Chicago Hot Dog Co.

8320 N. Michigan Rd.

Indianapolis, IN 46268

(317) 808 - 5980

Chicago Hot Dog Co.

As you must know by now, I lived in Chicago for 2 years after college before moving back here. I always get pretty excited when a new Chicago style restaurant opens in Indy. Recently I had heard a rumor that Fat Dan's in Broad Ripple is moving to SoBro and becoming more of a restaurant/pub with multiple beer taps. When I heard that Chicago Hot Dog Co. was opening near work, it took no less than a few weeks for me to stop by and try it. The restaurant is located just south of 86th St on Michigan Rd. in front of the License Branch. I really hope that this place is successful as this area has become a black hole for restaurants. Just within the past year or so another hot dog place has opened and closed across the street from Chicago Hot Dog Co. The restaurant was pretty busy at lunch time. They have an order window and a pick up window. The staff was very friendly and patient. The menu consists of hot dogs, burgers, chicken sandwiches, Italian Beef, and salads. I think all the main menu items can be prepared Gluten Free. The decor in the restaurant brings back memories of my days in Chicago. It has pictures of the skyline, the El, and just has this feel that you are getting working class food in a working class restaurant. They have a good price point on their menu items. I got a Chicago Dog, Italian beef, and a soda for around $10.

I compare all my Chicago dogs and Italian Beef sandwiches to my favorite Chicago Style restaurant, Portillo's. I have found places around here that do a comparable Chicago Dog, but nobody comes close to the Portillo's Italian Beef. The Chicago Hot Dog Co. ranks up there with the Chicago Dog. So the restaurant does a justice to the Chicago Dog. What's in a Chicago Dog you ask? Well it starts with a poppy seed bun, then a Vienna Beef hot dog, covered in onion, relish, sport peppers, tomato, celery salt, mustard and a dill pickle. People think that it is overkill, but I think all these flavors work well together. A Chicago dog plays with all your tastebuds, with its mix of sweet, salty, bitter, and sour flavors. Personally I eat the dill pickle first because it just gets too messy. The only place I could find error in this hot dog was that someone was a little heavy handed in the celery salt. You just want to taste a hint of celery salt as it can be overpowering. The Vienna beef hot dog had a nice snap to it. I will come back for the hot dogs. Back in my heyday I could put down a Chicago dog, an Italian Beef, and some krinkle fries. This time around I had to try both a dog and the Italian Beef, not enough room for the fries. The Italian beef was pretty good. I always order mine with hot giardiniera (blend of hot peppers and veggies). You can get the sandwich prepared dry, wet, or dipped. I went with dipped this time. This was probably another mistake I made. They use a crusty French bread as the base of this sandwich. The au jus helps break down the bread a little bit so it isn't as tough to eat. I should have gone with wet instead. The dipped style left the sandwich a bit too dry for me. Trust me, this is not a dainty sandwich. You will get a little messy. The key to eating an Italian beef sandwich is to lean over your plate a little bit so you don't drip that wonderful au jus on yourself. The last thing you want to do is head back to the office with a nice au jus stain on your shirt. The beef was pretty tasty. It was tender, sliced thin, and had great flavor. They use a good blend of spices. I could taste salt, pepper, oregano and some other flavors I could not pinpoint. The hot peppers add a little heat and some crunch to the sandwich. If you recall my Detour post, they did not give me enough giardineira. I will give the beef another go round one day, but the hot dog was the best part of my meal.

 

"The only time to EAt diet food, is when you are waiting for the steak to cook." - Julia Child

The Friendly Tavern

290 S. Main Street

Zionsville, IN 46077

(317) 873-5772

The Friendly Tavern

 

My coworkers were kind enough to go out with me to lunch on my birthday. I was craving wings and I had not been to The Friendly Tavern in a few years, probably since college. This post is another semi-dedication to @ArtWalter to who makes The Friendly, a "must eat restaurant" when he is home. Since our palettes are pretty much the same, I had to ask for a recommendation. I knew one was going to be the wings, the other suggestion was the shaved prime rib sandwich. I'll get to the food later, but. There are essentially two dining areas, one with the bar, and an elevated area with larger tables. Our service was okay, but a little on the slow side. I guess that would be our fault for having 8 people come to lunch during peak hours. It was better the first time, the second time it took a while to get our checks. The food was so good, it overshadowed the lackluster service.

