Cerulean - Revisit

I have been anxious to go back to Cerulean since our first visit, which we really enjoyed. I have heard a lot of differing feedback from different people about it since, so when friends invited us to go out with several people there again, I jumped at it (not to mention, 8 people = even more opportunity to try more things).

Cerulean has recently shifted into their spring menu and that always makes me happy too.  I think I have mentioned before that Cerulean’s menu is broken down into 3 parts—small plates, which are just a couple bites, medium plates, which are more like traditional appetizers, and entrées.  Hubby and I really liked the very small plates last time, and they tend to be the most appealing to me ingredient-wise here. So we ordered 5 of them, prompting one friend to declare that we “ordered food like drunken sailors.”  But she was sharing with us, and they really are only a couple of bites, so it really wasn’t that much.

The first thing I tasted was the pickled Indiana shrimp with lemon and garlic sauce below and a hard boiled egg ($4). I really liked it, although tough to share one shrimp so I only got a little bite.  The shrimp had a nice acidity to it without being rubbery, and the lemon and onions on top added to it. I liked the richness of the (exactly perfectly cooked) boiled egg as well. I want to get this again to eat wholly on my own.

Next we tried the cauliflower frites ($4), which sounded very interesting and were easier to share (there were 3 or 4 of them). They were panko breaded and nice and crunchy on the outside and served on top of a slightly sweet golden raisin sauce and more of the garlic sauce.  Nice tasty little morsels.

The corvina ($4) was also really well done and I had to grab it away from hubby or he would have eaten it all.  The other friend we were sharing with only got a taste I’m afraid (and so did I).  The fish was super tender (lightly poached I am guessing?) and served with a celery aioli, and chili oil with a distinct lime flavor.  It was delicate but the seasonings were great and well balanced.  It’s nice to see something different than what you typically see a lot of places.

The chickpea fritters also were good—easy to share and pretty approachable. You have basically a hush puppy made out of ground chickpeas.  I liked that the sauce served underneath was totally different from everything else we had—a yogurt based sauce with cilantro, jalapeno and mint.  Yet, you still got a bit of tanginess from the yogurt. I thought the mint was probably the strongest flavor of the others.  The fritters were really hot and crunchy.

Finally, at hubby’s insistence we ordered the corn macaroon ($4) again (one of the few hold overs from the last menu).  I understand why, because it is very good, but I was totally good trying new things.  But you can’t really go wrong with a perfectly cooked corn macaroon stuffed with pork belly and served in cheddar sauce. Although honestly, I think it is best served as a fall dish. Would love to see some kind of a spring version. Lamb maybe? Asparagus macaroon? I don’t know, just thinking out loud (so to speak).

We were sold on a second course by our server who really hyped the beef heart stew. ($14) His description made it sounds great, but honestly this was the biggest disappointment of the evening for me.  There were little potato pancakes (he said they were sort of like the “tator tots” from the last menu, bit of the heart and some herb relish served in a broth.  The potatoes were sitting in the broth (which tasted mainly of beef stock) so they got soft quickly and the herb relish could not deliver enough freshness to be tasted through the heavy rich broth. The heart itself was a little tough for me as well.

For my entrée, I had the striped bass with linguinette (super thin linguine) with nettle pesto, a big king trumpet mushroom and fava beans ($26).  I really enjoyed this. The fish had nice crispy skin, it was well seasoned and went very nicely with the herby tasting pasta.  Hubby was disappointed he hadn’t ordered it.  He actually ordered the same thing he had last time (he forgot) which was the sous vide duck breast with lemon fettuccine, carbonara sauce with duck crackling ($28).  Unfortunately, he ended up with the same complaint—the duck was tasty but a little overcooked.  He also didn’t think the pasta had as much of the lemon flavor that he liked from last time. I do appreciate that they make pasta in house.

I am a sucker for rhubarb, and there was a rhubarb dessert ($9), so I had to order it—it was rhubarb fennel compote, rhubarb sorbet, chamomile mascarpone cream, some sliced strawberries and fennel tarragon coulis.  It was hard to know exactly what to expect here, and Cerulean is doing beautiful dessert plates.  The flavors were good and were a nice fresh, slightly sweet, slightly tart way to end the meal.

So overall food-wise, we were pretty happy. There were certainly highs and lows, but it confirmed my feelings about the food that I had at the first visit—that I really enjoyed it. Unfortunately, my feelings about the patchy service were only confirmed even more.  Our server was very attentive in the beginning of the meal and enthusiastic about explaining the menu. After the small plates came though, things slowed WAY down and it was difficult to get drinks ordered when we wanted to.  Part of the problem may have been that as a large party, we were seated in what was sort of a back room, and were probably easier to forget about (not to mention my theory of the whole automatic gratuity being added making the service not as attentive). But probably the more annoying thing was our run-in with the wine steward.  We had ordered a second bottle of wine (different type than the first), which was opened and tasted by a friend who knows a thing or two about wine, as well as several others of our group and it tasted off.  These things happen, which is why they give you those little tastings to begin with.  So she asked the waiter to have a new bottle brought out but the wine steward came out and told us no, we were wrong and they would not be opening another bottle, but would bring us something else.  I was sort of surprised by this—it seemed a little uh, un-customer friendly.  Sadly, I have heard of several people having issues with the wine service here (lack of stemmed wine glasses is a big one I hear—at least if you are ordering an expensive bottle of wine.)

