Super Bowl Update: Northside Restaurant

Showing posts with label Northside Restaurant. Show all posts

Elevation Burger

3:24 AM | Labels: Burgers, Chain Restaurants, kid friendly, Northside Restaurant

We had to hit the mall to return a couple of things over the holidays, so I figured, hey, a new burger place! And everyone in my family likes burgers (a rare thing that we can all agree on something) and I knew would be good second, third and fourth opinions for this post. So Elevation Burger is part of the new food court that has opened up in the Fashion Mall. Right now the only other things are Pinkberry yogurt and Freshii, so everything in there is a chain—but soon a branch of Naked Tchopstix is opening as well as Napolese (or so I have heard).

Elevation Burger’s motto is “The Best-Tasting, Better-For-You Burger.” They use 100% organic, grass-fed, free-range beef. They freshly grind the beef; hands cut their fries and fry them in olive oil. They also partake in environmentally friendly practices, recycle, and tell you exactly how many calories are in what you are eating (presumably to help you maintain a healthier lifestyle). All of those things made me go into it with a pretty positive attitude. I mean who wouldn’t want their beef to be organic and freshly ground, etc. etc?

Here’s the problem for me—the burger was only okay. I got a kid’s burger (the only way you can get a single patty burger) ($3.79) with cheese, grilled onions and pickles. The meat honestly wasn’t that exceptional tasting and was cooked more than I would normally want (although I guess you can’t really expect it to be cooked to order at what is basically a fast food place). I liked the grilled onions that were chopped into small pieces because they were easy to eat on the sandwich. The bun was the biggest failing for me—it was really soft and kind of too small for the burger (even the kid’s burger). It could barely hold up. Hubby had the regular Elevation burger (which is two patties) ($5.29) and I can’t imagine having even more meat with that bun. He said if he came again he would get the kid’s burger too—that there was no need for extra meat.

The surprise hit were the fries ($2.69). They are hand cut thin fries and they are fried in olive oil. I was kind of skeptical about this wondering if they would be crispy, but they were really quite tasty and had a nice crunchiness to them.

All in all, if you think of it as a mall food court, it is a good burger—for a food court. If you compare it to a lot of our local burger places, it is just an ok burger. The kids said they liked it but when I asked them to compare it to their favorite spots, they both agreed there were others they liked a lot more.

Elevation Burger

The Fashion Mall

8702 Keystone Crossing VC01

Indy, 46240

www.elevationburger.com

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Rosie's Place

3:35 AM | Labels: Breakfast Places, Independent Restaurants, lunch places, Noblesville, Northside Restaurant, Rosie's Place

I had to be way north the other day, so naturally my mind wandered to where I could grab lunch that was new. I thought of Rosie’s because several people have recommended it and I have read about it a couple places. I didn’t realize it was right on the square in Noblesville—right in between the Asian Grill and Matteo’s. It’s a pretty big place, and I loved all the sweets piled up as you walked in. The lady who greeted me (and was my server as well) was super nice and very friendly.

The menu is half breakfast items and half lunch—the lunch side is made up mainly of salads and sandwiches. I was torn about which way to go—honestly, everything sounded good and I am really looking forward to trying breakfast as well. Those breakfast tacos have my name on them.

So in order to try as many things as possible since I was by myself, I got a “pick two” ($7.50) and had a half sandwich and a soup—ok, and I also got a side of mac and cheese ($2.50). The sandwich I got was the roast turkey club. The sandwich was sliced turkey, bacon, slices of cheddar cheese, lettuce, tomato and basil mayo. A sandwich like this can go one of two ways—it can be fine, but kind of boring, or there can be something special that sets it apart. This one was pretty special. The main thing that made it for me was the basil mayo—it was really good—and was on the sandwich in an ample amount to actually taste it with just about every bite. It added the tangy flavor that sets a sandwich like this apart (the thing that Taste does in spades). The bread was also really good too—it was fairly thick sliced wheat bread, but which was perfectly toasted and soft enough that it didn’t turn the sandwich too bready. All the main ingredients were great too, but without that little extra that came from the mayo and the great bread, it would have just been a sandwich.

