Livery--Revisit

We had a family night out the other night and one of the places the kids repeatedly ask for is Livery. Everyone really likes it and it’s one of the places when people ask me where to eat on Mass Ave, I always recommend.

Anyhow, it had been awhile since we had been and one thing we all knew was that we wanted was empanadas. It was just a matter of which flavor, how many, and at what stage of the meal. The negotiations began. So we ended up settling on getting a couple of appetizers and then including a bunch of empanadas with some main dishes and sharing it all.

To start we had the carnitas taquitos ($10) and the artichokes ($9). There were two fairly large taquitos filled with carnitas meat and topped with Amarillo gastrique. There was a little escabeche salad with it and some guacamole. Everyone gave this dish great reviews. The taquitos were nice and crunchy and I really liked eating them with the creamy salad. Hubby loved the salad on its own and ate it all even after the taquitos were gone. I agreed, it was a well composed dish.

The artichokes were also very good. They were grilled half artichokes that had a chili vinaigrette and a grilled lemon served alongside. I loved it with the squeeze of the really juicy lemon. Another great, really well composed dish—and the oil and the acid from the vinaigrette and lemon really accentuated the artichoke and that is something that is often a challenge for restaurants to pull off in my experience. Both appetizers were enjoyed and devoured.

For dinner we had chicken, lamb, and mushroom empanadas ($9 for three).  We ordered a lot of them and our server sort of gave us the side eye about it, but whatever. Our family loves the chicken empanadas and this time was no exception. They are stuffed with seasoned chicken, tomato, and beans, and served with what they call an avocado salsa but is basically like a light guacamole. They also serve a little kale salad on the side with the empanadas. Again, the chicken is one of our standard orders. We tried the lamb for the first time, which was ground lamb in a tomato-based sauce and served with a poblano crema. These were also really good and I would say table-wise, they were probably the favorite over the mushroom, although hubby and I really liked the mushrooms ones as well. They had huitlacoche and white cheddar inside with the mushrooms and were served with a jalapeno crema. We also got some of the bean puree that usually comes with the cheese empanadas at my daughter’s request.  I was really torn about which I liked best. I’d be hard pressed not to get them all. They do a great job with empanadas. 

I was also really impressed with what appeared to be a new menu item to me—the potato tart ($15). It is a crustless tart of crispy sliced potatoes that was topped with burrata cheese, mushrooms, arugula, tomatoes and tomato crema. I loved the slightly smoky flavor in the potatoes and the nice amount of acid from tomatoes. I wasn’t sure what to expect with this dish, but we were very pleased. 

We also had the skirt steak with polenta/Manchego fries, broccolini, tomato crema and jalapeno butter ($18). The steak was seasoned and cooked very well and was a generous dish that was also a crowd favorite, but a particular favorite of my steak-loving son.

All in all, while we always have enjoyed Livery, food-wise, this was top to bottom one of our best meals. The service was a little slow and absent at times, but otherwise, we had a good experience. And it is nice to see it routinely busy, as it deserves to be. I was also happy to see some variation in the menu as well, even if certain things don’t change. What are your favorite of the empanadas?

Livery

720 N. College

Indy 46202

317/383-0330

http://www.livery-restaurant.com/ 

LIvery- Revisit

We met up with some friends for dinner at Livery the other night. I was happy to see that there wasn’t a really long wait to get a table, as there was the last few times I went, but then again that was a long time ago. I still wish they took reservations though. I feel like once these kinds of places get past the initial excitement upon opening, they would only do themselves a favor by taking them, rather than making people worry they won’t get it, and just not go at all. Just my thoughts.

Anyway, I love those little spicy wagon wheel dealies you get for free when you sit down—I just wish they gave you a few more. There were six of us and we had to ask for more than one little cup of them. They’re made of puffed wheat that is fried, and then seasoned with a Latin seasoning salt. We then ordered a bunch of starters—the sweet corn ($5 or $6 off the cob); the ceviche ($11), the Brussels sprouts ($7) and corn and chorizo empanadas ($9 for three empanadas). That corn was amazing. So much so that we ended up getting three plates of it. And while I am sure it is delicious on the cob, it was a nice way to share with a group when you could just scoop some off. Love the hunk of jalapeno butter and chipotle mayo on there. This corn was rich and decadent and had so much flavor. I would surely get this dish each and every time if it is on the menu. The Brussels sprouts were also quite tasty—roasted and topped with some cheese and served alongside a green salsa. I have had several of the various empanada choices, and these were good. I preferred the corn version to the chorizo ones. The chorizo empanadas came with a peach salsa, which wasn’t my favorite. The corn empanadas came with a cilantro crema and had cheddar cheese inside as well. They just had more flavor and even with the sweetness of the corn, came across as more savory. In the past, I have enjoyed the chicken version as well.

I really enjoyed the variation of the acidity of the ceviche. It was a nice contrast to everything else. It seemed like it was mainly made with shrimp and scallops. It was flavored with jalapeno, cilantro, tomatillo and lime. They serve it with super thin plantain chips, which were nice to eat with some of the seafood on it. There’s also some seasoned popcorn on top. I could take or leave the popcorn, just because when it gets a little wet, I find popcorn to get too seedy.

I was quite happy with all of the appetizers and could happily just make a meal out of them in the future, but we also ordered mains. I ordered the pork belly tacos, because I was having a hard time making up my mind. They fry up some flour shells and put a big slice of pork belly, along with black bean puree, chipotle BBQ sauce, lettuce, poblano crema, and pickled carrot. They were served with a lime wedge each. These were tasty, even though one of them had a fair amount of fat in the pork belly that made it a little chewy, therefore making it a little tough to eat. The other taco (which was of course the one I shared) was much better. The squeeze of lime was key.

