Modita

I’ve been excited to try this place for a while—it’s new so of course everyone seems to be trying it so make a reservation in advance if you want to go. It’s located at the Bottleworks too—but it’s a full sit-down restaurant. It’s also a Cunningham joint. It’s got a modern vibe inside, unfortunately was freezing when we went inside (classic Hoosier move) but luckily, they had a sort of outside area with a garage door so we sat there so we didn’t need to have parkas on in July.

Anyhow, we started with several apps—the soft-shell crab tempura with chili aioli and cabbage (hold the candied peanuts because my son is allergic) ($18). We also had the bao buns with grilled pork, Asian slaw and miso aioli ($16). Both were really good. My favorite was the crab—it was perfectly fried and still really hot and crisp and the aioli was just spicy enough. My family loved the pork buns and they were good—I liked the crisp edge on the pork and the fact that they had a different flavored aioli for those—hate it when places repeat the same sauces on everything. I also liked that the pork wasn’t too fatty.

We shared a bunch of stuff for our main dishes. We had the mapo tofu ($12), the umami noodles ($16), the robata grill salmon ($27) and the robata grill Wagyu striploin ($95). Yes, the steak is a huge splurge that we had to convince hubby of, but it was well worth it in the end and both he and my son still talk about that steak and how they will definitely be ordering it again. Wagyu has that melt in your mouth quality and then the super high heat of the charcoal robata grill gives everything it cooks a super crisp grilled edge that not only adds flavor but texture to the outside without tasting like it is burnt. We asked for our miso-glazed salmon to be pretty rare and it was really wonderfully cooked as well—super tender inside with that crisp edge. All the robata entrées come with “wasabi mooncakes,” which are basically hash brown cakes with a little wasabi flavor. They were tasty and each plate came with 2, so we each got one. Anyway, as you can probably tell, the robata stuff is really good. I would like to try it all.

Hubby and I also really liked the mapo tofu, but I can’t seem to sell my kids on tofu and my daughter doesn’t love really spicy things. It has a spicy bean sauce on it and it was pretty spicy, as it should be, and really well done. There were toasty rice cake balls in there as well—I love the combination of these textures of the crisp tofu that is still soft inside and the rice cake. I would easily get this again, especially in different company where I could share as it is a generous portion. 

The only let down were the noodles. They were kind of dense and stuck together—maybe like they were a bit overcooked. The favors were pretty rich—pork belly, edamame, black garlic and parmesan. There was a lot of umami, but it was just too much if you ask me. I was pushing for the tamarind noodles which probably have more of the taste I would prefer, but hopefully the noodles would not be overcooked next time. Honestly with so many options on the menu we didn’t get to try at all (dumplings, sushi, tartares, etc.), I would probably just skip the noodles next time and go with something else.

We did get a dessert as well and it was very good too. It was the marshmallow pudding with miso caramel and a sesame seed wafer. It was interesting and different and really tasted like marshmallow, but somehow more sophisticated with the miso and sesame. This was a hit with everyone.

All in all, we had a really good meal and it is one of the places my daughter has requested to go again before she goes away to college on the East Coast. I will keep you updated. 

Modita

850 Massachusetts Ave, Suite 100

Indy  46204

317/316-0470

www.modita.com 

Thai Station

 

I got to go out to dinner with one of my girlfriends recently (thank you science!) and I was super excited to go regardless, but then she suggested a place I had never been, and I was doubly happy. Thai Station is just up the road from my house too, so I had high hopes (and I learned a new cookie place is going in right by it, so that also seemed like a good sign).

It’s a strip mall location and I didn’t expect a lot atmosphere-wise, but it was actually very cute—lots of wood and several booths and a banquet of tables. They do a good job of only seating every other table and have sanitizer on every table that they do use. There were only a few tables that were seated while we were there, but they had a very steady stream of take out orders. They also have a cute little bar area and a decent wine selection for a small place. They served one of my favorite less expensive roses, and that is what I ordered. Nice glasses too. They are definitely making you feel like you are getting a true “out to eat” dining experience.