I had a cup of one of the soup specials—the chicken velvet, which is a popular Hoosier specialty. I mean I assume it is served in other places, but you certainly see it in Indiana a lot. I know it was a famous item from the LS Ayres tea room, but I wonder where it was actually invented. Anyway, I have had it several places before, and this one was good—I mean this is a soup based on cream and butter that is thickened and has hunks of chicken added—it is super rich, and this was no exception, but it was well done and I was amazed with how tender the pieces of chicken were that were in there. So often with soup, because the chicken has been heated so long, it tends to get tough and stringy, but this chicken was not.

The mac and cheese is homemade, and it wasn’t bad, although it didn’t blow me away. It is a creamy sauce, although it isn’t a really saucy mac and cheese. There was also melted shredded cheese on top. I would probably add a little more seasoning to it (I added salt and pepper and then liked it a lot more) because it was a little bland on its own.

All in all, this is hearty stick to your ribs kind of food done with just the right amount of flair—when the weather is warm again, I look forward to trying one of their many salads—they sound really good as well. The ingredients being used are high quality and they are appealing to down home sensibilities, but at the same time offering some slight twists on classics. The day I was there they were offering a fried pork tenderloin sandwich as well—it looked pretty intriguing. My server was really friendly, and I left the place feeling full and like I had been well taken care of. I certainly would like to go back and try some other things. I also would love to hear other recommendations for Rosie’s or Noblesville in general if you have them.

Rosie’s Place

68 North 9^thStreet

Noblesville, IN 46060

317/770-3322

http://rosiesplace.net/

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Meridian - Revisit

3:07 AM | Labels: Independent Restaurants, Layton Roberts, lunch places, Meridian, Northside Restaurant

Hubby and I realized we hadn’t yet been to Meridian since the chef change, and after a friend texted me about the steak tartare she was eating there, I knew it was time. I am a sucker for steak tartare (or tuna tartare, or whatever tartare).

Hubby and I took advantage of the lovely weather we were having (hello, autumn, I have missed you) and sat out on their patio. Alone for quite awhile (the place was just not very busy), but it was still lovely. We were mostly excited by the appetizers, which if you read a lot you know is often the case, and decided to split several. We started with the prime beef tartare (I think it was around $12) which was very good. The beef was, well, raw and nice and tender and flavorful, and when you added the egg yolk on top, it turned into a wonderful creamy mix. You need something to cut the richness, and there was some capers and onion mixed with the meat. It was served on top of a horseradish cream, which was the right amount of heat to help as well, although I wished there had been just a little more of it. The ripe bits of tomatoes were a nice acidic complement as well, and we LOVED the crispy fried garbanzo beans. We only regretted sort of stirring them in a little too soon, because they lost their crispness and they had been so great when you bit into a crispy one. Next time (and I will get it again if it is on the menu) I would scoot them aside and parcel them out with each bite. The flatbread served with it had a nice flavor too and the crispy edges were my favorite part. I would love them to be a little crispier as I am partial to things like potato chips with my tartare, but that’s just my own preference. You really didn’t care that much about the vehicle since the rest of it was so good.

We then got two more appetizers to share—the shrimp and grits ($13.25) and the hot/cold smoked salmon ($11.50). The shrimp also featured an egg, a perfectly cooked sunny side up egg that was quite honestly the highlight of the dish. Not to say the rest wasn’t good, because it was—the whole dish was great. There were two large shrimp on top of nice creamy grits with thin asparagus spears, melted leeks (one of my other favorite ingredients), that egg and little prosciutto. It was like a perfect breakfast—a little ham, a little egg, and some grits. Oh and shrimp. Honestly, I would be hard pressed to not get this again as well.

Hubby says the salmon was one of the menu items that has been on the Meridian menu for awhile, but honestly I can’t tell you if he is right or not. I can tell you that we enjoyed it although probably not quite as much as the other two dishes. It is ball of herby creamy cheese with the hot smoked salmon mixed in—it has that smokier flavor. Layered around the ball was the cold smoked salmon making a lovely presentation. The salmon was on top of red onion marmalade and drizzled with herb oil. I liked the marmalade for a little bit of sweet and tartness with the smoky salmon. It was served with nicely oiled and toasted sliced of bread, which was nice and thin to maintain all the flavor of the salmon. It is a very generous portion and probably a better portion to share with more than 2 people—it was the only thing we didn’t finish (and lick the plate). We also had a side of the fries ($5.50), which are really quite good. Our server told me one of their secrets is using a little sugar with the salt. They didn't taste sweet to me at all, but they were really good--fresh and crisp and plenty salty. They didn't really need the ketchup that came with them and they were good for dipping up leftover sauce from the other plates.