Anyhow, I think if Cerulean can get their service issues ironed out a bit, and then polished up, Indy will have a really nice modern fine dining restaurant to add to our ever-growing repertoire of great independent restaurants.  They’ve pretty much got the food thing working for them already.

Cerulean

339 South Delaware Street

Indy  46225

317/870-1320

www.ceruleanrestaurant.com

Cerulean - Revisit

So, Cerulean has a new chef—Alan Sternberg -- and I hadn’t been back since he starting cooking. I have had some ups and downs with Cerulean, but it was time to go back. We are lucky to have such a modern place in Indy with such innovative work going on in the kitchen, and I was happy to see what the new chef had in store.

The menu has gone back to a more traditional appetizer/entrée/dessert format, which I guess may be more pleasing to the masses but I sort of enjoyed the small, medium and large plates of days gone by. But regardless, for me, it is all about how good the food is, regardless of the size of the portion.

tartare

I started out with their version of beef tartare ($12). Of course I couldn’t pass this up. The beef was very high quality and very tender and I really enjoyed the surprising take on the flavors—not your typical beef tartare flavor profile. There was a distinct Asian flavor with hoisin sauce and black garlic. I loved the freshness brought from the pickled ramps, watermelon radish and romaine and the little bit of crunch from the crispy quinoa. And the presentation (as you can see) was beautiful.

My second favorite appetizer was probably my friend’s beet cured wild salmon ($15) with white bean puree, olive oil, clementine and crispy garlic. I loved the acidity and freshness from the clementine and the salmon was really tasty—with that slight pickled flavor. This is my kind of appetizer—light with a lot of fresh, crisp flavor. The beans kept it somewhat grounded though.

salmon

Hubby had a special—the braised pork cheeks with parsley sponge. The sponge was very intriguing-it looked like it belonged under the sea with its bright green color. It was pretty mild in flavor though—not much could really shift focus from the extremely rich pork. One bite of another’s friend’s gnudi ($9) demonstrated a very tender ricotta dumpling. They were good—nicely cooked, but with the sunflower sage pesto, smoked oil, Parmesan and nutmeg, maybe just slightly one-dimensional. I was hoping for a little more contrast from the tang of the ricotta I guess. 

pork cheeks

Overall though, so far in this meal, we were pretty impressed. The food was beautiful to look at, and generally had a nice complexity of flavors. Also, our service was quite friendly and helpful—and when we had a second bottle of the same wine we had started with, and it was bad, they didn’t bat an eye at bringing us a new one (which is something we had a problem with in a previous visit). Also, they have stemmed wine glasses for everyone now, which I know will make some of my wine snob friends happy.

As we moved into the second course, I was just hoping to keep going with the same momentum and I am happy to say, we did. In fact, I think the entrées may have even slightly outshined the appetizers.

I had the “fried chicken” ($29), which was almost more of a take on chicken cordon blue. Regardless, it was delicious. There was wonderfully seasoned crispy pieces of chicken that were topped with Taleggio cheese (a wonderfully stinky soft cheese), pieces of Edward’s country ham, and a slight hint of truffle. You got a little smoky sweet flavor from the ham and the strong taste from the cheese. This was a dish I couldn’t stop eating. There were also some scoops of stuffing alongside, which I also really enjoyed, and I am not typically a stuffing person. It had the right amount of softness inside and slight crispy edges. And it was nice to have something to eat with the gooey chicken. This is a great, although quite rich, dish.

Hubby and I argued over whether my chicken was better, or his spotted bass dish ($27). It was an excellent piece of fish served with clams in a white wine broth with chives, lard, asparagus and pickled shallot. This was a great combination. Loved the thin-sliced asparagus and the extra crispy skin on the fish. It was perfectly cooked and I appreciated they didn’t stack anything on top of that skin making it soft. The pickled shallots added a great pop of acid. This was an exceptionally well-composed dish. You can’t go wrong with this or the chicken.

We all shared sides of the mac and cheese ($8) made with two-year aged cheddar and caramelized onions. It was tasty, and I liked the slight smoky taste from the onions. I mean, how could you not appreciate a little mac and cheese with fried chicken? Necessary? No, but it still tasted good. We also had the crispy Brussels sprouts ($7) with maple gastrique and bacon. The sprouts were cooked really well, which is the challenge so often with these, unfortunately they lost the crispy edges once they were tossed on the gastrique. In itself, it wasn’t bad—slightly sweet, slight acidic, but it took away from Brussels sprouts that otherwise would have been so nice and crisp. 