The menu is very large and quite appealing. They have a lot of interesting-sounding things. We ordered the crispy wontons ($6.99), mostly because we were curious about what they would be.  They were little wontons stuffed with lightly seasoned chicken and deep fried. They were served with that clear vinegar-based, slightly sweet Thai dipping sauce. The chicken was maybe a little bland on its own, but they were pretty tasty, especially with the sauce drizzled on them. 

For my entrée, I ordered my classic Thai dish—sauteed eggplant with meat and veggie. Here it is #34 and called “Eggplant Lover” ($11.99). It was so good. One of the best versions I have had in town—everything was cooked just right—the eggplant was still bright in color, but cooked soft and with the rich Thai brown sauce all absorbed into it. The chicken was thinly sliced and tender. There were also green peppers, thinly sliced carrots and basil. Oh, and of course white rice. The sauce was super delicious and plentiful so that you could really make your rice pretty well coated and get the flavor in every bite. I loved how bright and colorful the dish was and everything seemed really fresh. 

My friend got the (#33)($14.99) garlic and pepper preparation with shrimp. This was shrimp stir-fried with a garlic pepper sauce all on top of sliced cabbage, cilantro and green onions. I just had a bite of the veggies with the sauce and the sauce was really good—lots of garlic. We both ordered our dishes medium spice level and I think it was just right. Definitely some heat, but not crazy.

This may become one of our new go-to carry out places. There is a ton of stuff on the menu, including various fried rice versions and noodle dishes and I know everyone in the house will find stuff they like. I can’t wait to try more stuff. If you have been here, let me know what you like. 

Thai Station

3317 E. 86^th Street

Indy. 46240

317/929-1983

Mandarin House

I met a friend for lunch the other day at Mandarin House in Carmel. It’s so weird because I have never actually even noticed this place before. And I have been in and out of the City BBQ a couple doors down several times. Anyway, I was pleasantly surprised with the atmosphere of the place and the welcoming greeting I got.

It’s a pretty standard Chinese restaurant menu, and you can get a decent deal for lunch (most are around $7 and come with soup and two crab Rangoon). I got my usual first dish at any Chinese restaurant, garlic chicken ($6.95). It was curious that there was a garlic pork on the menu listed as hot and spicy, but garlic chicken was not. Anyway, I was impressed with the depth of flavor in this dish. It was a welcome surprise. The sauce was rich and salty and had a ton of garlic in it. The veggie mix had mostly water chestnuts and then a few mushrooms, which were my favorite part. They serve it with lightly seasoned rice and the crab Rangoon. I didn’t love the crab Rangoon, they were a little soft and doughy. I also chose the hot and sour soup. It was a decent version—certainly not the best or worst I had had. Good flavor and some nice pieces of tofu, my favorite part. They also give you those crunchy fried wontons with your soup, and let’s face it, those make any soup better.

My friend had the house beef ($7.25), which was listed as hot and spicy, but wasn’t particularly spicy in my mind. I don’t love beef in Chinese restaurants typically because the beef is always cut small, gets cooked well done, and I usually find it a little chewy. This one was no exception. It couldn’t compare to my chicken in my opinion. Seriously, I was pretty impressed with that garlic chicken sauce. I would certainly order it again.

Their dinner menu is much more extensive, I would be curious to hear what items people think are good. And while it was all pretty straightforward, I would be interested to try some of these other dishes. Let me know if you have favorites.

Mandarin House

1370 S. Rangeline Road

Carmel, IN 46032

317/846-6405

www.mandarinhousecarmel.com 

Bento House

My daughter and I had a Friday night to ourselves while the boys went to an Indians game and we decided to try something new. Bento House opened in the old Boogie Burger space and from what I understand is owned by the people who also own Watami---the all you can eat sushi placed a couple doors down.

It was pretty dead in there when we got there—only one other table. People did come in and out for carry out orders, but it was quiet. A few other tables came in as we were leaving, but still on the slow side. The service was pretty speedy though even though I think there was just one server waiting on all the tables. She was very nice.

Ok, so the most positive thing I can say about this place is that they give you a lot of food for the money. We each ordered a Bento Box with various things in them and they were around $12-14 each. I started with the hot and sour soup and she got miso (soup comes with the bento box). The hot and sour soup was pretty good—it had a nice amount of heat actually, which sometimes can be lacking. I love a lot of tofu in my soup, and there wasn’t a lot, but that’s probably just random. My daughter enjoyed her miso.

