Rhode Island - ​When Walter Potenza arrived in the United States at age 19, he had no English, no money, and little sense of where life might take him. Today, the internationally acclaimed master chef runs cooking schools on three continents, has authored more than 100 books, and is widely credited with helping transform Rhode Island's dining scene. His story, shared in a recent Spotlight Interview at the Cowesett Inn in West Warwick, is one of grit, curiosity, and a relentless drive to keep learning.
An Unlikely Beginning
Potenza's path to the kitchen began not with a love of food, but with a mother's wisdom. As a young man in 1970s Italy, he found himself swept up in the political fervor of the era, drawn toward the Communist Party at a time when it was actively recruiting the country's youth.
"That became a nightmare for me," he recalled. Recognizing the trouble ahead, his mother arranged for him to leave. Thanks to a grandfather who had lived in Virginia for 25 years, Walter qualified for a working visa and set off for America.
His first stop was Manhattan, where he stayed with an aunt and uncle. But the city didn't suit him, and homesickness nearly sent him back to Italy. "I would cry all the time," he admitted. "I told my mother, listen, I'm not staying here."
Once again, his mother intervened. She had nephews in Rhode Island who owned restaurants, and so, on a cold October night, Walter arrived in the state that would become his home for the next five decades.
Learning the Trade
His first job was at the original Antonio's in Cranston, where he peeled shrimp, cleaned squid, and washed dishes. Three summers on Block Island followed, working for the Filippi family. Then, with a young daughter at home, he made a decision that would shape the rest of his life: he would pursue cooking professionally.
That ambition led him to Camille's, the hottest restaurant in Rhode Island during the 1970s. There, under the guidance of Portuguese master chef Sebastian Labau, Potenza found his footing—and brushed shoulders with fame.
Camille's drew a steady stream of stars performing at the nearby Civic Center, from Frank Sinatra and Liza Minnelli to the Rolling Stones. But one late-night guest would become part of culinary legend.
The Night He Cooked for Elvis
It was Memorial Day weekend, and Walter wanted nothing more than to go home to his young daughter. Instead, he was asked to stay for a guest arriving at 11 p.m.
"I turned to my crew and said, who's Elvis?" he laughed.
Upstairs in a private room filled with entertainers, Potenza found himself face to face with a disheveled man in a blue scarf, leaning on his elbow. The man asked for something light and fast. Walter suggested stracciatella—a delicate egg drop soup with pasta that his mother used to make—along with a simple green bean salad.
Years later, The New York Times ran an article on Elvis Presley's final meals, tracing the food he had eaten in the months before his death in August 1977. One of those meals was the soup Walter had prepared that night in Providence.
A Philosophy Rooted in Science and Memory
For Potenza, cooking has always been about far more than technique. "Food is about science and chemistry," he explained. "You can be an excellent cook, an excellent chef, but you have to have the knowledge of the how and the why."
He illustrates the point with a carrot, which he says passes through five distinct stages of flavor as it cooks in a soup. Master the chemistry, and you can identify each stage by smell alone.
But knowledge alone isn't enough. Potenza believes passion is what fuels a chef day after day, and that our deepest connection to food is emotional. "The first thing we remember in our life is memory food," he said. "If I asked you which were the best meatballs, you'd probably say my grandmother's. They probably weren't the best, but they were the best to you."
Building Rhode Island's Culinary Landscape
After Camille's, Potenza's career accelerated. He helped open Capriccio, returned to Camille's, then spent five years at the Blue Grotto before striking out on his own. In November 1986, he opened Walter's—and never looked back.
Over the years, he launched a remarkable 12 restaurants, often developing a concept, opening it, and then selling it on. He brought new cuisines to the state, opening Rhode Island's first tapas restaurant and, drawing on his Italian-Jewish heritage and extensive research into Jewish cuisine, its first kosher restaurant.
"You're pretty much single-handedly the reason we have so many amazing restaurants with so many cultures," noted interviewer Deana.
Potenza, ever gracious, credited the chefs who taught him. "I fell into this basket of knowledge and talent," he said of the veteran chefs who mentored him in his twenties. "When you're surrounded by all of that, you cannot do anything but learn."
From Clay Pots to Classrooms
In 1995, a trip home to central-eastern Italy sparked another venture. Dining with his brother, Potenza tasted mutton slow-cooked over three days in a terracotta pot. Captivated, he brought a pot back to the United States, had it ground into clay, and asked the University of Rhode Island to analyze its composition. After nearly two years of research, he launched his own line of cookware, TerraWare, which eventually appeared on national television.
His cooking school grew from equally humble roots. To draw customers to his terracotta-themed restaurant, Potenza began offering free Tuesday-night cooking demonstrations from behind a counter. Those informal sessions blossomed into a full cooking school—now in its 31st year.
Today, his culinary empire spans the globe. Alongside his Rhode Island school, he runs a program for travelers in an abbey in central Italy, hosting culinary tourism four times a year, and a satellite school in Dubai, where he teaches Mediterranean cooking using halal ingredients.
Lessons for the Next Generation
Throughout his career, Potenza has mentored countless young chefs—often hiring them without a resume. "I'd say to them, there's a knife, there's a bunch of parsley, come with me in the kitchen," he said. His goal was always to discover a young cook's dream and help it grow.
His advice to aspiring chefs is honest about the sacrifice involved. "Be ready to receive all types of recognition and awards," he said, "but the payout is equally high." As interviewer Deana put it, "Anything in life that's worth getting, you've got to work for."
He also pushes against one of the industry's golden rules: consistency. "I've never presented a dish the same way," he said. "There is not a recipe that has been made to the best. You can always top it."
Still Cooking, Still Teaching
Now semi-retired, Potenza shows no signs of slowing down. He has written more than 110 e-books and continues to teach classes ranging from classical Italian cooking to specialized nutrition for those managing diabetes and celiac disease. He remains passionate about helping people eat well in an age of uncertain food labeling. "Common sense usually wins," he said.
From a homesick teenager peeling shrimp in Cranston to a master chef celebrated around the world, Walter Potenza's journey is a testament to perspective, persistence, and an unending hunger to learn.
You can learn more about Chef Walter, his schools, and his books at chefwalter.com.