We also had a couple of desserts. I am becoming less and less of a dessert person, but Cerulean is one place I love to get dessert because of their talented pastry chef, Pete Schmutte. He has a distinctive style that carries on the beautiful presentation of the food. We split the bento box ($12), which is a fun combination of different sweets—there were cookies, macaroons and those yummy, super fruity jellies. We also had one of the more composed dishes—it was “bavarois” flavored with buttermilk and blue cheese and an intense Concord grape sorbet. Sort of like a cheese plate in dessert form. There were some sweet croutons alongside. It was a fun and tasty dish, even if I wished it had a little more blue cheese kick to it.  It is totally worth doing dessert here.

Glad to see some new energy in Cerulean—like I said, we are lucky to have such a cool, modern place in Indy and I think they have really come into their own. Things seemed mellow, the service was professional, and the food was very good. They seem settled and I am glad to see it.

Cerulean

339 South Delaware Street

Indy  46225

317/870-1320

www.ceruleanrestaurant.com 

Cerulean - Revisit

Ok, it was the buffalo fried chicken skins that lured me back to Cerulean.  I have never had a bad meal there, but the last one was a little lacking service-wise (and the food hadn't been as good as the first time). This time we decided to just go with one other couple and avoid any potential auto-gratuity issues. Also, my friend really wanted the buffalo fried chicken skins too.

The first thing we got was a really good table (something we did not as a party of 8) right in front of the main window. Lovely. We also had a very attentive server, stemmed wine glasses, and no hassle with our wine.

Cheese and Fried Bread with Preserves

Melon

Tart Amuse 

These are our drunken sailor friends, who will order willy-nilly a ton of food and share it all. The best kind of friends to dine with. We started with the Indiana cheese board ($21), the fried bread ($7), the buffalo chicken skins (natch)($6), and the compressed melon salad ($8). All of it was fairly spectacular I have to say, even though we probably over-ordered. The cheeses were great—there were four different cheeses ranging from a blue to a soft mild goat and it was served with wonderful salty housemade crackers, apple mostarda and preserved figs. It was a great combo with the fried bread which was good on its own, but also came with house preserves including a strawberry jam, a plum jam, a jalapeno cream and a mushroom custard—all served in cute little jars, even if they were a little challenging to get the stuff out of with the slightly too large spoons served with them. I think we all agreed we loved the mushroom one a lot spread on the fried bread, and I also really enjoyed putting a little of the jams on top of the cheese as well. Sometimes I used the crackers and sometimes I used the bread. All of it was delicious, but I think I would really want to order both again in the future to mix and match which certainly necessitates more than just hubby and me because it’s a lot of food.

Buffalo Chicken Skins

One Chicken Skin

The fried chicken skins were very tasty too. They didn’t have a strong buffalo flavor, more of just a more heavily seasoned fried chicken, but they were extremely rich and decadent. The Gorgonzola mayo underneath could have used a bit more blue cheese flavor, but I enjoyed having something rich to dip into. A very cool take on some classic flavors. The melon was also a refreshing variation from what were some very rich appetizers—and it was a smaller size for sure. The only thing I didn’t like at this stage of the meal was the amuse bouche they served—it was a slice of pickled apple that was so tart, it almost choked a person. Small bits of these would have probably been lovely with the cheese, but on its own (well, with a bit of caramel corn) was a bit much.

As far as the size of the plates, I guess Cerulean had decided to move away from the very small plates into a more standard kind of menu. The first page of the menu is larger, more shareable items now. The second page is more of a classic appetizer and the third page classic entrées.

The three second courses we had were the Mangalitsa pork ($16), the summer squash ($12) and the lamb sweetbreads ($14). Again, everything was very good. The pork dish was very large—it had an herby biscuit underneath, lots of shredded pork, some mushrooms and tomatoes and a light, slightly maple vinaigrette underneath—and of course, the thing that sold me, a beautiful sunny side up egg on top. This was clearly big enough to be a main dish.  The meat had a lot of flavor and I liked the yolk making the thin sauce a little thicker and richer.

I only had a bite of the squash but it was very tender and was well seasoned—there was tarragon as well as some fruit preserves underneath.  Probably my favorite second course was the lamb sweetbreads. They were little pieces that were fried very crisp (they know how to fry things up here). There was a creamy yogurt sauce and a very thin agrodolce (sweet and sour) sauce flavored slightly with rosemary. A great combination of sweet, tangy and completely over the top decadent with the fried bits of sweetbread. I could easily eat a whole plate of these I think.

Squash

Sweetbreads

For my main dish I ordered the vegetarian option which was heirloom tomato confit ($24) and hubby ordered the ribeye ($34)—we planned on sharing. Again both were very good, although I don’t think the tomatoes would have been enough on their own for an entrée, it tasted more like a heavy appetizer. I liked the way they had cooked the tomatoes whole though, and that it was a hot dish. There was also some formage blanc (sort of like cream cheese) underneath and a lemony vinaigrette on the whole thing. I could have used a little more of the cheese to go with all the tomatoes.  I liked the fresh arugula for a nice texture variation. It was good but I would have been disappointed if I weren’t sharing with hubby. His ribeye was delicious—it was a thin cut style and had a wonderful homemade vinegar steak sauce and large mushrooms and soft on the inside, crunchy on the outside, cheddar bacon croquettes. Even though the steak was very thin, it was cooked appropriately. I also had a bit of my friend’s salmon –it had great bright flavors with pineapple on top (there were some hot slices of chili pepper as well which I skipped.