We had the classic Meridian dessert-- one which I know has been on the menu for awhile because I have had it before—the fresh made doughnuts. As always, you can’t really go wrong with freshly made hot doughnuts. They are shaken in cinnamon sugar and served with malted coffee to dip in. It’s a good one to share and hit the spot for a sweet ending, even if they aren’t mind blowing or anything.

We thoroughly enjoyed the meal and felt like with three appetizers between us, we had more than enough food. I am imagining the entrées are huge. I was a little concerned with their business though—the restaurant was pretty empty (including the patio) and a friend who went recently on a Saturday said the same thing. Our server, while exceptionally knowledgeable about the food and the chef, was almost over the top in the amount of information he gave (it was a situation in which I am pretty sure he assumed we knew nothing about food which I find annoying). But the food alone will make us return for sure.

Meridian

5694 N. Meridian

Indy 46208

317-466-1111

www.meridianonmeridian.com

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Shanghai Lil--Revisit

2:49 AM | Labels: Asian, Castleton Area Restaurants, Chinese restaurants, Independent Restaurants, Northside Restaurant, Shanghai Lil

Shanghai Lil had been a fairly regular place for us (particularly for carry out and dim sum), but for whatever reason, we hadn’t been in ages (last time I posted about it was 2009, holy moley). One of the reasons we don’t go a lot is because my son is allergic to a whole host of nuts, which pretty much rules out Chinese food because of all the nuts used-- I fear that there is a lot of cross-contamination going on with woks, etc. It is just too scary. But the other night he was spending the night at a friend’s, so we took our daughter and went.

I noticed a change on this trip—there are no longer any of the Japanese offerings that they used to have. I always wondered about this, because we never ordered Japanese, and I never saw people eating it. That has got to be expensive to keep up the fresh fish angle (for sushi) if no one is ordering it. We went with a couple of things we have had before and a couple of new things as well.

We started with the stuffed eggplant ($6) and the dumplings in chili oil ($6). The eggplant was a new dish for us—kind of interesting. It is slices of eggplant stuffed with minced pork and tempura fried. It had a garlic ginger sauce. We liked it—a lot of stuff going on here, but the more we ate it, the more we enjoyed it. It was really hot and freshly fried, so it was nice and crunchy on the outside, even with the sauce drizzled on top. It is probably really more of a pork dish than an eggplant dish though—there was a lot of pork stuffed in there. I liked the sauce—it had a nice flavor and wasn’t too sweet.

The dumplings in chili oil are an old standby (one is already missing in the photo), and I am not sure why, but they just weren’t as good as I remembered. Maybe they weren’t made as freshly as other times I have had them or something. They just seemed a little bland and the insides (that contain pork, shrimp, and scallions) didn’t seem to have enough seasoning or something. They have a “spicy sweet” chili oil that was fine, but wasn’t saving the dumplings.

For a main dish, hubby wanted to try the pepper-salt flounder ($18) to see if it was as good as some salt and pepper fish we had in Chicagoawhile back. This is a dish that doesn’t really have a sauce—the fish is just lightly fried and has a very distinct salt and pepper flavor in the crust. There are chilies and scallions chopped and served with it. It was very good. The flounder was nice and tender and the seasoning on the crust while simple, was really good (salty and peppery, go figure). I think we may have even liked it better than the Chicago version. The crust was a little crispier, and it had more of a battered kind of feel than the cornmeal crust that we had before. Not the healthiest choice, but darn good.

My daughter got the crispy shrimp rolls ($4.50) and chicken fried rice ($11). I have had the shrimp rolls a lot before and they are pretty basic (a shrimp wrapped in a spring roll wrapper and fried). There’s a little seasoning in their (chives I think) and they are nice and crunchy, but nothing amazing. Their fried rice is pretty good—not a ton of veggies which my daughter likes. In fact she ate it for several days after for breakfast and was very content.

I still think Shanghai Lil is one of the better Chinese places we have on the Northeast side. It isn’t cheap, but the ingredients are fresh—I feel confident ordering seafood there, which I can’t always say about some Chinese places. And they have dim sum for lunch---and now I am craving that again. But remind me again, what are your favorite places for Chinese?