Rhode Island - Gambling addiction has long been called "the hidden addiction” and according to John Cipolla, Director of the Rhode Island Council on Problem Gambling, that description has never been more fitting than it is today.
In a recent Spotlight interview with the Rhode Island Wave, Cipolla shed light on an issue that often goes unnoticed until it's too late. Unlike alcohol or drug addiction, problem gambling leaves no obvious trail.
"A lot of people call it the hidden problem or the hidden addiction," Cipolla explained. "With most addictions—primarily alcohol and drugs—there's usually some signs along the way. Maybe a DUI, coming home stumbling, maybe an arrest. But with gambling, there is none of that. There's no smell to it, no sight to it. There's really no physicality to it."
In fact, gambling can even look glamorous. A trip to the casino often means getting dressed up and stepping out for a night on the town. But behind that polished image, Cipolla says, a quieter crisis is unfolding.
"When things finally come out—when it reveals itself as a problem—there's a trail of destruction behind them," he said. "Spouses, siblings, friends, parents who had no idea. They're blindsided by it because they didn't see it coming."
From the Track to Your Pocket
Cipolla, who has lived experience with gambling himself, has watched the landscape change dramatically over the decades. For most of Rhode Island's history, gambling required real effort.
From 1947, when Lincoln Downs first opened its doors for horse racing, all the way to 2020, there was only one way to legally place a bet in the state: in person. Whether it was buying a lottery scratch ticket at a convenience store or visiting the Lincoln facility—first for horse and dog racing, then video slot machines in 1991, and table games in 2013—a person had to physically get there.
"That's a 70-year span," Cipolla emphasized. "You had to drive, take a bus, walk—whatever it was, you had to get there."
That barrier vanished almost overnight. Since 2020, sports betting has been available on mobile phones, and in the past two years, the Bally Bet app has brought full casino gaming—slots, craps, blackjack, poker, and more—directly to users' devices.
To illustrate just how quickly things have changed, Cipolla pulled out his phone during the interview. Driving to Bally's in Lincoln, he noted, would take roughly 35 minutes each way—close to an hour of effort just to place a single legal bet. By contrast, opening a betting app takes two seconds. With pre-loaded bets, pre-loaded parlays, and saved credit card details, a person can place a wager in as little as six seconds.
"We have a full sports book and a full casino in our back pocket," he said. "It's 24/7, right in the palm of your hand. There's going to be repercussions—and we're already seeing them."
Meeting the Problem Head-On
Rather than fighting against legalized gambling—now the second-largest revenue stream in Rhode Island—Cipolla and the Council are focused on resources, treatment, and education.
"You can rally against it, but I don't do that. The Council doesn't do that," he said. "What we do is make sure we're getting the funding and resources to deal with it, so we can treat people, educate people, and provide programming."
That concern is heightened by age limits. While the iGaming app (Bally Bet) requires users to be 21 or older, casinos and the sports betting app in Rhode Island are open to anyone 18 and up meaning some high school seniors and many college students can legally gamble. As a result, the Council is now working within colleges to promote responsible gambling and demonstrate the tools available on betting apps, including time limits and deposit limits.
Two Simple Questions
For anyone wondering whether their gambling has crossed a line, Cipolla pointed to a quick self-assessment known as the "Lie/Bet" screening:

1. Have you ever lied about your gambling?
2. Have you bet more than you anticipated at the start of a session?

"If you answer yes to either one of those questions, you might be on the precipice of an issue," he said.
He and interviewer Deana also flagged another warning sign: chasing losses. "If you are chasing losses, that's another indicator that you are on your way to a problem," Cipolla said. "You lose some money, you're mad, and your thinking is, 'I can get that back.' It's a vicious cycle that never ends."
A Treatable Condition
The good news, Cipolla stressed, is that problem gambling is highly treatable—and far less physically demanding to recover from than substance addictions.
"This is really a behavioral healthcare issue," he said. "There's no medication, no withdrawal. You just need some counseling, maybe some cognitive behavioral therapy to change your thinking. It's really not a heavy lift—until you let it go too long."
The heaviest burden, he noted, tends to be financial. "Before you get into horrendous financial burden, get the help. Seek resources, get some education. We can intervene, and you can get on the proper road without going through such pain."
The Council also helps connect people to treatment with licensed clinicians and offers a self-exclusion program—developed in collaboration with the Rhode Island Lottery and Bally's—that allows individuals to bar themselves from both the casinos and the betting apps.
Where to Find Help
Cipolla emphasized that there is no shame in asking for help—and that recovery is possible.
If you or someone you know may have a gambling problem, the following resources are available:

• Rhode Island Council on Problem Gambling: ricpg.com
• Problem Gambling Services Program: problemgamblingservices.com (visit the Resources tab for Gamblers Anonymous meeting times in Rhode Island)
• Treatment and assessment helpline: 401-499-2472

"Literally within 24 hours, we'll get you the resources and help you need," Cipolla said.
For the many Rhode Islanders who can gamble responsibly, Cipolla and Dina agreed there's nothing wrong with a fun night out. "Play with what you're okay with losing, and then go home," Dina said. "But if you find yourself dipping into another credit card, way over where you started—that's when it's time to pay attention."
As Cipolla put it, gambling addiction is a public health issue that has gone largely unnoticed for too long. "Hopefully," he said, "we'll change that."


If you are experiencing problems with gambling, call the 24/7 confidential helpline at 1-800-MY-RESET or 1-877-9GAMBLE.
​

​In a wide-ranging interview at the Cowesett Inn, Republican candidate for Lieutenant Governor John Loughlin laid out an ambitious plan to transform an office he says currently delivers little value to Rhode Island taxpayers.
Loughlin, who as of the interview faced no primary challenger, has called Rhode Island home for nearly his entire life. His parents relocated from Washington, D.C. to Portsmouth in the early 1960s when he was just a year and a half old. He later spent the entire decade of the 1990s back in the nation's capital, working at NASA headquarters during the space shuttle program before returning home.
From the Airwaves to the Ballot
For close to 13 years, Loughlin hosted a Saturday radio show on WPRO, broadcasting from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. each week. It was that experience, he says, that ultimately pushed him toward a run for statewide office.
"Interview after interview, year after year, the same problems kept coming up," Loughlin said, recalling a recurring segment called Small Business Saturdays. He pointed to persistent complaints about state regulations, taxes, and skyrocketing electric bills—issues he could discuss on air but never fully solve.
"You talk a lot about civic responsibility," he said. "Why not take some and run for office?"
Reinventing the Office
At the heart of Loughlin's campaign is a rethinking of what the Lieutenant Governor actually does. By his accounting, the office has cost Rhode Islanders roughly $1.4 million annually over the past decade, despite having no constitutional responsibility beyond stepping in should the governor become unable to serve.
The legislature has layered on a handful of statutory duties—including the Long-Term Care Coordinating Council, a relationship with emergency management officials, and the Small Business Advisory Council—but Loughlin argues these obligations leave plenty of time for more meaningful work.
His solution? Replace political appointees with a team of auditors and investigators.
"Instead of hiring political cronies to come in and hold my hand to make sure I get to those meetings, why don't I hire a staff of auditors and investigators as a first line of defense for Rhode Islanders?" he said.
The plan, which he calls "one office, two jobs, zero new dollars," would task that team with combing through publicly available records—Access to Public Records Act reports, open meetings records, and state contracts—to root out waste and duplication in state government.
The math, he says, makes the case for itself. If the office can identify even 1% of the budget in savings, it would return roughly ten times its operating cost.
"For the first time, instead of costing us $1.4 million to go to ribbon cuttings, we would be able to return $15 million to the taxpayers," Loughlin said.
A Stronger Hand with an Inspector General
Loughlin also believes the state's newly created Inspector General position strengthens his vision considerably. Noting with a touch of humor that the role was announced just four days after his own campaign declaration, he outlined two key advantages.
First, when his auditors uncover evidence of wrongdoing, they could hand it directly to the Inspector General for immediate action. Second, when state agencies stonewall requests for public information, he could file complaints with both the Inspector General and the Attorney General.
"So we have two avenues now to pursue instead of just the one," he said.
Not Without Precedent
Loughlin was quick to note that using the office to champion government transparency isn't a new idea. He recalled former Secretary of State Jim Langevin, who partnered with Brown University's Taubman Institute on a report called "Access Denied," chronicling repeated open meetings violations across the state.
"By getting that information out to the public, we were able to get these organizations to comply better with the open meetings law," he said. "It's just, I think, a better use of $1.4 million than ribbon cuttings and groundbreakings—as important as those are."
A Background Built for the Role
Loughlin brings a deep résumé to the campaign. He served three terms in the Rhode Island General Assembly, representing all of Little Compton along with portions of Tiverton and Portsmouth. His professional background includes service as an Army helicopter pilot, including a combat tour in Iraq, as well as his decade with the space program.
That experience, he says, matters more than voters might realize. Rhode Islanders need only look to recent history: when Governor Gina Raimondo was tapped for a federal post, then-Lieutenant Governor Dan McKee stepped into the role and was later elected in his own right.
"You got to make sure you pay attention to who's getting in that position," Loughlin said, "and that they are qualified just in case."
Getting Involved
Voters can learn more about Loughlin and his campaign at loughlin4ri.com or by following him on Twitter at LoughlinRI1. A frequent presence at community events across the state, Loughlin says he's constantly on the move—from VFW halls to Fourth of July parades.
"I'll run into you somewhere, I'm sure," he said.