In my bento box ($12.95), I had the hibachi chicken (you get a choice of a meat entrée), the crab Rangoon (you can get this or spring rolls, which she got), gyoza, chicken skewers (they come in all of the boxes) and white rice. My daughter had sweet and sour chicken, spring rolls, shrimp tempura, the chicken skewers and fried rice (which is an upcharge) ($14.95).

What can I say except the food was all just kind of ok. It wasn’t bad per se, but there was nothing that I really liked. My daughter enjoyed her orange/passion fruit boba smoothie ($4.50), but other than that, she felt about the same as I did. The chicken on my plate was pretty dry, especially the skewers. The hibachi chicken was really pretty bland. The fried things were probably the best—I liked the shrimp tempura just fine, although it wasn’t the best I have had for sure. The dumplings were pretty good too. The weird thing is, they put the appropriate sauce in the little compartment with the items they go with. I think I would prefer them on the side, as I sometimes like to use just basic soy with some things. My daughter’s sweet and sour chicken was not tossed with the sauce—it  was just on the side, which was also a little strange I thought. Good for takeout maybe to keep it crispy, but in the restaurant, sort of came across like battered chicken nuggets.

Anyhow, glad to see a new place go in there, and that it is independent, but I can’t say I will be rushing back. Has anyone else been?

Bento House

1904 Broad Ripple Ave

Indianapolis, IN 46220

317/280-7770

www.bentohouseindy.com 

Noise rating: 0 bells (out of five) (with the exception of the alarm bell that went off every time someone entered the restaurant.

Pho Real

Pho places seem to be springing up everywhere…well, at least more of them are becoming more central to my location, which I appreciate. There are two or three new places I have been waiting to try and this was one of them. The BFF and I headed over there for lunch and laughed because we knew this strip mall from our very young days, as we grew up nearby. Don’t let the scary dark wood/slightly run down vibe of the outside scare you away; they have done a nice job on the inside of this place. It’s cute and very clean. The menu is big and has Thai and Laotian food as well as Vietnamese.

But, when your name is “Pho Real,” you kinda have to try the pho right? At least on your first visit. But since it was a new place, and we were kinda in the mood, we also ordered some appetizers. We ordered the dumplings ($7.75) and the fried tofu ($5.95). I really liked the fried tofu. It had a nice firm, yet crispy crust that you had to break through to get to a very silky (and hot!) interior. It was served with a very mild sauce to dip in, but it had a slight acidic flavor and I liked it. I also ended up dropping them last piece or two into my pho and that was really good too. They kept their shape even in the broth. The dumplings were pretty tasty too. They were stuffed with pork and a bit of shrimp and served with that vinegar/soy sauce. Maybe not as tender as I would like—the filling was pretty dense—but they had a good flavor.

I ordered the rare beef pho  (Pho #1) ($9.99), which is my classic choice. It’s a deep beef broth with thin rice noodles, cilantro, scallions and it was seasoned with some black pepper it seemed. Oh, and the rare beef of course. I always squeeze my lime in there too from the fresh side plate, as well as throwing in a couple of the slices of jalapeno to steep and spice up the broth. Then I put in the basil and bean sprouts for a bit more flavor and texture. I tend to add a bit of chili sauce—here the only choice was Sriracha, so that’s what I used. I put a bit of soy in as well. Anyhow, that’s how pho is—you kind of doctor it up to your taste. But the thing that makes or breaks pho (or puts it on the just ok list anyway) is the broth. And this broth was very good. It had a very deep flavor and this is up there with my favorite bowls of pho in town so far. Mine also had nice, tender thin slices of beef that seemed a little more flavorful than many, even my favorite, Pho Tasty. Like I said, I also liked throwing my tofu in there as well. 

My BFF had the veggie pho ($8.99) and she seemed to really like it. I was too busy eating all of mine to even try it, but she said it was definitely one of the better vegetarian broths she has had in town. She didn’t love the big hunks of bok choy, because they were almost impossible to eat. If you don’t have a knife, I do believe food should be in bite-sized pieces.