As I mentioned we got the wings. We went with two orders for the table the first time we went. We got "The Friendly's Famous Wings" and the Honey Apple BBQ Chicken wings. Both wings were superb. @ArtWalter was not wrong when he said that these were the best wings he has ever eaten. The Famous Wings are breaded and un-sauced. You get to choose 2 sauces. We went with the hot sauce and bleu cheese. Even without sauce, these wings amazing. I do like how you get to control the sauce. Often times the sauce will take away from the crispy wing, but not these. Each wing had plenty of meat, was seasoned well, and there were a copious amount of them. Both orders were enough for the table to have a fair share. The Honey Apple wings were pre-sauced, but they were still very crispy. This was a good contrast to the spicy wings. The sauce was unlike any other type of BBQ sauce. It was sweet, tart, and very mild. This is perfect for those who do not like heat, as these have no heat. The wings are what prompted Round 2 the following week. My coworker, Matt, and I were so spellbound by these wings, we ONLY order the wings. Maybe I just can't eat like I used to, but a whole order of wings is pushing it for one person. I think we both agreed that it would be best to split an order the next time through.

I will forever trust Artie when it comes to food. The prime rib sandwich was a piece of beauty. Although I find Adam Richman annoying, I had been watching his "Best Sandwich in America" show. I am going to steal his rating scale for this sandwich, his "B.I.T.E. Scale" if you will. The "B" stands for the bread. It was crusty, yet soft, the two things I look for in bread. The "I" stands for interior. There was a good amount of shaved prime rib. It was so thin that each bite was tender. The grilled onions and mushrooms added good earthy flavor. You can't have a good steak sandwich without melted cheese. The cheddar bound everything together, encapsulating the ingredients so each bite contained all the aforementioned goodness. There was a side of horseradish sauce, I only used it sparingly. I would have preferred an au jus of some sort, because near the end of the sandwich, it was a little dry. The "T" stands for taste. This was a very tasty sandwich. I prefer it over any other steak sandwich I have ever eaten, your move Penn Station... The "E" stands for eating experience, and I have already spoken to how the service was slow, but I will not let that keep me going back.

I promised Artie that he would be able to guest post on The Friendly, so be on the lookout for the first entry not written by your's truly. He was also the most recent winner of "Lunch on EAting Indy"

"Everything I EAt has been proved by some doctor or other to be a deadly poison, and everything I don't EAt has been proved to be indispensable for life. But I go marching on" - George Bernard Shaw

Cafe St. Tropez

110 W. Main St. STE140

Carmel, IN, 46032

(317) 581-9559

Cafe St. Tropez

I want to first explain why it has been so long since I last posted an entry. I have been spending my nights coaching high school track. It has been the most rewarding and fulfilling thing I have ever done. It has also taken up most of my free time. Our season is coming to an end, so expect to hear much more from me. I also ended up buying a Groupon for Foodie Indy. It is a deck of playing cards with $10 gift cards to 52 local restaurants. You have to spend a minimum of $30 at each restaurant, but dinner for 2 usually ends up costing that much anyways. This is going to give me a larger base of restaurants to choose from. Maybe I'll start treating my followers to meals from the deck of cards, as the cards expire at the end of the year.

Since I failed to blog in a two week span, one of my followers, Melissa, won a meal on EAting Indy. We went to Cafe St. Tropez in downtown Carmel. It is located in between Bub's and Detour, overlooking the Monon. They have a little patio, but it was a cool evening so we ate inside. The restaurant is not very big. The interior is kind of a blend between a coffee house and a quaint cafe. The decor was nice, somewhat fancy. I felt a little underdressed as I came after a workout and was wearing sweat pants. It didn't really matter as we were the only ones in the restaurant. Near the end of our meal, a couple walked in, but it was just 4 of us in the restaurant for the majority of our dinner. Our service was average to good, but it is hard to ignore the only patrons in your establishment. The food came out quickly and our waitress was very knowledgeable about the menu. Not to downplay her, but the menu only consists of appetizers, paninis, and a small breakfast menu. I was torn between the egg salad and the chicken panini. Our waitress recommended the panini. Price was the biggest issue. My sandwich was $10.50 and it only came with a salad. If I am going to pay that much for a sandwich, I at least want to feel satisfied. They also offered a dinner menu with a couple full size entrees, but those were priced at $19.99. I was still hungry after the meal. Luckily we went to Huddles Frozen Yogurt afterwards.