Tomatoes

Ribeye

Salmon

I have been impressed with pastry chef Pete Schmutte since I first had his desserts way back at the City Market dinner I organized awhile back.  He does a lovely job of presenting them and coming up with flavors you don’t see on every menu in town. Our friends ordered the stewed cherries with angel food cake, buttermilk Amaretto cream, sarsaparilla ice cream and black pepper ($9). I had a little bite, and it was tasty. I also loved my simpler trio of sorbets ($8)(exactly what I wanted after all that food). And when they told me passion fruit was one of the flavors, I was sold. There was also pineapple mango and a strawberry. All were light, bright, and delicious. The little macaroon on the side was a nice thing to eat along with, although I would have loved a couple more.

This was our best meal at Cerulean yet, and top to bottom, one of the best I have had in Indy for a while. I continue to hear mixed thoughts about the restaurant, but this meal made me appreciate how lucky we are to have such a modern, artistic space with wonderful food. It’s a nice counter-balance to a lot of the more casual, bar-centered restaurants that have become so prevalent in Indy. 

Cerulean

339 South Delaware Street

Indy  46225

317/870-1320

www.ceruleanrestaurant.com 

Cerulean

I have been hearing a lot of hype about Cerulean with all the pre-opening dinners they have had around town, and was hoping the food would live up to it. Hubby and I have been anxious to try something new and decided to give it a go on its first weekend officially open.  This isn’t something I normally do because I like to give a place a chance to work out the kinks, but this time I just decided I’d try it and maybe not write about it.  But our dinner was so good; I figured I needed to share.

The first thing you notice about the restaurant is how clean and modern the interior is—there is a giant wooden “nest” in the restaurant which looks pretty cool, but I was kind of glad we weren’t seated in there just yet because it still smelled of pretty fresh timber and of new construction, which I think would have distracted me a bit from the food.  Once it settles in though, it is a nice slightly more private part of the restaurant.  The rest of it is made up simple, streamlined furniture and several banquettes—although I didn’t think it was so modern that it was too cold.  I liked the small vases of flowers on the tables.

The food overall was pretty damn good.  I like the way the menu has very small plates (that range from $3-4 each and are maybe 2-4 bites depending on the size of your bite), medium plates, and entrée plates.  We were intrigued by nearly every one of the smallest plates, so we decided to get all but one of them.  The first two that they brought out were the corn macaroon ($3) and the mushroom custard ($4).  The corn macaroon was great—two corn flavored macaroons sandwiched around a perfect, tender piece of pork belly sitting in a rich smoky cheddar flavored sauce and a smear of what was essentially like arugula pesto on the plate. It all went really well together and I appreciated the creativity of the dish.

The mushroom custard was probably our least favorite dish of the evening.  They presented it in a tall skinny jar with the custard on the bottom and “herb crumble” on top.  Apparently, the idea was that it look a bit like a terrarium. It was nice to look at, but not user friendly in the eating department. The jar was barely big enough for the spoon and it was nearly impossible to mix the two together, meaning the first few bites were pretty much all herb crumble which was a bit dry without the custard.  The custard was served quite cold and that detracted from the flavor for me as well.  Basically, this one was a misfire. I think it could be improved if the custard were warm, it was served in a more shallow dish, and with less of the crumble.  But that would sort of be remaking the entire dish now wouldn’t it?

The other three small plate items we had were the “tator tot” ($4), the marrow fritter ($4), and the rabbit rillettes ($4). All of these were very good—hubby and I disagreed on a favorite, but agreed that we liked the entire lot.  The tator tot was my favorite.  It was a hot, crispy potato pancake topped with a teeny barely cooked quail egg served on top of pepper paste (a lot of “paste” type things going on).  It was super crunchy, like a traditional tator tot, but made of fresh potato and just lightly seasoned. There were several sauces underneath—I am thinking green and red peppers were involved here.  I liked the super crunchy texture of the dish.  The marrow fritter was interesting. It was almost like a beignet—a deep fried dumpling kind of a thing. Because it was served on top of a fairly sweet apple cider sauce (with pecans and a fried sage leaf), it almost came across as a dessert. I could have happily eaten it as a dessert.  The marrow came in the form of powder on top, which was interesting.  Not the rich fatty marrow flavor you are expecting, but it added a subtle marrow flavor. It was good for sure, and well prepared, but wouldn’t say it was my favorite. The rillettes were really well done as well, and were the thing hubby picked as his probably favorite of the small dishes.  Rilletes are meat cooked down with fat so that it becomes a spread of sorts.  This was smooth, and I liked that it was served closer to room temperature rather than really cold.  It had the intense meat flavor and when you took the crispy kale chip and just a little of the horseradish cream along with it, it was a great combination.  The cream gave a little balance to the meat flavor, and the horseradish the touch of heat you wanted.  It was really well done.