Hubby had the skirt steak ($18) with chimichurri refried beans, broccolini, and jalapeno butter. He really enjoyed it—the steak was cooked just right, nicely medium rare and tender. I just got a couple of bites but liked the ones I had. The only other dinner that I tried was one friend who had an appetizer for her dinner—the sweet plantains ($8) with black bean puree, poblano crema, habanero guajillo sauce, pineapple salsa and cotija cheese. I wouldn’t have probably ordered this, thinking it would be too sweet, but it was super tasty. The plantains with the heat and acid from the pineapple and habanero sauce, as well as the richness of the beans, cream, and cheese. It was really good. I would definitely be tempted to order this one again.

I think this is the best meal I have had at Livery. I feel like they definitely have their groove going now and have adjusted menu items to keep making them better. I still haven’t been brave enough to try a salad here again, based on past experiences, but maybe one of these days. Anyone had a salad here that they really like? Or what have your overall experiences been? Feel free to update me!

Livery

720 N. College

Indy 46202

317/383-0330

http://www.livery-restaurant.com/ 

Livery

The other night I met my favorite sharing friend Jen at Livery before the Yelp Totally Bazaar (which by the way, until they move it to somewhere else, I am never doing that again—way too cramped and crowded) for an early dinner. This is the newest place from the Cunningham Group (Vida, Mesh, etc.) and it’s located in a really cool old brick building on College just off Mass Ave. One I have been eyeing for years. So glad to see someone took this place on.

It’s a very nice interior—highlights the brick and lots of dark wood. I didn’t really get a real Latin flair from the décor, but the menu most certainly is. Our server was very nice, if not bit harried, disappearing for significant periods of time. We ordered the two margaritas on the menu—the Livery margarita ($9) and the Carriage House margarita ($12). Both were very, very good, even though margaritas on a freezing snowy night are a little weird. The carriage house is more of a top shelf type margarita and uses orange brandy. The Livery was more your classic margarita, but was spot on. I love the little freebies they serve as you get your drinks. They called them something like chicharone wagon wheels, but they are not actually a pork product. I think they are actually called duros. Anyhow, they’re more like flour-based chip—I have had them before at other places, but I love the seasoning they put on these. Spicy chile with a huge dose of lime. They were addictive. We had a couple bowls of these (partly because our service was a little off).

We ordered several items off various parts of the menu, but I will discuss them in the order we ate/were served the items (we told them to bring them how they thought was best).  The first thing we were brought was the manchego crisp ($8) off of the ensalata portion of the menu. It sounded so intriguing when the server described it. It is basically a taco shell made of fried manchego cheese, and it stuffed with herb salad, orange, avocado, red onion, olives, fresno pepper and marcona almonds. Sounds interesting yes? But ehh, it was our least favorite thing of the evening. It’s hard to believe something that was such an acid bomb with olives and orange could be so one-dimensional. It was very heavy on mashed avocado. And as much as I love manchego, it doesn’t make a crisp in the same way that Parmesan can. Just doesn’t have as much flavor. I expected a bit more of the greens, since it was labeled a salad, but it was a bit of a mish mosh of ingredients that didn’t really coalesce.

Next we had empanadas. We ordered the barbacoa version ($9) based on a couple of recommendations, including from our server. It comes with a little salad of kale and peppers and chipotle salsa. We realized after a couple of bites that we did not in fact get those, but actually got chicken ones. The bite I had was pretty good, but probably would have been better with the right sides—green salsa and crema. Based on my limited bite, I’d like to try them though. The barbacoa version was tasty as well. A nice flakey crust and meaty, yet juicy, interior. The salsa and the greens on the side make the dish though. Without it, the empanadas wouldn’t have stood out in the way they did. The salad was dressed with some heavy citrus, but it was just what the empanadas needed to brighten it up. I also like the smoky depth of flavor from the chipotle salsa.

Next we were served the jamon Serrano ($10) from the primero portion of the menu and the pork pastor ($11) from the Segundo portion. The jamon Serrano was probably our favorite item of the evening. It was a terrine made from potato and poblano peppers with mushrooms, romesco sauce, crema and salsa verde. Oh, and of course, that Spanish ham, which is layered across the top.  This was decadent, and had a lot going on, but tasted really good. It reminded me of a classic Spanish tortilla, which is more like a potato omelet than what you might normal think of when you think of a tortilla that you wrap a taco in. The sauces and mushrooms were great, and if you haven’t tried Serrano ham, it’s a bit like prosciutto but richer in flavor. It’s a bit drier in texture as well perhaps.

The pork pastor tasted very good as well. It was little shavings of the pork mixed with a zesty (as is acidic) slaw, onions, cilantro, and pineapple and served on top of corn cakes. The cakes were a little sweet for me, but I enjoyed the flavors of everything else. I think I would have preferred it served with another vehicle to eat it, even just warm tortillas, but I was happy enough just eating it on its own. I like that so much of the food here is thoughtfully created to be balanced with enough acid, as well as with unique takes on traditional Latin cuisine.

I really want to try some other things—I can’t wait to try the ceviche, it was just too cold on this night. I love ceviche and I bet this one has good flavor. Time will tell if I am right. And pretty much everything on the menu sounds interesting. So to the rest of you who have been there, what have you had? What did you think?

P.S. They don’t take reservations. On a Thursday early, we just walked right in, but I have heard there can be significant waits on the weekends. But you know how Indy folks love a new restaurant…

Livery

720 N. College

Indy 46202

317/383-0330

http://www.livery-restaurant.com/