We (party of 3) had lunch here on a wintry Saturday. The fireplace was a welcome addition given we'd been trudging through the snow all morning!

We were seated promptly (they weren't too busy) and our server was good. One member of our party had the clam chowder for appetizer and it was lovely. I shared the salad special as an appetizer (endive with walnuts, blue cheese and seared scallops) and it was very good. The scallops were excellent. All 3 of us had the burger for entree and everyone enjoyed it.

A reasonalby priced, cosy restaurant on Thames St. Note: the bar was crowded and noisy when we entered but this noise didn't disturb the dining area.

I don't take writing this lightly. My wife and I have traveled the world and have eaten in some truly exquisite restaurants. That said, my expectations were not that high for this restaurant. But Zelda delivered multiple items which were BURNED. Not even McDonald's will serve burned food.

The cheese appetizer had the most infinitesimally small pieces of cheese you can imagine for $13. The candied walnuts were burned. Terrible.

The $13 arugula salad came topped with a fig stuffed with burned cheese. An odd pairing with fig spread that should have been served with the cheese. And the salad was too greasy to eat. Disgusting.

The bouillabaisse was the real treat, topped with two pieces of burned bread. Not a little burned, I mean jet black. Totally unservable. I cannot believe they have the gall to sell this nasty food at $25 a plate. Shameful.

We expressed our concerns to the waitress (who was very nice). She apologized for our experience and said desert would be comped. Fine. We ordered two deserts, got the check and only 1 was comped. Cheap, cheap, cheap.

Finally got the extra desert removed from the check. The manager made it seem like they did us some great favor.

This is a tourist trap posing as a local favorite. For these prices there are PLENTY of other good restaurants in town. Do not waste your money.

We were seated promptly. However, because the restaurant is rather small, and was pretty much taken over by a large, very obnoxious and noisy party, we were seated right by the entrance to their bar section, not far from the hostess stand. The food was good (I had the fish bouillabaise for $24, my boyfriend had the lamb chops with risotto for $24). We also ordered mixed olives ($4) and chowder ($5). I would have liked to also try their avocado and grapefruit salad and seared tuna, but we did not want to take any food back (because we were staying at a b&b and were not planning on finishing our food later), so we decided not to over-order.
The evening was completely ruined by a very large party of extremely inconsiderate people. They kept yelling at each other across the table, and generally acting as though this was their private function room. If you want to act like that, I think you should rent a private space. This was an expensive restaurant. People go there to have a romantic, relaxing meal. We decided not to have coffee or dessert, because we could not wait to get out of there. The bar area was far more peaceful and quiet than the main restaurant. We mentioned this to the hostess and she apoligized, said that they already had several couples walk out because of the noisy party, and also noted that they'd spoken to the party to no avail.
I liked the food, but probably would not return. The overall experience was not worth the money we paid.

My husband and I visited Zelda ([-]) at the recommendation of the B&B where we were staying. It was a Monday evening and even though Newport was pretty quiet this place was buzzing. We were told it's something of a local's hangout. Don't be fooled by the "Cafe" - this is like a great little French bistro.

It's small which creates a cozy atmosphere, especially as it was cool outside. Our food was great. I had the foie gras appetizer (politically incorrect I know, and actually impossible in California restaurants now!) and it was so good. My fish in saffron and tomato sauce was also very good - the sauce was what made it for me. Husband had some kind of soup of the day (can't remember what now) and steak frites which was on the specials menu at $12.95 - quite a bargain. We had a nice bottle of California wine and all in all were very pleasantly surprised at our dining experience. Would definitely go back and recommend to others without hesitation.