At this point, we skipped ahead to the entrée portions and at the suggestion of our server, both got dishes that involved pasta (several of the dishes involve pasta in them).  I had the chicken sausage with red pepper fettuccine ($23).  Hubby had the duck breast with lemon fettuccine ($28). Finally. A restaurant in this town taking care to make their own pasta and not just drench it in a marinara or alfredo sauce.  These dishes took a protein and used the right pastas and other ingredients to make a cohesive, thoughtful and delicious dish.  Mine included the pasta, the chicken sausage, gorgonzola, dried tomatoes and lime. And the whole thing was sitting in the bowl surrounded by creamy cilantro milk.  There was pasta and the salty, rich flavor of the cheese and sausage (but because it was chicken sausage, it wasn’t too heavy), and there was acid! There was acid from the tomatoes, which were rehydrated and super tender and from the lime.  And the cilantro milk added just the right creaminess. This people, this is what I am talking about when it comes to a well executed pasta dish.

And hubby’s was just as good.  His had acid flavor in the lemon pasta and salt from pancetta and duck skin cracklings.  The pasta was in a creamy carbonara sauce that was flavored with marjoram as well.  My only complaint was that the duck was a little more toward medium than medium rare, but it was still exceptionally tender and delicious.  I would say it was maybe slightly less complex than mine, but equally as good (well, I liked mine slightly more and hubby liked his slightly more). I didn’t get a chance to take a picture of his before he dug in, but I did include an “after” shot. Yeah, he hated it (he also polished off the rest of mine when I was full).  The other thing I liked is that while they were not skimpy portions at all, they did not serve this completely over the top amount of pasta that puts me off before I even take a bite.  And did I mention they make it in house? (I know I did, I am just really excited.)

Finally, we had the “chocolate and citrus” dessert ($9).  We both thought it was pretty incredible.  There was a little scoop of earl gray chocolate ice cream, little pieces of brown butter cake, and some citrus wedges and citrus flavored foam.  What a great combo once again.  Again, I loved the inventiveness and the fact that a chocolate dessert wasn’t so one dimensional. I know some will say foam is out of fashion in the culinary world, but it was perfect here.

The staff was very enthusiastic—they are clearly excited to be working there. There seems to be a great energy.  I don’t think they have tried a lot of the food yet though—our server was a little hesitant talking about some of the dishes.  I wouldn’t exactly call the service “polished” either, although it was very friendly and down to earth.  Our server seemed a bit nervous, particularly with the wine service. I loved that they asked for feedback on nearly every dish—and they genuinely seemed to want to hear it (little did they know I’d be writing an entire blog post about it). Also, when it took a little longer than they wanted between courses, they brought us a free bowl of the sweet potato soup (it was good, although doesn’t tend to be my favorite thing).  We weren’t even feeling like it was taking too long, but I loved the initiative they took by being aware that things were a little slower than they wanted and doing something to keep the customer happy.

I liked the old world vs. new world wine list too.  It is a decent list but isn’t so overwhelming like some of the ones you see at restaurants.  They have some interesting sounding cocktails as well as beers. 

Yep, I liked it.  I hope they keep up with the quality that we had. I did notice a TON of people working in the kitchen—hard to say if they were more staffed for the opening week than they might be later, but I look forward to finding out.  I can’t wait to see what they put together for spring.  Parking is a little weird, but if you walk a couple of blocks, street parking is plentiful (see now, this is a place that could use a valet, instead of the north side restaurants with giant parking lots). And hey, if you have been, or go, please let me know how your experience is.  There isn’t a lot out there about it yet as far as people’s opinions.  I for one am excited about this one though.

Cerulean

339 South Delaware Street

Indy  46225

317/870-1320

www.ceruleanrestaurant.com

Nesso

Nesso is the newest Cunningham Restaurant group project in the old Cerulean spot at the Alexander Hotel. It’s pretty new, and I usually try and wait a bit, but the perfect opportunity arose to check it out, so we did. Plus, since we are always on a quest for interesting Italian food, it was quite appealing.

First of all, I was impressed by the effort put into remodeling the interior. I always thought the old Cerulean interior was interesting and modern, but they have certainly improved it in my mind. There’s darker wood, and a much warmer feeling. It still feels very modern though. Our server was attentive, and it was one of the circumstances where it felt like the company had put some effort into staff training. Our server was also knowledgeable about the menu and offered suggestions.