Shanghai Lil

8505 Keystone Crossing

Indy 46240

317/205-9335

www.shanghai-lil.com

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Nickel Plate

3:18 AM | Labels: Fishers Restaurants, lunch places, nickel plate, Northside Restaurant, pork tenderloin

My Dad sent me a message the other day telling me how much he liked the tenderloin at Nickel Plate, and so have several of you, so I figured I would give it a try. This was the place that we walked into for lunch at the same time a group of people were all leaving complaining about a lot of stuff, particularly that the beer wasn’t cold. Probably not a good sign, but we continued on because that is my duty right?

Anyway, the kids were happy to sit outside and they have a decent-sized area outside although it is very close to the road and a little noisy. Our server was prompt and brought us our drinks. I have to say, hubby’s beer was in fact not very cold. He was annoyed enough that he reminded me to mention it here, so there you go. The kids both ordered burgers ($4.49 each with cheese), and hubby and I split the tenderloin sandwich ($7.99) and the fish and chips ($7.99), which seems to be our standard in a place like this. I don’t know, easy to compare and judge the differences I guess.

I also had a house salad to start (actually subbed it for the fries in the fish and chips for $2). It was your standard salad with a lot of shredded cheese on top. I got the blue cheese dressing and it was pretty good, but not one that stuck out in my mind for any reason. I wanted a little salad and it met my needs. It was mainly iceberg, but had the crunch I wanted. Honestly I didn’t need all the cheese on top, but my kids liked it.

So the best thing on the table that day was definitely the tenderloin sandwich. The bun was good and soft, and not too big (although toasted would have been nice) and the tenderloin met the desired qualifications—it wasn’t too thin or too dry, but the breading for me wasn’t my favorite of the ones I have had. It was more, well, bready I guess than some. I liked that they gave you really thinly sliced red onions to put on top and included the mayo on the side. It was a good sandwich. Was it the best I have had? No. I would put it squarely in the middle of the pack, but worth ordering.

As for the fish fillets, they didn’t fare as well I am afraid. I am not sure what it was, but the fish just really had very little flavor. Unfortunately it was also kind of dry—I think the breading was the same as what was on the pork but without any moisture or flavor in the protein, it just wasn’t working for us. We left quite a bit of it. I did like the rather chunky tartar sauce served alongside and I am not always a fan of tartar sauces. It seemed homemade and had some heft to it.

The kids were happy with their burgers, and the baked beans are now my daughter’s favorite. So naturally, they want to go back even though it wouldn’t be at the top of my list. Oh well, my Dad loved it too so maybe they can go with Grandma and Grandpa.

Nickel Plate

8654 E. 116^thStreet

Fishers, IN 46038

317/841-2888

www.nickelplatebarandgrill.com

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Keystone Sports Review

2:20 AM | Labels: Adult-only restaurants, Independent Restaurants, Northside Restaurant, Pizza, pork tenderloin

I keep randomly hearing about this place from different people recommending different things (and all warning me about the smoke). I finally got around to checking it out with my friend wibia for lunch the other day (hubby cannot tolerate smoke at all). So some people told me about the pizza, some the wings with blue cheese, and others just the place in general. So I tried to hit as many highlights as possible.

I thought it was awesome that they had fresh, homemade fried mushrooms on the menu (I love them so, but so rarely are they actually made fresh) so we shared a half order of them with blue cheese on the side (see, getting to try the blue cheese too) ($3.75). I liked them. It is a beer batter, and while not as sort of puffy as I normally sort of think of when I order something beer battered, it was tasty—there was some decent seasoning in there. They were really super hot though (as in, temperature). Wowza. The blue cheese was good—the sauce part was lighter than a lot of them (more sour cream in the ratio perhaps) and there were some nice chunks of blue cheese in it. Kind of hard to dip the mushrooms into though, because of all the hunks of cheese—you sort of had to scoop some on top of the mushroom.

A couple of people have also mentioned their pizza to me when I go on one of my frequent pizza kicks—so I thought I needed to try it. Besides, it isn’t far from my house; I could probably add it to the carry out rotation if I wanted. I got the small (as in personal sized) pizza with mushrooms and red onions (my standard combo, especially with thin crust pizza) (about $4.75). Ehhh, I don’t know—the toppings were good and they put the right amount on there, but the crust was really pretty soggy. It was really honestly hard to tell if this could be a good pizza because the middle was so soft. The flavors were fine—there was nothing that was putting me off the rest of it, just nothing that wowed me about it either. To be fair, hubby did heat up the rest of it later in the toaster oven and got it nice and crisp and thought it was pretty good (although like I said, he subscribes to the theory that there is no bad pizza, only better pizza).

