Double blech (I’ve been twice).
Boring…Boring…OMG Boring. Do we really need more mass retail family food places in the midwest? Especially one downtown on Mass Ave!?! What happened here CRU? Mesh and Stonecreek are on target…this place belongs in the far suburbs with a huge stack of high chairs at the door and placemats the kids can draw on … OR … Get a chef.
photos courtesy of funcityfinder.com
BEST RESTAURANT IN TOWN
What’s there to say about the food … that it comes from local celebrity chef Greg Hardesty means its thoughtful seasonal food that is beautifully cooked with a interesting point of view. I was so angry at this town after the close of Elements where I first became a monthly fan of his kitchen creations. Now I breathe a little easier knowing there is once again a restaurant in town I don’t have to apologize for and a place I can call my own whenever I need something special.
The single meal concept culinary trend…or should I say culinary reaction… is a deliberate answer to the massive over abundance of choice, forcing fresh and anything you want when you want it tradition this country nurtured through the last 15 years. Its’ the best result of a chef-owned restaurant. Amen to that.
The $52 per person price tag (varies per menu day of course) for a three course meal keeps the quality high and the place mostly filled with business dinners during the week and empty nesters and younger foodies on the weekends.
Great news article link here from IBJ on the restaurants success…great videos of Hardesty talking about the struggles and rewards of this venture….plus a little more info about his upcoming casual next door restaurant Rm. 4 which plans on serving tasty short-order comfort food.
>8110 N College Ave, Indianapolis, IN 46240, (317) 251-2294
>114 East 49th St, Indianapolis, IN 46205 • (317) 925-0765
I waited to say anything about Napolese until I had eaten there a handful of times and so far I’ve sampled most of what they have to offer. While the rest of the menu is decent, I’ve been blown away each time by their European style pizza. What is the magic that local restaurant owner Martha Hoover wields? She’s created yet another culinary home run by bringing artisanal style pizza to the Indy masses…and we’re better for it.
Napolese is as cozy as the neighborhood surrounding it and the Roman-style pizzas are fantastic. They are flat and chewy with raised pillow-puffed edges and bits of slightly charred hot spots…exactly how they should be. Don’t get me wrong, I still love Bazbeaux, Jockamo and Some Guys pizza…but Napolese serves up pizza I can’t get anywhere else in town.
The prosecco is inexpensive and good. The prosciutto and arugula starter is weak on parmesan and dry as a brush fire. The truffle white bean purée is fantastic and the affogato di gelato makes you black out from delight. The polenta and goat cheese starter is not fine dining but the focaccia is pleasingly addicting.
Highlight pizzas for me have been the Napolese Broken Yolk, Meridian Kessler and Autumn Pie, while the classic Margherita with prosciutto (or pancetta) hits my top.
Get there early or very late otherwise expect to stand in line outside drooling at the diners.
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Drive down east Washington street at three-thirty in the morning and you’ll see a few things out of the ordinary. One of those will surely be a small group of people huddled around a patio heater on the side of the road waiting to order at a traditional Mexican food stand. Taqueria Five Amigos serves Mexican comfort food favorites such as cabeza (beef head) tacos, lengua (tongue) tortas and gringo favorites such as tacos al pastor and chicken or beef nachos daily from 10am to 5am.
Thinking I’d hit the Latin working class Joe’s jackpot for a late night snack place, I’ve been surprised time and time again at its diverse range of customers; middle aged women, young professionals, the working poor, homeless and a foodie or two all seem to descend on the place in equal measure.
Their asada, chorizo or pollo tacos are popular favorites and at $1.50 each they are ordered by the handful. Another highlight is the Taco-in-a-Bag; a layered taco prepared in a snack-sized Fritos bag and served with a fork. Waste not, want not.
You may be tempted to get your food and run…but don’t. Take a seat under the patio heater and relax a few minutes…enjoy it. The lively group of customers are as much part of the story as the tasty food itself. Last trip I bought a taco for a hungry guy walking by and an insurance agent from Fishers bought me a pineapple cola. Thanks stranger.
>1025 Virginia Avenue, Indianapolis, IN 46203. (317) 602-3708
Naisa Pan-Asian Cafe is a welcome treat to the growing list of notable Fountain Square restaurants. Since its opening a short 18 months ago, it’s found a tight following from the downtown week day crowd and the neighborhood locals have claimed it as their own. Voted this year as the Best Chinese in Indianapolis by TheIndyChannel.com’s A-List, Naisa (Asian spelled backwards) has all the signs of remaining a friendly, clean, fresh tasting neighborhood Chinese restaurant.
Glad to see some non traditional offerings on the menu (do we really need more Kong Pao Chicken in this town?) I ordered the owner’s childhood favorite “comfort food” dish, the Naisa Golden Sunrise; stewed tomatoes sautéed with scrambled eggs and spices, served in a traditional clay pot steeping in its own juices. It was warm and fragrant, moist and fresh…it was one of those foods that should be eaten curled up on the couch with a good book. Yum!
The owners are lovely. Dedicated to fresh tasting Asian inspired food, they also encourage diversity by supporting my alma mater, the Herron School of Art. Herron students are hired as servers, allowed to showcase student work on the walls and even the design and construction of their business sign became a school year project.