We started with the bread plate ($5) and the bruschetta ($10) for appetizers. They have a nice bread plate with several fresh bread options, including focaccia and sliced Italian bread. They serve the bread with roasted garlic olive oil with a touch of balsamic, as well as butter. The bread plate was well done. We all really liked the bruschetta as well, which included several toppings such as white beans with cheese, wild mushrooms, mustard greens and tomato. It was all on the same plate, but sort of separated by flavors, and every one was good. I enjoyed mixing some of the richer flavors with some of the more acidic flavors from the tomatoes. It was a crowd favorite at the table. We also ordered the grilled artichokes, because they are also a family favorite. They are very good as well and have nice crispy grilled edges. They were heavily seasoned with garlic and herbs and were served alongside a salad of citrus, fennel and red onions with hazelnuts. I enjoyed the freshness of the salad, but I am not sure I loved it with the artichokes. The artichokes were nicely cooked though so that they were tender inside with the charred exterior.

I love love that they have true first course sized pastas. So you can truly make it a first course, or you can have a very light dinner. I love pasta that is interesting, but so often Indy restaurants give you so much of it that it looks unappealing the minute it is set down in front of me because it is just way, way too huge. Our server warned us that they were two-ounce portions, and they are also priced appropriately in my opinion for the quality you get. Hubby and my son had the bigoli ($12), which was outstanding. It is a large spaghetti-like pasta, but thicker and was in a black pepper, egg, parmesan and guanciale sauce. A small amount went a long way, but it was rich and delicious. And a small amount was all you needed. My daughter had the gnocchi ($16) which was also very good. She questioned it a bit because it included pears in the toppings but ended up really liking the combo that also included fried sage, hazelnuts, grana Padano cheese, goat cheese fondue and chicken-focaccia meatballs. The gnocchi were small and somewhat dense but had a nice crisp exterior from being pan-fried. An interesting combos of flavors for sure. For my main dish, I ordered the risotto with a rich broth, lots of parmesan, butter and some foie gras, which was all topped with sliced truffles ($15). Again, I loved the fact that I could order something this rich and decadent, and not regret it because of a massive portion. It was small and just the right amount. Ok, I might have seared the foie a bit and maybe put in a little more, but it was a really tasty combination.

The main dishes at the table were the branzino ($34) (picture shows a half portion that my kids split) and the veal ($28). Both were excellent, and completely different from each other. The fish was light, and the skin was very crisp and a bit salty, which both kids devoured. The sauce was an herb basil aioli and had potatoes, fennel, and lemon. There was also a touch of chili, giving it a hint of spiciness. All the flavors combined together for an extremely well-balanced dish. The veal was on the opposite extreme, extremely rich and extremely hearty. The veal was pan fried and topped with walnuts and gorgonzola cheese, as well as capers and parsley salad. I appreciated the briny kick from these, but hubby thought there was almost a little too much going on for him, and he didn’t think the dish needed all the cheese AND the capers. I thought it was pretty darn tasty though.

We didn’t get any dessert, but I look forward to trying these one of these days, particularly knowing Hattie McDaniels is running the pastry kitchen. All in all, it was one of the better dinner experiences we have had in Indy lately and I hope they continue to grow and succeed. So far, so good as far as I am concerned. 

Nesso

339 South Delaware

Indy  46204

317/643-7400

www.nesso-italian.com 

Visitor (and Local) Guide to Indianapolis Restaurants

Recently, I was asked to update my Super Bowl list of favorite restaurants for some large conventions and events coming to town...since we have some great new places, I figured it was a good time to do it. If you're local, you'll notice a lot of it is the same as my Super Bowl post--I just changed/added a few things. If you're visiting, I hope this is a helpful list! Also, if you want to see some of my favorite specific items to eat around Indy, check out my recent "Favorite Things" post.

Downtown Restaurants 

Chiliquiles at Bluebeard

Bluebeard: This is one of my favorite places in town. The menu changes all the time and they do a great job mixing up all kinds of cuisines in a friendly, casual environment. You might find foie gras with blood orange marmalade and chiliquiles with a crispy chicken leg on the same menu the same night. They don't take reservations so your best bet is to get there early if you don't want to wait. Find my reviews here.

Cerulean: This is modern fine dining. It's a great space in the Alexander hotel serving refined and creative food--small shared plates, medium plates and large, main course-sized entrees. You might find buffalo chicken skins and fried bread with housemade spreads. They are one of the few restaurants in town offering housemade pastas with many of the entrees. They also have a wonderful pastry chef who creates desserts that are not only delicious, but look like works of art. Here are my posts about my meals there.

Quail at R Bistro

R Bistro: This is fine, local dining at its best. Local chef, local ingredients, ever changing menu, cool spot on Massachusetts Avenue.  You want a nice place for dinner, this is your place (not overly formal though). One of my reviews is here. (There are more if you look).

Goose the Market: Where to begin? Goose is an amazing place to grab a sandwich for lunch or groceries or have a drink and a snack in the evening downstairs in the enoteca.  Their “Batali” was mentioned by Bon Appetit in an article featuring the best sandwich shops in the country.  And trust me, you will be a happy camper with that sandwich (or any of their other daily specials). Check out my latest review here.