Wibia had a special club sandwich, only made with a fried pork tenderloin patty in place of the ham (nice idea huh?). I always find club sandwiches kind of goofy because they are so big, and I just tried a bit of the tenderloin part—it was very good. Not too thin, not too fat, and still decently moist. It was the same batter as was on the mushrooms as well. I think we agreed that fried stuff is probably the way to go here—they do a nice job with it. I think a regular pork tenderloin would probably be a better bet, and easier to eat, but the club was an interesting take on it.

I have to say, I was a little intimidated to walk in the place just because I had no idea what to expect—there are all these vertical blinds sort of haphazardly covering the window, and honestly, it didn’t look like a place that I would think, “hey! Let’s go there!” But as soon as someone mentions to me that something might be good to eat, I am willing to go just about anywhere. I would hate to think I am missing out on something. And actually when you walked in, it is a pretty normal place—a bar in the back and a bunch of booth in the front. The server was really nice and attentive and she refilled our drinks whenever she noticed they were low. The downside of this place is definitely the smoking. Everyone in there was smoking except for us. I did have the good sense to at least sit at the table next to the open front door, but it still was the worst part of the experience. But I guess as of June 1^st, pretty much all bars will be smoke free so if you are thinking about giving this place a try, I would just wait til then. Although, I would be interested to see if their business changes after the smoking ban passes. Anyhow, who has been there? What do you like to eat there?

Keystone Sports Review

5602 North Keystone Avenue

Indy 46220

317/251-9902

http://www.keystonesportsreview.com/

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Movable Feast

3:17 AM | Labels: Independent Restaurants, lunch places, Moveable Feast, Northside Restaurant

So this place is right by my house and for some reason, I just haven’t been in. There seems to be something about proximity to my house that makes me not go to places, not sure why. One of my good friends, and my Pilates trainer, is a little obsessed with this place and eats there several times a week—so maybe that is why I haven’t eaten there, too worried it might be too healthy. (Only kidding. Well, sort of.) Anyhow, I managed to actually get there a couple of times in the last couple of weeks, so I have included both visits in this post.

The first time I stopped in and grabbed lunch the other day after seeing some discussion on twitter about a crab melts ($6). For some reason, that just sounded appealing to me that day, even though I am normally somewhat suspicious of crab items not sold in a seafood restaurant. And it wasn’t what I was expecting (I was expecting some sort of crab something with a piece of cheese melted on top), but it was pretty darn tasty (apparently there is a loyal following for the sandwich). It was multigrain bread (nice bread by the way) with this crab salad kind of mix with several kinds of cheese, but mixed in, as well as some seasoning—Old Bay type flavors maybe? I am not totally sure. It was warm, and it was filling, but not ridiculously large—you know, it was a normal sandwich size (is there such a thing anymore?). I can see how people become attached.

I also had a cup of the chicken spring roll soup. I had no idea going in what this was going to be, but I was intrigued by the name. I wasn’t as much of a fan of the soup, but it was unique. It was a chicken broth type base with lots of shredded cabbage and onions and noodles made of Asian mushroom pasta. Honestly, wasn’t exactly sure what they were made of when I first tasted the noodles, and there was something about the texture of them that put me off (they were a little too dense). But I love a place that makes interesting kinds of soups in flavors other than tomato basil (is it just me or do you want to scream when you hear that is the soup of the day?).

On my second visit, I went with the sandwich special of the day as well. It was Cajun chicken with guacamole and cheddar cheese on multi-grain bread ($6). It was good—very warm and comforting. The chicken was nicely spiced with Cajun seasonings—but it wasn’t too hot. The chicken itself was cut into smaller slices/chunks which I really, really appreciate. I hate a chicken sandwich that is a whole chicken breast on bread. Here’s why: a) they are always, always dry and overcooked (impossible to get it cooked all the way through and not dry it out); b) there isn’t enough seasoning because it is only on the outside; and c) they end up so fat, they are hard to eat. This was done just right, with bite sized pieces that were all well seasoned and tender. The guacamole is homemade and was really fresh (easy to see if guac has been sitting around too long). My only complaint is it could have used a little more seasoning in it. Not that I mind just avocado—it is one of my favorite foods. And they were very generous with it. The sandwich was warm and the cheese was nicely melted. And again, it was a properly sized portion (in my opinion).

