The BBQ shrimp, below, is the best-selling appetizer at the Shula’s 347 Grill in Providence.

THE PROVIDENCE JOURNAL / Sandor Bodo

PROVIDENCE

Three plasma TVs stationed around Shula’s 347 Grill in the Providence Hilton were tuned to a Boston Red Sox game the night we came for dinner. Silver-framed photos and some of the trophies of legendary former Miami Dolphins coach Don Shula, whose name graces this and 25 other eateries around the country, line the walls. But despite all that, it’s clear that this is no noisy sports bar — and not just because the TV sets were soundless.

Shula’s 347 Grill is elegant and contemporary, with floor to ceiling windows at the front bar area, which overlooks LaSalle Square, and a long, narrow dining area with cherry wood wainscoting, black marble-topped tables and warm brown leather on the walls and part of the ceiling. As part of the new look for the newly refurbished and renamed Providence Hilton, it has a very modern clubby feel.

Shula’s 347 Grill (the name comes from the 347 games he won as Dolphins coach) is one of the midprice restaurants in a chain that includes high-end steak houses, a seafood spot in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and two honest-to-goodness sports bars. It’s not as expensive as the Shula’s in Washington, D.C., where my dining companion once discovered, when the bill arrived at the end of the meal, that the À la carte baked stuffed potato had cost $8; there were no prices on the menu. In Providence, not only are the prices on the menu, but my identical baked potato, with butter, bacon bits, sour cream and shredded cheddar on top, was one of the two sides (from a selection of seven) that came at no extra charge with my entree. (If ordered as a separate side, it would have been $5.)

Yes, the menu features the famous “Shula-Cut” steaks, a name so valued that it is copyrighted. But unlike the Shula steak houses, where beef is serious business, here there are only three — an 8-ounce filet mignon, a 14-ounce New York strip and a 16-ounce Cowboy steak, which our friendly and very knowledgeable waitress, Erin, said was actually a bone-in ribeye. In Providence you’ll also find pecan-crusted salmon, herb-roasted chicken, a lobster tail, braised short ribs, seared Ahi tuna and even a catch of the day. There also are six enormous salads and eight very tall sandwiches and burgers (some of which we saw while on their way to other tables) that are not only for lunch. Despite all that, in a follow-up phone call, general manager Jeffrey Iovino said the steaks are still the three top sellers, although the salmon, tuna and double-cut pork chop hold their own.

We started with some of those tarted-up martinis so popular these days. I chose the blueberry martini ($11) after Erin said that my original choice, the Providence martini, whose ingredients included a basil leaf and lime, was “an acquired taste” that people seemed to either love or loathe. The blueberry martini, with Stoli Blueberi, a splash of cranberry juice and sour and fresh muddled blueberries, seven of which were swimming in the drink, was slightly sweet and had a definite blueberry flavor.

My companion’s pomegranate martini — Absolut Citron, Pama liqueur, a splash of grapefruit juice, fresh lime and lemon juices and a twist of lemon — won praises from the other side of the table.

The appetizer list is simple and direct — “crab cake, BBQ shrimp, crispy ravioli,” it reads — holding no hint of what wonderful creations they are. We chose the crispy ravioli ($9) after Erin explained that it was stuffed with ricotta, chicken, basil and sun-dried tomatoes, then battered and fried. But even that sounds too ordinary for what arrived on the table. The eight ravioli, with a sprinkling of shaved parmesan and sliced scallions on top, sat atop crunchy fried angel hair pasta. On the side, a husky marinara sauce for dunking. The slightly crispy ravioli, a medley of flavors, were practically bursting with the wonderfully moist and fragrant concoction.

Equally sensational were the BBQ shrimp ($16), which Iovino said was a Shula signature dish, introduced at his first restaurant in Miami Lakes, Fla., and the top-selling appetizer in Providence. That translates to $4 per shrimp, but it was well worth it. The jumbo shrimp had been stuffed with a slice of basil then wrapped in apple-wood smoked bacon and grilled. Slathered with a sweetish barbecue sauce, the various flavors were delicious and each one distinct. We had a difficult time deciding which of these two appetizers we liked best, but I think the shrimp had a slight edge.

Erin mentioned that the soup of the day was minestrone ($6 for a big bowl) and so, determined to try as much as we could, we ordered it with two spoons. It was perfectly fine, with lots of vegetables and al dente macaroni in a rich broth. Although I felt it could have been a tad hotter, my dining companion thought it was just fine on a hot summer day. Iovino said that menu items were created by a Shula corporate chef, but daily specials, such as the minestrone, were the work of local chef Marc Rosen.

My rib-loving companion was bent on sampling the BBQ baby back ribs ($23) and so I, at first eyeing the tuna in hopes of getting more of a range of entree items, figured that I’d have to try one of the steaks. This was Shula’s, which had built its reputation on steaks, after all.

So the Cowboy steak ($33) it was, a tender, moist, well-marbled and very impressively sized piece of meat that had very little excess fat. No frilly toppings, either. When it arrived, the server insisted that I first slice into it in front of him, to make sure it had been cooked to my specifications. It was, a perfect medium. After a few bites, I couldn’t dispute a menu claim that only 1 percent of all the nation’s beef supply can live up to Shula’s demands.

The steak was accompanied by that jumbo baked stuffed potato, a meal in itself. I bypassed the sour cream, but the buttery insides kept it moist, the bacon only enhanced the taste and the cheddar on top added a rich burst of flavor. On the side was a mix of sliced green and yellow squash that added just the right light touch.

My companion praised the baby back ribs for their meatiness and practically falling-off-the-bone tenderness. The sweet barbecue sauce was a perfect accompaniment. The ribs came with two sides — very good baked beans and a generous portion of very creamy cole slaw whose ingredients had been diced rather than sliced, making it look even bigger than normal in the dish. Leaving no stone unturned, a side of French fries ($4) was ordered as well. My companion thought them good, but I found them disappointingly limp and not all that hot.

Most desserts served at Shula’s 347 Grill are made elsewhere, but Erin said the almond-pecan bowl that my sorbet was served in was made daily on the premises. As with the appetizer list, the dessert list is remarkably barebones — cheesecake, Key Lime pie, brownie sundae, ice cream or sorbet.

So I was not prepared for the smashing presentation of the sorbet ($7), having expected maybe a little dish of the summer treat. Not at all. A generous scoop each of raspberry and mango sorbet arrived in the almond-pecan bowl which was shaped like a broad-brimmed hat and which could easily have fit a monkey. And he wouldn’t have looked half bad in it, either.

The bowl was the consistency of a thin, delicate peanut brittle, which Iovino called almond and pecan Florentine. You could break off pieces to eat like candy, or scoop up the sorbet with the shards, making for a wonderful combination. At the bottom of the bowl, which sat on raspberry sauce swirls, was a dollop of whipped cream. On top were fresh blueberries, raspberries and a blackberry, plus a very large sprig of mint. It was as pretty as it was delicious.

My companion’s warm apple cobbler wasn’t quite so magnificent looking, but tasted nearly as good. The slightly chewy crumb topping had been dusted generously with cinnamon and sat atop moist apple slices, a big scoop of vanilla ice cream on one side.

In the end we decided that, good as the meats are here, one could visit Shula’s 347 Grill and make a meal just from the appetizers, that baked stuffed potato and a couple of desserts. One would certainly leave satisfied.

mjanuson@projo.com