The panini was on sourdough bread. It was made up of chicken breast, taleggio cheese, greens, and a pesto sauce. It was very fresh and did not lack taste. The cheese was smooth and smokey. The bread was perfectly toasted. The pesto kept the chicken from drying out. The salad left something to be desired. It was just field greens, tomatoes, with white balsamic dressing. I just thought it was pretty boring. I probably will not make it back to St. Tropez Cafe as I could get more for my money elsewhere.

 

Sleep 'til your hungry, EAt 'til you're sleepy."

Lil' Guys Sandwich Shop - Chicago, IL

2010 N. Damen
Chicago, IL
773.394.6900
Lil' Guys Sandwich Shop

Of all the sandwich shops in the city of Chicago, Lil' Guys is my favorite. It is the home to the second best Reuben I have ever eaten. There are two locations, but I have only eaten at the one located in Bucktown. The first time I ate there was when AHG came to visit within the first couple months of living there. I should probably explain that it is also a pizza joint, My Pi. They have pretty good thin crust pizza which is not as common as you would think, as Chicago is known for their Deep Dish style pizza. The first time I went I ordered a slice of pizza, as we were hungover and it was a better option than a sandwich. Luckily I went back for the sandwiches. Since I like this restaurant so much, it was part of my victory lap of restaurants of Bucktown with ABW and WJB. This is one of my favorite stories from living up there. I promise I'll get to the food afterwards. When ABW moved up to Chicago, we decided to go to dinner one night, and we heard there were some decent Mexican restaurants not to far from me. The thing is, there are literally 3 Mexican restaurants within 100 yards of each other: Arturo's Tacos, Lazo's Tacos, and Marisco's Cancun. When we got to the corner of Western and Armitage, we walked by each one about 5 times. We had no idea which one was the good one. Arturo's was too busy, Lazo's looked kind of dirty, and Marisco's was empty, but it looked the nicest. We chose that one. I think it was empty because it was terrible. The only other time I have had worse Mexican was here in Indy at El Sol de Tala. We came to find out that Arturo's was the best of the 3. So on my Tour de Bucktown, we started at Lil Guys. We each ordered the Reuben and we made it a meal with pasta salad and a drink. I was pretty full after, but ABW insisted we keep on with our tour. We then walked to Arturo's. I ordered a Chicken taco, as I was pretty full. WJB got a taco and ABW got a taco and a torta, a Mexican sandwich. Now there is a McDonald's across the street. ABW told us that he recently took down a double cheese in 30 seconds. We thought it would be a good idea to see him try the feat again. He finished in 47 seconds. On the way home, we stopped at the Map Room, and had a Bell's Oberon to top it off. That was the most food, in the most different restaurants I have ever seen someone consume in my life. And it was an amazing way for me to bid farewell to my home for 2 years.

Now for the good stuff. The thing about the Reubens at Lil' Guys is they have two kinds. One is called the Reubenesque, a typical Reuben you can get any day of the week. I have had it and it can hold its own. I usually wait until Fridays or Saturdays, as this is the only day you can order the Ultimate Homemade Reuben. Every time I go there, I want to move the Ultimate Reuben to number 1 on the list. It is made with made from scratch Rye bread. It is a Rye flat bread, and as you can see from the picture, it looks like a taco when it is all said and done. The flat bread is soft, but has a crusty outside. I love how it is made to order. You really don't see that anywhere else. You have to give them 15 minutes to make the sandwich, for that reason only. I recommend calling it in before you go there. The corned beef is cured and cooked on site. The corned beef is the reason I would move it to #1. Of all the Reuben's I have ever eaten, this is the only one where the meat is so tender, it literally melts in your mouth. The beef is sliced very thin, essentially shredded. The seasoning of the beef shines through as well. Every bite has a good mix of salt, pepper, and other spices they use for curing (usually mustard seed, ginger, juniper berries, sugar, cloves, and ginger). The Reuben also has sauerkraut and swiss cheese, 1000 island served on the side. This time my brother and I decided to split the Reuben and the Egg-Salad-A-Rama. It is the best egg salad I have ever had. The texture is what does it for me. It is light and fluffy, so it is a good option if you are craving something on the lighter side. It is served on Hawaiian bread, which is what they call their house bread. It is about a quarter of a loaf of Hawaiian bread, so it is a very generous portion. It is topped with Romaine lettuce, tomato and onion. They have pretty good side dish options. The only one I haven't liked is the Vinaigrette potato salad. I almost always go with the pasta salad. It has Kalamata olives, feta cheese, and red onion. The sauce is olive oil based but the flavor mostly comes from the other ingredients marinating in the oil.