I got a side of potato salad with it and it was unique and tasted good. I like the way they don’t use mayo, but yogurt I believe, and it had a nice dill flavor. The sauce had more of a tangy flavor than potato salad usually does and I liked that. The potato chunks were also cooked right—not hard and not overly mushy. They also gave me a bite of the chicken salad to try and it was similar in flavor—same sort of yogurt type base with some crunch from some celery and similar dill flavor. I liked it and would try a whole chicken salad entrée from there based on my bite. And I am normally not a chicken salad person (no fruit in mine please). I also tried a chocolate chip cookie ($1) that was just as they should be when you make them at home—gooey and soft.

The food is homemade and you can tell. I can see how you could easily eat here a lot because it is so comforting. There are unique touches in what they are doing but it also feels very familiar at the same time. It's like what you might make yourself if you had some time (and some talent). Not super complicated and fairly healthy, but also with thoughts toward making the flavors a little more than your usual chicken salad or whatever. And the portions (and prices) are right—the bread tastes good but doesn’t overwhelm the stuff inside it. The couple that runs it is very nice and friendly. You can see why the place has been around for 14 years—good comfort food at a decent price. And in an area with not so many good options for lunch. Have you guys been?

Movable Feast

5741 East 71^st Street

Indy 46220

317/577-9901

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Pancho's

3:27 AM | Labels: Fishers Restaurants, Independent Restaurants, lunch places, Mexican restaurants, Northside Restaurant, Pancho's

The other day, I needed a quick lunch and stopped into Pancho’s based on the fact that I have heard a lot of good things about it ever since I started writing this blog. I got two tacos—one fish and one pastor and a side of chips (you have to order them additionally) (with a soda it was around $7). You order at the register, but then they prepare the food and call your number when it’s done. Then there is a salsa bar where you can doctor up your food to your taste. There is much more than salsa there though—although there are several different kinds ranging in spiciness. The bar also includes chopped onions, chopped cilantro, lime wedges, pico de gallo and a tasty avocado crema.

My favorite item was probably the fish taco actually—it was sliced deep fried fish in two soft corn tortillas. That was pretty much it as far as the way they served it. I added cilantro and onions and a ton of lime and some of the avocado crema. It was seriously good with all my added flavor. I really liked the crunch from the fish (which was also quite hot and fresh) and the tortillas were great—warm and soft, but didn’t fall apart when you ate them. I could go back and get another one of these right now I think.

The pastor was also good. And in this taco they give you a ton more meat than in the fish taco. The small dice of pork was well seasoned throughout and had been sautéed a bit to give it all a little crispy edge. An interesting component to this one was that there were also some sautéed onions in the mix as well as tiny dices of sautéed pineapple which I have never had in a taco before (and apparently based on some quick research, is often included as a part of the traditional marinade/accompaniments for pastor). While pineapple is not traditionally my favorite flavor, I enjoyed the slightly sweet/slightly sour acidic flavor with the savory and tender pork pieces. And I really liked that they were so small that they didn’t overwhelm the taste of everything together (which I think pineapple can pretty easily do). The bits were firm, almost as firm as the pork, and the same size. It really made for an interesting combo. I also added raw onions and cilantro as well as a bit of the green salsa from the bar. Like I said, this one had a lot more meat to it—so much that it spilled out from the taco quite a bit.

I liked the chips just okay. I appreciated that they are frying their own and they had that kind of bubbly texture to them, but they needed to be salted for one (which I did), but they really just didn’t seem to have anything exciting going for them. Maybe it was partly because I got a bowl of the mild salsa (which was very mild) to dip them into and I probably should’ve gone with a spicier one. They also were a little too greasy—many of the chips still had visibly shiny oil on them. They certainly give you a generous amount of them though.

There are a lot of interesting things on the menu and I know a lot of you guys like this place. So tell me what you order when you go there.

Pancho’s

9658 Allisonville Road

Fishers, IN 46250

317/585-8427

http://www.panchosmexicantaqueria.com/

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Kona Jack's - Revisit

3:09 AM | Labels: Independent Restaurants, Kona Jack's, Northside Restaurant, seafood restaurants, sushi

So the other night we were trying to figure out a place that we could meet everyone in my family’s random cravings at the moment and decided to give Kona Jack’s another try for dinner. We have been there for dinner a long time ago, way before blogging and I have reviewed it before for lunch(and have been a few other times for lunch as well). And if you saw my post about the fish market, you will see it is a place I frequent quite a bit, even if not for a meal there (most of the fish that we cook at home comes from Kona Jack’s).