Avocado bun at Rook

Rook: This is an inventive, casual Asian restaurant featuring Banh Mi sandwiches for lunch and a more expansive changing menu for dinner. They often offer noodle dishes like pho and ramen, dumplings, buns, and dishes like "pork face hash" that just beg to be tried. Beer only. Here's a recent post I wrote about dinner at Rook.

St. Elmo: Want a steak?  This is our local Indy legend. And according to locals, you have to try the shrimp cocktail (although, I have to say honestly I am not a huge fan of the insanity-horseradish thing, but that’s just me, apparently.) And here’s my review. If you can’t get in, give Harry & Izzy’s a try—it’s St. Elmo’s more modern little sister (or brother) and you can check them out here.

Ceviche- Black Market

B's Po Boy: My favorite casual restaurant in Fountain Square to grab a great authentic New Orleans style po boy. I recommend the fried shrimp and/or oyster po boys and the onion rings. The beignets are great as well. They are open for lunch and dinner. Here's my last review.

Black Market:  Indy’s gastropub.  Also located in the Mass Ave area, Black Market is one of Indy’s newer restaurants and serves hearty comfort food but with a gourmet twist. Also a bar though, so don’t bring the kids.

Downtown Lunch

Several of the above restaurants are open for lunch so you can check them out as an option. But if you are looking for a more causal place for lunch (and in some cases dinner as well), here are some of my favorite downtown lunch spots.

City Market: Indy’s City Market has undergone a great transformation over the last few years and now features mainly local foodservice vendors.  This is an amazing place to grab lunch, conveniently located right downtown.  You can get local pizza, Greek food, homemade soups and pastries, Mexican food, French crepes, soft pretzels, ice cream, Indian food, and food from one of my favorite local chefs, Brad Gates.  I have done a few reviews of a couple of the places and you can check them out here.

Hoaglin to Go: Back on Mass Ave, if you are looking for a great breakfast or lunch, check out Hoaglin to Go.  It’s a little place with amazing fresh made items like quiche, pancakes, egg dishes and my personal favorite, their egg salad.  I also hear they have a killer grilled cheese. Here’s my review.

Tacos at La Parada

La Parada: In the mood for some cheap Mexican food that is really, really good?  This is a gem of a place where you can get a ton of food for just a few bucks. Try the ceviche too. Warning, it’s a bit of a dive, but a charming dive. See what I ordered in my recent post. (Since they don’t have a website, their address is 1638 East New York Street, Indianapolis 46210 and their phone is 317/917-0095).

Workingman’s Friend: A great dive in which to grab a burger.  It is an old bar, but on any given day you will see every type of person from blue collar workers to businesspeople in here (oh, and get the onion rings, skip the fries).  Here’s my review. (Again, no website, but they are located at 234 N. Belmont Avenue in Indy and their phone number is 317/636-2067).

City Café: This place is a little gem hidden away downtown.  Everything is homemade and the ingredients are top notch. Best steak sandwich I have ever had. Here’s my review.

Downtown Cocktails

Indy has some great options to grab a cocktail and a snack as well. Check these places out before or after dinner--all have great ambiance.

Platt 99: The upstairs bar at the Alexander Hotel--a great, open modern space to grab small plates and a drink. You can make a meal here or just have a drink before heading downstairs to Cerulean.

Bone Marrow at Libertine

The Libertine:  The Libertine is a swank cocktail joint with some nice tidbits of food as well.

Ball & Biscuit: B&B is another really cool place that while it is mainly a bar, but with little snacks as well. 

Thunderbird: It's new and you get your cocktails fast with a side of southern small plates.

Outside of Downtown

If you are willing to venture a little outside of downtown, we have some amazing restaurants in various locations.

Broad Ripple

Just north of downtown is the Broad Ripple area (probably a 10-15minute drive from downtown).  Hit any of these places and you will have a happy belly.

H2O Sushi

H2O Sushi:  This is one of my all around favorite restaurants. And don’t let the name fool you. While they do serve spectacular sushi, my favorite things are the daily specials listed down the middle of their menu. Wonderful noodle dishes and great tacos.  The chef likes to mix it up here, with various Asian influences as well as fun twists on food from other cultures too.  I love this place (read more here).  

Goat Cheese Quesadilla-Room 4

Recess/Room 4: One of Indy’s most prized restaurants is run by local chef Greg Hardesty.  With a new daily menu that is set, you may try some things you wouldn’t normally try, and you will enjoy them all. The focus is on fresh, local ingredients.  If you want to dine at Recess, you need a reservation for sure.  But if you just want to stop in, give Room 4 a try.  Room 4 is the sister restaurant of Recess which is located in the same space, but is more casual, fun, and very approachable a la carte menu. Check out posts on both here. 

Taste Café & Marketplace: My favorite lunch spot in the City.  Great for breakfast too (and a tip, they serve dinner a couple of nights a week too).  Favorite item here by far: the BALT sandwich (bacon, avocado, lettuce and tomato).  They add dressing to the lettuce and an herby aioli to the bread. Best sandwich ever.  And don’t forget a side of their fabulous frites with basil aioli dip.  A perfect lunch. Read more about it here.