Overall though, this was a great find. And they have lots of great sounding Thai dishes I would be interested to try as well. They also have beer and wine.

Pho Real

9611 N. College Ave

Indy 46280

317/853-8046

www.phorealindy.com 

LongBranch

Hubby and I decided to hit up Longbranch the other night for an early dinner. We went on the early side because of all the positive write-ups lately, we were worried that we wouldn’t get in. However, this place is a bar and the night we were there (which was a Friday), we didn’t have to wait at all. It didn’t really start to get busy til we left. It’s also a big place, so not as much competition for seats.

They are known for their cocktails, so I felt like I should try one, even though I am typically a wine person. I ordered the “Sayonara” ($9), which had rum, sake and a nice citrus and ginger flavor. Hubby had their version of an Old Fashioned. Both of us enjoyed the drinks—I really liked the pickled ginger garnish in mine. 

We started with the Rangoon ($7) and the egg rolls ($8). Both of the dishes were excellent. I liked that the Rangoon had shrimp inside them instead of the tiny little flakes of crab that you usually see. The chunks of shrimp were larger and actually recognizable. The wonton part was super crispy and freshly fried. They were served with their housemade sweet and sour sauce, which is something I don’t typically eat—you know that bright pink sauce that is more sweet than sour…but this one was really good, much more depth to it and much more acidic kick. It was a great match. 

The egg rolls were really good as well—they put a nice hunk of monkfish inside theirs, and I really enjoyed this to give them more weight and more complexity than your typical veggie egg roll. It gave a nice silky texture as well. They give you a sampler of three different homemade sauces with the egg rolls and these were tasty too. There was a ginger scallion dashi, a duck sauce, and hot mustard. I liked the ginger scallion sauce the most, although the duck sauce was tasty too. I don’t really go in for hot mustard sauce typically just because it is so overwhelming. They do a very nice job with the sauces here, much more interesting than what you typically see in a Chinese restaurant.

For our main dishes, we got a couple of things to share. I ordered the tofu entrée ($10) and we really enjoyed it as well. It was chunks of tofu that were lightly breaded and fried and mixed with sautéed eggplant and a miso sauce. There was a nice amount of microgreens on top as well as some sesame seeds. I find that tofu dishes often have more flavor and seasoning than some other dishes in general, and this one was no exception. I like the soft texture of the eggplant and tofu and the richer flavor of the sauce on this one. My only complaint was that after it sat for a bit, the stuff on the bottom sort of became a bit greasy.

Hubby ordered the short rib with avocado rice and an egg ($16). This is short rib done in the more Korean style, sliced long-ways and not slow cooked in the way you typically see short rib on menus. I liked the way they made the rice extra creamy by mixing it with the soft avocado, and how it added a richness to the rice. Of course you know I love an egg on top, and the yolk added a nice sauce. I guess my only complaint here would be the pure richness without something to sort of balance it out a bit. We found mixing a little of the tofu into the beef dish made a nice little combo though.

We were thoroughly enjoying ourselves, which led to the decision to order dessert (this most often happens when we’re having a really good meal). There aren’t a lot of options, but we ordered a couple of the cookies offered—the peanut butter version with miso cream and the almond version with matcha cream. Man, that peanut butter one was so, so good. The cookie part was so flaky and buttery. And peanut buttery. The other one was good too, but seriously…that peanut butter version... I have thought about that cookie many many times since then.

All in all, Longbranch is a good addition to our food scene. I am not sure why Chinese food is so lacking downtown, particularly with drinks, but I am glad to see this place open. It’s an adult only place, so you may see that as a positive or negative, and it definitely has a bar vibe. I was impressed with the service and the knowledge of our server, and it was a nice relaxing and tasty meal. I would say give it a go, I am looking forward to tasting more of the dishes when we get a chance. There are a lot of good sounding things on there.