I wanted sushi-ish kind of food and went with a couple things from that part of the menu—the tuna tartare (have I mentioned that I have a slight addiction to good tuna tartar?) ($12) and the shrimp tempura roll ($9). The tuna tartar was just how I liked it—lightly seasoned with soy, ginger, green onions, fine shreds of radish and cilantro. They served it with crispy wonton chips. It was a lot like my all time favorite tartar from H2O Sushi, only a larger dice of fish. The fish was impeccably fresh (as you would hope from such a place). It is a pretty generous portion and even though hubby ate some of it, I didn’t finish it all.

I enjoyed the roll too—I just wanted something simple and fairly small since I was getting the tartar. It fit the bill well—it was shrimp tempura and avocado wrapped in soy paper (which is how I tend to prefer it and how they serve this roll) with a drizzle of “kona” sauce and a drizzle of eel sauce. The kona sauce was like a spicy mayo and the eel sauce is a slightly sweet soy-based sauce. There was just enough of it for each piece and I liked that the pieces were not so big that it was hard to eat in one bite. The bad part of my meal, which carried through a lot of the evening, was that the service was pretty slow. Our server was super nice and apologetic, but the food took quite a long time to get. Unfortunately, this left the tempura shrimp a little less than crunchy. The rolls would have been so much better if we had gotten them immediately after they were made.

Unfortunately, this was true for hubby and my son’s dinner as well, which was a surf and turf combo with filet and king crab legs ($45) (they split it). The steak was actually really pretty good considering it’s a seafood place, and was perfectly medium rare, which was also pretty amazing considering it had sat a little too long too I think. The crab, which they cut in half length-wise, was a little dried out because of this as well. Not that this stopped my son from eating every bite (hubby had to fight him to get some of it). It also came with a soup or salad and hubby got the clam chowder. It was pretty good clam chowder and I am kind of particular about clam chowder. Way too many large hunks of carrot for my taste, but the flavor was good—not too runny with some nice chunks of clam and potato.

Overall, the meal was disappointing because of the fact that it took so long and so clearly had been sitting a little too long before it got served to us. If it had been delivered quickly, it probably would have been a really good meal (especially for me—I really liked the flavors of what I ordered). The restaurant was really busy, but when I asked if that was unusual we were told, no, not really. And when I have been in at lunch time, it always seems to have a decent crowd so I think they are fairly used to being busy. We did stop at the fish market on our way out a pick up some nice trout that we had for dinner the following night, which turned out quite well if I do say so myself. We will certainly return at some point, but not sure I will get hubby back there for awhile anyway.

Kona Jack’s

9419 North Meridian Street

Indy 46260

317/843-1609

www.konajacksindy.com

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Ale Emporium

3:29 AM | Labels: Adult-only restaurants, Ale Emporium, lunch places, Northside Restaurant, Pizza

After hearing about it from several of you, I met my friend wibia (us bloggers have to stick together after all) for lunch at Ale Emporium so that I could finally try their pizza (apparently I am on a pizza quest now). They have some nice lunch specials with a slice of pizza and a salad, but I really wanted to try the deep dish pizza (that’s what you guys keep telling me anyway) so we ordered a pizza to share (you can’t get the deep dish with the lunch special).

Ale Emporium is an interesting place—much bigger inside than I thought looking at it and extremely casual—it is essentially a bar (don’t bring the kids) with lots of high bar tables. Thankfully they have made one large side of the room non-smoking.

I can’t talk about too much because really, all we had was the pizza (well, and a couple of beers, I mean it is called Ale Emporium right?)—it takes awhile to make a whole deep dish pizza, but I was expecting that—and actually it didn’t take as long as what I would have thought. Also, our server was attentive and helpful even though it was her first day.

