax…$5.36

Tip…$14.00

Total bill…$86.36

Broadway Bistro, 205 Broadway, Providence. (401) 331-2450. broadwaybistrori.com. Casual. Handicapped accessible. Reservations for six or more. AE, MC, V. On-street parking. Dinner 5 p.m. to 1 a.m. Sun. to Thurs.; to 2 a.m. Fri. and Sat. Appetizers $5 to $10. Entrees $12 to $20. Wines are $7 to $10 by the glass; $24 to $40 for a bottle.

More, please! This restaurant’s menu, and recent reviews and menus: projo.com/food

mjanuson@projo.com