LongBranch

2205 N. Delaware Street

Indy  46205

317/602-6726

www.longbranchindy.com  

UPDATE: Ok, so I ended up going back before I even posted this first post, and I have to say, the second visit didn't wow me quite as much. We had a couple of the same things, the spring rolls, the shrimp rangoon and the tofu dish as well as some new things. The rangoon is great. I highly recommend. The spring rolls had less fish this time and weren't as memorable. I still liked the tofu. We also had the General Tso's sweetbreads ($15), and although they are marked as spicy, I thought they weren't very spicy, unless you ate one of the chilis on top. They were a little sticky too--the breading didn't seem crispy enough. The hanger steak (for 2)($26) felt like a bunch of disconnected parts. The meat was good, but there were just little piles of other things on the platter and it didn't come together as a cohesive dish. We loved the spare rib appetizers ($12) though--they had a lot of flavor--like Chinese 5 spice flavor and the meat was cooked just right. So if you average out my two visits, there are definitely things worth having, but there is a bit of a one-dimensionality of some of the dishes. I can't say it will be a regular for me, but it is certainly a good choice for a change of pace, and I am glad to see someone focusing on a cuisine that we don't have a lot of in downtown.

Rook - Revisit

Rook, you guys, is one of the most creative and tasty places we’ve got going around here. Hubby hadn’t been to the new location so we headed over there on one of those nights when it was still unseasonably warm and sat outside—they’ve done a nice job with the outside seating. Even though it’s pretty near the street, it feels a little calmer than many places.

We started out with the steamed pork bun ($5). A friend had insisted we get the Spam bun because she says it is amazing, but hubby couldn’t be swayed from the pure pork version. And it is really delicious. The soft doughy bun and the just right crispy pork belly with no too much fat. My favorite part is the homemade pickles giving it a fresh crunch and some acid. There’s a sprinkle of peanuts and some hoisin sauce too. So good.

We also got an order of the fried pigs’ ears with fermented black bean mayo and a 63-degree egg ($8). We have had tasty pig’s ears before, but they are often too chewy. THESE WERE SO GOOD. You couldn’t sop eating them. It was almost like eating light fried pork skins—super crispy and not at all chewy. That mayo had a little tanginess to it as well, and well, you know me, put a perfectly runny egg on top of that mayo and it may just be the perfect dish. No way we would ever pass this by if it’s on the menu. Dipping the pigs’ ears into that runny egg and mayo was just perfection.

For our second round, we had the Ora King salmon poke ($18) and the Vietnamese crepe ($17). We really enjoyed the salmon—really nice-sized cubes of raw salmon—and if you aren’t familiar with Ora King, it’s super buttery and delicious (you can get it at Caplinger’s if you want to experiment at home). And then the salmon was served in a bowl on a bed of rice and flavored with soy, charred seaweed, sesame seeds and an avocado cream. There was also a big egg yolk in the middle of the dish, which made it into a rich, decadent dish. We really enjoyed it, but it was so rich, I was glad to be sharing it. I don’t think I could have eaten this whole thing on my own.

If I was going to pick a least favorite item of the evening, it was the Vietnamese pancake. And these are typically one of my favorite things in Vietnamese cuisine. It was stuffed with a large amount of duck confit, boiled egg, bean sprouts and bacon. It was drizzled with fermented chili aioli and had a side of a fish sauce-based sauce to season with. I’m not sure what made this dish a little lackluster for me, but I think it was the fact that there was a little too much of the filling inside (you couldn’t really appreciate the crepe itself) and the fillings were on the whole cold. When I have had this elsewhere in the past, the fillings are quickly sautéed or something so they are warm. Maybe they just put so much in there, it couldn’t all get warm before the crepe was totally done. The boiled egg was a new thing for me in a crepe like this. I appreciated some of it, but still, there was just a little too much.

All in all, this was a really good dinner. The first two items blew us away and we were also really impressed with the salmon. I love the way the menu varies from visit to visit. Hubby was also really impressed with the new (ish) digs, as they just feel more sophisticated, while it remains casual and approachable still.

If you haven’t been to Rook, you owe it to yourself to check it out for sure. It is certainly one of the most interesting places we have going and the food quality (and service for that matter) is very high. Can’t wait to try some other new things.

Rook

501 Virginia Ave

Indy 46203

317/737-2293

www.rookindy.com

Marrow - Revisit

A few weeks ago some friends and I decided it was time to go back to check out Marrow again. These are my friends who like to order heavy and share, so always a good couple to go out with. 