Mussels & Frites- Brugge

Brugge:  A local favorite for mussels and frites and house brewed beer.  Their fries may just be the best in town and with a choice of about a dozen dipping sauces, it’s hard to decide (I like blue cheese, regular garlic aioli and the Sherry vinegar and salt). Check out my review. Open for lunch too!


Barking Dog Cafe: One of my family's favorite lunch spots. They have my favorite thin-style burgers with nice crispy edges and the city's best clam chowder. Great fried oyster and clam rolls. Check out my last post.

Fat Dan's

Fat Dan's: Like a fatter burger? One of my favorites can be found at Fat Dan's. But they do a lot more than burgers--and just about everything is good. There's barbecue, Italian beef, Chicago dogs and great house made fries. Read more here.

Thr3e Wise Men: Currently, Thr3e Wisemen is making one of my favorite pizzas in the City—fresh dough, crispy crust and a great savory tomato sauce.  It’s a straightforward menu with pizzas, sandwiches and salads and they brew their own beer.  Lots of TVs to watch all the coverage. Here's what I said about it on my last visit. (Open for lunch and dinner.

Patachou/Napolese:  This is a local group of restaurants where you can enjoy a great breakfast or lunch.  Basic food, but extremeley fresh and high quality ingredients. Good egg dishes, really nice salads. Napolese is their own Neopolitan pizza restaurant that is quite charming as well.  Petite Chou is their French bistro version. I have done reviews of nearly all their concepts in my blog as well if you want further information. And they do have downtown locations as well.

North

Pizzology: Up in Carmel (about 30 minutes from downtown), there’s a great local pizza place owned by the same people who own The Libertine downtown (with a location soon to open on Mass Ave as well).  It is Neopolitan-style pizza cooked in a wood fired oven.  Great salads and pastas too. They don’t take reservations so if you don’t mind a potential wait, you should be able to get a table here. Here’s my latest post.

Creole gnocchi at Oakley's

West

Squealers: my current top choice for barbeque in Indy (although the quest is ongoing).  Great ribs and those fried biscuits…well, they are things dreams are made of…Here’s my post on them.

Oakley’s Bistro:  About 25 minutes drive from downtown, Oakley’s is a great slightly higher end dining option using seasonal ingredients and a seasonally changing menu.  There’s a little something for everyone here. Here's my latest review. 

East

Papa Roux: A little bit of New Orleans in Indy.  I personally love the shrimp po boy, but Indy people may tell you to get the pork po boy. And here's my review.

South

Brozinni’s: Ok, really this is my favorite pizza, but sadly, I don’t live close enough to have gotten to go more than a few times.  Huge, delicious New York style slices and amazing garlic knuckles.  If you are on the Southside, this is a must. Check out my post here.

Indiana Pork Tenderloin Sandwiches

Ok, you may or may not be aware that the sort of "unofficial sandwich of Indiana" is the breaded pork tenderloin sandwich.  We’re talking a piece of pork tenderloin that is pounded, sometimes very thin and sometimes not, breaded or battered and deep fried.  You will see them everywhere, seriously, but clearly some are better than others.  Here’s a few I can recommend:


Muldoon's Tenderloin

Muldoon’s:  In an Irish themed bar in Carmel (about 35 minutes north of downtown).

 111 West Main Street, Suite 100

Carmel, IN 46032

317/571-1116

Pawn Shop Tenderloin

Pawn Shop: in a somewhat smoky bar about 15-20 minutes from downtown.

2222 East 54^th Street

Indianapolis, IN  46262

317/255-5490

Chatham Tap: good version I picked mainly because they have a downtown location (no kids downtown though). Also a location in Fishers, about 35 minutes northeast of downtown.

719 Massachusetts Avenue

Indianapolis, IN 46204

317/917-8425

8211 East 116^th Street

Fishers, IN  46038

317/845-1090

Steer-In: This place was featured on Diners, Drive Ins and Dives, and I have been told has a great tenderloin.

5130 East 10^th Street

Indianapolis, IN

317/356-0996

Sahm’s:  Sahm’s has a great tenderloin, and other great fried tidbits (mushrooms are great as well) and they have several locations including one downtown.

433 North Capitol (check out their website for all their locations around Indy)

Indianapolis, IN

317/822-9903

Beer!

Finally, Indy has quite a thriving craft beer loving population and there are some great places to drink quality beer (much of it brewed locally) downtown and in Broad Ripple (as well as other places).  This is not my area of expertise for sure, but I know a lot of people love their beer, so I wanted to give you a good place to look to find out the best places to drink.  Check out the Hoosier Beer Geek blog, particularly this page which gives you the run down on different areas and places to check out.  Cheers!

I would love to hear feedback from out-of-towners about places they visit and their overall Indy experience! And don’t hesitate to email me personally for any other specific recommendations at erininindy@gmail.com or reach out to me on twitter @indyrestscene.  

And hey locals, don't forget to tell me what I have forgotten!