I have eaten there the past two weeks and nothing has changed. The ONLY problem I have with this place is there isn't a whole lot of places to sit. They have a couple tables outside, but they are for two people. There is a bar top with about 5 stools and a table or two inside. We were lucky enough to live close enough to walk there. There are about 7 spots in the parking lot, and they are all a tight squeeze. I have seen numerous cars back into the lamp post. Since Chicago is only about 3 hours away, I know many of you frequent the city. I highly recommend stopping by sometime.

BRU Burger Bar

410 Massachusettes Ave

Indianapolis, IN 46202

(317) 635-4BRU(4278)

BRU Burger Bar

I've come to the realization that I go on food kicks. After my delicious burger at Twenty Tap, I followed that with trips to Boogie Burger and BRU. All three were equally amazing, but unique in their own right. It would be hard to pick a favorite of the three. I will say that the service at BRU was spectacular. Our waitress, Jackson, was happy, friendly, and helpful from the moment we sat down. She asked if we had ever eaten here before and the proceeded to explain the menu. "We are known for burgers and beer. All the meat is organically farmed and we strive to use the freshest ingredients." The only question I had about the menu was; which is better, fries or onion rings? she said "They are both good but, our onion rings are cooked to order. We have slices of onions sitting in a bath of buttermilk, then they are hand breaded and fried." I was sold. We did not have to wait very long for our food to come out either. Jackson would come check on us to see how we were doing and kept our refills coming. (I opted out on the beer because they were out of the only beer I wanted.) The restaurant itself is moderately sized. The only other time I had been was when we stopped in during the Super Bowl, but it was a 2 hour wait. On a Monday during dinner, we came right in and sat down. I know weekends are pretty crowded and you will have to wait to be seated at a table. The good thing about BRU is that they have a huge bar. It spans pretty much 3/4 the length of the restaurant. If you don't get a table, you are likely to find a spot at the bar. I would describe the restaurant as classically modern or hipster fancy. The art on the wall in front of me were old pictures of Mass Ave. (fancy) but they had a colorful mural of a city (hipster) on the wall near the restrooms.

I mentioned I ordered the onion rings. They were as good as advertised. The only problem was there were only 5 rings. I just wanted a few more as they were so tasty. The rings were perfectly fried to a golden brown and they use a PBR based batter (so hipster). For my main course, I decided on the Blazing Saddles burger. The burgers are a blend of three cuts of meat. BRU uses a mix of sirloin, chuck, and brisket. This combination results in an ideal ratio of fat and lean meat. The burger was cooked to slightly more done than medium. It was juicy and a tad messy, but that is expected with a burger. Burgers are not a dainty food item. This burger was topped with habanero cheese, roasted jalepenos, chipotle remoulade, and garden (lettuce, tomato, onion). At first glance, you would think that this is an extremely spicy burger, but it was more on the medium side. It had heat, but was not too powerful. I couldn't pinpoint where the sweetness came from, but later I learned they add a tomato jam. The chipotle remoulade added a smokey and creamy flavor. The roasted jalepenos added freshness. I think the roasting cuts out some of the heat from the jalepeno. I asked Jackson to bring both the house ketchup and BBQ sauce. The ketchup was unlike any ketchup I had ever eaten. It was much thicker in texture and it had a sweet, tangy flavor, that had a little bit of a kick at the end. The BBQ sauce was sweet and smokey and also had a little kick. The sauces complimented the saltiness of the onion rings. To top things off, Jackson comped our dessert because it was JBH's birthday. We were so full from the meal, she even packed it in a to-go dish for us. We ordered the chocolate mousse. It was hard to tell how good it was because we did not eat it until a couple hours later. I do remember there being nice big chunks of dark chocolate.

I will definitely go back. There were a couple more menu items that I would like to try including the Mexicali burger and the patty melt. There is a nice sidewalk space in front of the restaurant, and my co-worker and I are convinced they will use it as an outdoor dining space. This will also alleviate some of the wait for tables.