We started out with the smoked deviled eggs ($3 ea.) and the pickle plate ($6) because we just can’t say no to those deviled eggs—we’ve had them every time I think and even hubby, who isn’t a huge fan of deviled eggs like I am, really enjoys them. They had crab mixed into the filling, so how could you not like that? And they were topped with wasabi tobiko (love the pop from the fish eggs), crispy shallots (more texture) and a slice of pepper. The eggs were on top of some eel sauce so they don’t slide around too much. These are certainly some of my favorite deviled eggs in town.

The pickle plate was also one of the more interesting ones I’ve seen—and it seems like pickle plates are everywhere! This one had pickled cherries on it, which were very intriguing. Still sweet, but less so. I just kept eating them because they were so unusual. There were also onions, some curried cauliflower and some kimchi, which were tasty albeit less unusual. My other favorite was the pickled shitake mushrooms. Very cool. That earthy flavor but with a briny hit. These would be good in lots of dishes.

We had to get an order of our first favorites (and a couple of the few things that have remained on the menu since the place opened I think), the fried tandoori chicken ($24) and the paneer mac and cheese ($12). The fried chicken was just as tender and flavorful as the first time I had it. They serve it with a swath of various sauces on the bowl—a cilantro based sauce and a pepper chutney. It’s truly a delicious, and a nice Asian twist on what is one of my favorite things—fried chicken. And it’s a good one.

The shells and paneer is a take on mac and cheese made with a curried butter sauce, and chunks of paneer cheese—this is a firm cheese—it’s typically served in Indian food. The creamy sauce is accented nicely with the curry sauce as well as pieces of veggies—carrots, peas, corn and spinach. It’s a great dish because it is comforting like mac and cheese, but also interesting because of the more unique flavors. 

We also tried the fried chitlins. Rarely see these on a menu. They were pretty good, and in a nice zippy sauce. Some were a little tough maybe, but maybe that’s the nature of the beast (I have not eaten a lot of them in my life). There was a brisket dish as well that also had an Indian flair to it that was also a popular dish on the table. It was served with rice and chana dal (a type of Indian bean—sort of like a lentil or a chickpea). 

We also tried the little cornbread muffins. These were probably the most disappointing for me. The muffins were just too dry and uninspired compared to everything else we had. They did come with a side of sorghum and miso honey, but still just couldn’t really stand up to the other dishes, and just had a note of being sort of one-dimensional. 

We had this super fancy  drink for dessert that was very interesting. I think it is called the Miss T—it’s got a bunch of Irish whiskey, apple brandy, some tea and is infused through fruit and herbs to make a warm almost tea-like beverage with a serious alcohol kick. It was fun to watch it get heated and boil through the process but honestly, I’m not really a whiskey girl. But it was kind of cool. I can see how it would be a nice warming drink in the winter, if you like em strong.

Anyhow, we really enjoyed our meal overall and I love how often they mix up the menu here. What interesting dish have you eaten here and really enjoyed (I know you remember how to make comments on the blog—and they make me so happy!)?

Marrow

1106 Prospect Street

Indy 46203

317/986-6752

www.marrowindy.com 

Old Favorites: Café Patachou and Jasmine Thai

Since I have been back in the country after being away for a month, and because the kids are back in school and for about a minute I have more time on my hands to go to lunch (until I start school-oy!), and I have been missing my favorite stand-bys, here’s a couple of the places I visited in one week. (Seriously, you have no idea how much you dream of Asian food and American sandwiches after three weeks in Italy and one in Greece).

First stop: Café Patachou. And while I sometimes vary my order, I knew exactly what I was going to get—my ultimate comfort food sandwich—egg salad on toasted sourdough with chips and an extra pickle (it’s about $10). Everything was going great until the server informed me they have stopped serving the pickles. Devastating. Apparently, they are composting a lot more these days and realized how much they are throwing away and didn’t like how many pickles they throw out (how could you not eat these pickles?). They have also stopped automatically serving the tomato and cucumber unless you ask as well. So, I think they should do the same with the pickles—only if you ask for them. Bring back the pickles!