So on to the pizza, I got spinach and mushroom on my half (which for some reason I have decided is the classic deep dish toppings for me--probably because of Zachary’s pizza in Berkeley). Anyway, it is certainly generous, we shared a small ($16.50) (of course, he had to have sausage on his half, claiming my choices were too girly) and it was a lot of food (at least for me). There were 6 pieces total. So overall, I liked it o.k. It was a little more gooey and sloppy than I thought it would be—but the crust was strong enough to hold up to the toppings. I guess the deep dish pies I have had in the past were more self contained when you put a piece on your plate. This one kind of oozed all over. The crust has a sort of almost thick pastry-like texture and I liked the slight flakiness. I was a little disappointed that there wasn’t more spinach and mushrooms in there—clearly the spinach was just some leaves thrown in, not a substantial amount. I couldn’t really taste either of my chosen toppings that much. What you tasted was the pretty thick crust and the significant amount of cheese and to a lesser extent, the sauce, but it was a good sauce with decent seasoning. And at least the crust was hearty enough to stand up to it. Wibia did say that he thought the deep dish pizza was better when it was bigger—that the proportions were better, and I can see that as a possibility. Although, I would need a small army to eat an even bigger one.

I am intrigued by the thin crust too though—because the sauce and crust flavors were generally good. I am curious to know what the thin crust is like. Who has had it? And which do you like better?

Ale Emporium

8617 Allisonville

Indy 46202

317/842-1333

http://ale-emporium.com/

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Pizzology - Revisit

3:59 AM | Labels: Carmel, Independent Restaurants, Neal Brown, Northside Restaurant, Pizza, Pizzology

We hadn’t been to Pizzology and ages, and had never taken the kids there. We had recently had some mediocre pizza experiences and wanted to go back and see if Pizzology could remedy that situation. It was Friday, and we didn’t want to get stuck in a wait (like I said, we had the kids with us), so we went on the early side. By 6:00, there was a substantial wait, and when we left it was packed in there with people waiting to sit down.

I was tempted by the Northside Nights menu—it was a great deal, one of the few places that really seems like a bargain (I like that they include 2 glasses of Prosecco with the meal), but as soon as our server told us about the special gnocchi ($12), we knew were getting it. It was their version of a carbonara-- black pepper and parsley gnocchi that were seared and served with seared sliced green olives, and little crispy dices of pancetta. The whole thing was topped with parmesan and an egg yolk. As soon as we got it, we broke the egg into it making a creamy, eggy, sauce. I like carbonara in general, but I loved the slices of green olive in this to give it that extra slightly briny flavor that rounded out all the rich ingredients. I think I liked this more than hubby though, who thought they egg was just a little too much for him, and made the dish just a little too eggy. We also got an order of breadsticks ($5)—there were 4 of them, and they were clearly being made in house of the same dough the pizza crust is made with. They were slightly charred and had that lovely chewy, yeasty flavor I really like. The kids really liked them. I also liked that they gave you not only a tomato sauce, but a cream based (and slightly cheesy) Mornay type sauce as well. But honestly, with the sprinkling of Parmesan on top of them, they were good on their own as well.

Hubby and I split “The Saint” pizza ($13) which is a white pizza (no red sauce) with roasted wild mushrooms, onions, peppadew peppers, provolone cheese and sea salt. We enjoyed it and the crust was cooked perfectly. I think hubby missed his red sauce a little though. I liked the salty kick from, well, the salt, and the peppers and onions added a little spice to the rest. The provolone was a little heavy in spots, but I loved the mushrooms—there were plenty of them and they really had a nice deep roasted flavor. The crust is the thing here, and we appreciated it so much more after eating some not so flavorful crusts elsewhere lately

The kids just had a red pizza with mozzarella (we couldn’t get them to vary) ($11). Honestly, I think I would just get the 4 cheese for them next time and not tell them, because this one wasn’t quite cheesy enough for them or me. But again, the crust was cooked perfectly, and other than wishing it had a little more cheese, it was pretty much perfectly executed. Exciting? No. But that is my kids and food for you.

We also got the special dessert form the Northside Nights menu—the zeppole ($5). I found these kind of addicting once I started eating them. They were basically another version of the dough, in smaller pieces than the breadsticks that are baked and then covered in cinnamon and sugar and a bit of honey. Again, I really like the flavor of the dough anyway, and then you go and make it sweet and you can’t really go wrong. It is certainly a large enough portion to share among several people as well. Sadly, they couldn’t guarantee they were nut free (not sure why) so my son couldn’t eat them. Apparently they were a hit in the restaurant though, and have since been added to the regular menu.

Anyway, it was nice to go back to a pizza place and have a good solid meal—like I said I have had some not so impressive pizza lately, and this redeemed my faith.

Pizzology

13190 Hazel Dell Parkway

Carmel, IN 46032

317-844-2554

www.pizzologyindy.com

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