​Rhode Island - When it comes to buying a home, the process can be overwhelming. But for David Antonelli, a realtor with the Slocum Home team powered by eXp Realty, guiding clients through the biggest investment of their lives is second nature. Sitting down at the Cowesett Inn in West Warwick, David shared how his unique background and deep community ties make him far more than a standard real estate agent.
With a decade of real estate experience, Antonelli brings a distinct advantage to his clients: he is a former contractor. Having bought and flipped houses with his wife for years, he knows exactly what to look for when he steps into a property.
"I can look at a house... to see whether or not it really has good bones, or if it's been done the right way," David explains. While buyers are busy measuring rooms to see if their furniture will fit, David is looking at foundation base plates for rot and scanning for unpermitted DIY projects. He aims to ensure that when his clients are ready to sell in five or ten years, their home will have appreciated safely.
This meticulous approach is no accident. Before entering real estate, David served as an Army officer and later worked as an auditor. Those roles ingrained a level of precision that benefits his clients immensely, particularly when navigating complex contracts. "I've been told I will never have to worry about paperwork with you," David recalls a colleague saying.
The Slocum Home Team, a family business for 76 years before its recent acquisition by EXP Realty, aligns perfectly with David's philosophy. He measures success not by sales volume, but by the number of families he has helped. This client-first mentality means he adapts to whoever he is representing. He meticulously walks first-time buyers through the overwhelming process, conducts virtual WhatsApp tours for out-of-state investors, and goes the extra mile for elderly clients. Recently, he helped an 80-year-old widow coordinate estate sales and clean-outs for her late husband's extensive collection of marine parts and tools before listing her home.
To ensure his clients are fully protected, David works closely with a trusted network of professionals, including loan officer Dan Kenyon and real estate attorney Lisa Cooper. Cooper, for instance, frequently uncovers unpermitted additions—like DIY mini-split air conditioners or improperly placed sheds—allowing David to resolve these issues before closing.
Beyond real estate, David is deeply involved in the Rhode Island community through his passion for diecast cars. He is a key organizer of the annual Diecast Jam, now entering its 11th year. The event will take place on July 25th and 26th at the McCall YMCA in Lincoln, featuring over 75 tables and 60 vendors selling everything from 1/87 scale Micro Machines to highly detailed 1/6 scale models.
The event isn't just about collecting; it's about giving back. Through door prizes, early bird admissions, and a Facebook Live auction featuring rare manufacturer donations, the Diecast Jam raises funds for local charities, including A Wish Come True and Operation Stand Down.
Additionally, David helps run the Lincoln Johnny Lightning Race Club, hosting downhill gravity diecast races for kids and enthusiasts on the second Sunday of every month at Lonsdale Elementary.
Whether he's looking at a foundation, negotiating a contract, or raising money for local charities at a diecast race, David Antonelli is deeply invested in the Rhode Island community. For him, real estate isn't just about selling a house—it's about selling a secure future.
For more information you can go to Dave’s website, myriagent.com, and the Diecast Jam website at ljlrc.com.