Anyway, the sandwich was just as good as always (except I really like a bite of pickles mixed with every couple bites of sandwich). I also tend to eat my sandwich open-faced because I like a larger salad-to-bread ratio. Their egg salad is simple—eggs, mayo, salt and pepper, but they do it just right and it is delicious. Still, bring back the pickles! (please?).

Next stop a couple days later-- Jasmine Thai for my favorite sautéed eggplant with basil (and I add chicken—it’s normally a vegetarian dish) (also around $10). I normally like food a little spicy, but here I order this dish mild. First, they are serious about heat at Jasmine and second, when this particular dish is spicy at all, it seems to me it loses a little bit of the rich basil flavor—the heat just overpowers it. 

The eggplant is nice and tender and the chicken is sliced thin and mixed it—I wish they would give just a little more chicken because I like a bit of chicken and a bit of eggplant in each bite for the texture variation, but other than that, this is one of my favorite dishes. And Asian flavors, because they are so different from what I had been eating were one of my top cravings in Europe (we did manage to get sushi twice in Italy, but that’s it).

Anyhow, those are just a couple of the favorites I have been in the last week or so…. I am sure I will be hitting up a few more here soon.

Café Patachou

8697 River Crossing Blvd

Indy  46240

317/815-0765

http://cafepatachou.com/

Jasmine Thai Restaurant

4825 East 96^th Street

Indy  46240

317/848-8950

www.jasminethaiindy.com

Kizuki Ramen and Izakaya

Everyone is talking about the new ramen place in Carmel—Kizuki. It’s a chain that actually originated in Japan—good timing for them to open in Indy when everyone is now finally getting ramen crazy. I met my friend Suzanne there because she lives not too far away and loves to try a new restaurant as much as I do.

There are a LOT of ramen choices on this menu. Almost too many to know which to choose. Plus, all those small plates on the menu make you want to order them as well. Luckily, Suzanne is a good sharing friend, so we decided to get a couple of the small plates and split a bowl of ramen.

I asked our server for recommendations for which ramen to try and she recommended the garlic tonkotsu shoyu ramen or the spicy miso ramen (both $13). I was kind of already thinking about the garlic tonkotsu one she mentioned because it is described as “extra rich” and is made in limited quantities. Nothing like making something sound rare to make it alluring. Plus, my one complaint about some ramen I have had is that it’s too bland, so “extra rich” sounded good. It was a good bowl of ramen. Would I say it was great? Eh, not particularly. The broth actually tasted a little muddy if you know what I mean.  The slice of pork in it was nice (except I still always wonder exactly how you are supposed to eat them—they are too big for one bite, but chopsticks and a spoon make cutting it difficult). There was also bamboo shoots and some bean sprouts, which were fine. The star of the dish was clearly the egg. It was soft boiled as it usually is, and done nicely, but it was also seasoned in some sort of marinade and was super delicious. It was unique from most ramen in that the egg itself tasted so good on its own. Next time, I would go with a spicy broth and an extra egg. I also liked that there were lots of different seasonings to use in the ramen on the table--I used a couple and it helped jazz it up a bit.

We also got the chicken karaage ($6.50) and the pork gyoza ($5). I really enjoyed the gyoza—the dumplings were very hot and tasted very fresh. The skins were thin and had the exact right amount of crispiness on the pan-fried side. The vinegar soy sauce was nicely balanced and had enough vinegar to it that you could actually taste it. I would get these again.

Karaage chicken is Japanese fried chicken—it’s typically breaded with starch instead of a bunch of flour, so it has this lighter, crispier crunch to it. They also marinate the chicken beforehand. The chunks here seemed a mix of light and dark meat—some bites were really tasty and some a bit dry, but it was a decent dish. They served it with a spicy mayo that took it a step further in taste. I enjoyed the mayo.

There are a lot of people working here, (you might be startled by how many of them say hello to you in Japanese when you walk in) and they are more than happy to help as much as possible. They are doing a decent business as well. Overall, I enjoyed my visit, but wasn’t blown away.

Would love to know what you have had if you have been as well.

Kizuki Ramen & Izakaya

2450 E. 146^th Street

Carmel, IN 46033

www.kizuki.com