Other menu highlights are the kimchee, Triple Greens in Garlic Chiles and the Spicy Basil Curry Fried Rice. Attentive service, modern, comfortable ambiance.
>1450 West 86th Street (86th and Ditch), Indianapolis, IN 46260, (317) 876-9810
Delicious. Affordable. Its the fresh ingredient, fine food version of the other Greek and Turkish restaurants in the area. Carefully prepared Basmati rice and delicious sauteed vegetables accompany most items and are as carefully prepared as the entrees. I don’t know why Mediterranean food in this country has usually been translated into cheap, low value “food” but Istanbul Cafe is the exception.
While some of the items have been spiced-down for Hoosier tastes (lentil soup, tilapia, dolmathes)…the servers can help you navigate some full-flavored traditional selections (ezme, veal liver, doner kebab). The menu has a nice selection of vegetarian options, the bar is full and the wine list is large.
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Indianapolis, Indiana
THE TAMALE GETS A MAKEOVER
The Tamale Place owners Angela Green and Vladimir Ronces opened a new location this week for their Mexican feel good tamale store. More precisely, they shut the doors on the original location and moved everything into a freshly built-out space just 500 feet to the east! Located in the strip near the corner of Rockville and Lynhurst roads, the new location looks like a clean and tidy retail front with a lots of elbow room for making their huge tamales.
Get there early or be disappointed. The tamale selection changes daily and the early bird gets to pick. People come for the large menu of various mild, spicy, vegetarian and dessert tamales though large tortas, tacos and seasonal favorites (pozole and atole in winter and fresh elote in summer) round out the menu. Know for their great tasting fresh masa and corn tortillas, the take home sized bag of tortilla chips are thick and crunchy favorites.
The current menu is available on their website and includes traditional favorites such as poblano and cheese, pork in red sauce and chicken in mole as well as delicious new favorites such as thin cigar sized pork and beef Cubans, medium red pork Recession Tamales and dessert tamales of pineapple and raisin, pumpkin or chocolate.
The Tamale Place is known for serving up big tamales with generous amounts of meat. Too much meat if you ask me. My Hot and Spicy pork (which was neither hot nor spicy mind you) and my Chicken Verde had way too much meat on them to appreciate the masa… hey guys…I’m in it for the corn taste too!
My favorite are the smaller Cuban tamales. They’re succulent, the right mix of meat to masa and are perfectly tasty. The Poblano and Cheese are also wonderful and gain from the moisture and salt of the cheese. The Chipotle Beef were ok…a little under-seasoned but moist. The Lil’ Red Sweetie dessert tamales made me chuckle as I bit into the yummy bright red colored sugar and masa cake.
Congrats on the move guys. The new digs are nice. I hope this means business is booming and that we might see a few more of you popping up around town.
Tamales for world peace.
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Indianapolis, Indiana
HERE PIGGY PIGGY!
Cooked bacon dipped in dark chocolate, frozen, gathered on a plate and sprinkled with confectioners sugar. DELISH! I’ve followed and wallowed in the bacon and chocolate trend over the last few years (Vosges Chocolate Mo’s bar, bacon and chocolate cupcakes, bacon chocolate chip cookies and chocolate covered pork cracklins to name a few) and its finally come to fruition as the best selling food item at everyman’s event, the Great Indiana State Fair. Can I get an Amen?
>Indianapolis, Indiana
GOOD ALL YEAR ROUND
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It’s a hot humid summer day and of course I’m in the mood for a big bowl of steamy soup and a large hearty hot meal, right? I don’t understand it myself, but none the less I knew just where to go.
In winter I find myself tucking-in for a satisfying hot lunch at Machu Picchu Peruvian restaurant on west 38th street at least once a week. They always have large hearty lunch specials and…well…frankly, I’m addicted to their white buttered bread and Aji dipping sauce (peppers, egg, oil, cilantro and green onions…though I can’t get them to give me the exact recipe).
The $6.99 lunch special is almost always a large soup followed with a main of meat, starch and salad. The soups traditionally range from chicken, beef, barley, bean or seasonal corn. The starches are almost always rice, potatoes or yucca (or a combination of two or more…they love their carbs) and the salads are most often a twist on a salsa criolla with onions and tomatoes, cilantro or greens or maybe beets and shredded root vegetables.
Machu Picchu has always been on my favorites list for it’s good tasting quick lunchtime service. Here are a few of their menu selections that keep me coming back for more;
Choros a la Chalaca – Peruvian style Mussels on the half shell ceviched with lime, red onion, aji and rocoto peppers, corn kernels and cilantro.
Yuquitas a la Huancaína – Fried yucca sticks with creamy cheese sauce (think of it as “chips” with gravy or fries with mayonaise, etc).
Lomo Saltado – Peruvian stir fry with beef tenderloin, onion, tomatoes, french fries (mixed in) and cilantro served with white rice.
Papa Rellena – fried potato ball stuffed with minced beef heart – HUGE portion and delicious (think of it as rösti with minced wienerschnitzel or tater tots with meatballs).
And to top it all off make sure you order an Inca Cola (or get a 2 liter to go). I’m usually not a pop or cola fan but the lemon verbena zing of the bright yellow drink makes me smile.
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| $6.99 Lunch Special – Chicken and onion herb vegetable soup, fried pork with red onion and beet salad, fried yucca and white rice |