"A grown man is so secure with himself he will go flip burgers to make sure his baby can EAt." -Madea

Lunch on EAting Indy: Papa Roux

The winner of the lunch was @autajay1855. We spun the Urban Spoon app and it chose Yats. We had been there so many times, we used it as a guide and stuck with the Cajun theme and went to Papa Roux. Yats is still on the top of my list for favorite Cajun in the city. This is most likely because it was the first Cajun restaurant I have had so every other restaurant gets compared to Yats. Based on other reviews, one would think that Papa Roux is the epitome of Cajun food in the city. Here is an example of one review on Google: 

"Just the best food ever. Makes you happy the rest of the day" -Ben on March 31, 2011

Well Ben, I will have to disagree with you. It is nowhere near the best food ever. It is pretty average. @autajay1855 and I both got Po Boys ($7.50). I ordered the pulled pork and he got the pulled chicken, both full size sandwiches. If you dine in, you can order unlimited sides and free iced tea. When you want more sides, you just stick this card in the holder and a waitress comes by to take your order. I'm positive we ordered all the sides. The best was the red beans and rice, corn bread, and apple sauce. They were the most flavorful. The red beans and rice were a little on the salty side, but it did not taste cheap like the other sides. The corn bread was moist and I love where there is actual corn kernels in the bread. As for the apple sauce, I haven't had an applesauce that has disappointed me. The etoufee was thick and creamy, so the texture was there.  But it tasted like a can of cream of mushroom soup with hints of garlic and cheese. The tomato creole was kind of a conundrum. It started out sweet, but then it had a lot of heat. I usually like the combo, but it was just confusing. We were split on the bread pudding. I really enjoyed it and I'm not a big bread pudding fan. @autajay1855 thought it was missing something, like it needed more sweetness. I thought it tasted better than the cherry chocolate bread pudding at St. Elmo's. I will have to admit that the full sandwich was huge. I probably should have ordered the half. It is soft French bread with your choice of protein, cole slaw, and "vouxdoux mayo". It is touted as being over one pound of total weight. It sure felt like a pound when I was 3/4 done with the meal. I have never felt so gross and unhealthy after eating a sandwich before. The vouxdoux mayo overpowered the entire sandwich. Each bite tasted like the mayo plus the sauce from the cole slaw. I had to take the sandwich apart to try to taste the pork. The pork did have good smoky flavor and was very tender, but it was lost in the toppings. It would have been a star if it was not accompanied by his friends saturated fat and calories from the slaw and mayo. The bread was pretty disappointing. It was not very crusty and it became soggy throughout the meal. Let me preface my next point by saying, "Thank you", to all of our policemen for protecting and serving our city. Now let me tell you a little story.  There were two cops at the table eating at the table before us. Our waitress said that they ordered SIDES of the vouxdoux mayo and mixed it in with their sides. She said she had never seen anyone eat that much mayo before. I almost took a trip to vomit town when I heard that. By no means am I supporting crime, but if I were some sort of hooligan, I would perform all my mischief on the Eastside. The fuzz there have belly fulls of Papa Roux and vouxdoux mayo, and I would have no problem running away from the Five-0. As noted above, our friend Ben said he felt happy the rest of the day. Well, I felt slow and fat the rest of the day. 

There are aspects of the restaurant that in theory are good, like the unlimited sides and free iced tea. The service was very good and it took them little to no time to bring out our side dishes and refills on our drinks. If you plan on going on the weekend, be prepared to wait for a seat. We had to wait about 20 minutes before we had the chance to sit down.  In the first picture, I attempted to let you gauge how small the dining area is. We were sitting in the back corner of the restaurant and there are about 10 more tables. I saw two strangers sitting together at the two-top tables just so they could eat sooner.  I will make another trip there to try their seafood Po Boys, as they bring in fresh seafood from the gulf. 

For Super Bowl XLVI, Indianapolis has came out with a list of the Super 46 sandwiches. Some restaurants are local, others are a bit of a road trip (Evansville, Fort Wayne, Bloomington, Terre Haute). Papa Roux is on this list for their Po Boy. 

"My favorite animal is the mule. He has the more horse sense than a horse. He knows when to stop EAting -- and he knows when to stop working." - Harry S. Truman

Boogie Burger

1904 E. Broad Ripple Avenue
Indianapolis, IN 46220
(317) 255-2450
Boogie Burger

It was a Friday night and my roommate asked if I had dinner plans. Now if you know KJM, the restaurant choices are pretty thin. As previously mentioned, I can say these things, as he doesn't read this blog. Having eaten at Chipotle for lunch, I had already thrown out one of his go to restaurants. Being friends with someone for 20 years, you pretty much know everything about that person. KJM's Chipotle order: Chicken burrito, no beans, extra rice, mild salsa, lettuce, and cheese. So when I offered the suggestion of going to Boogie Burger, I thought I would be able to pin point exactly what he would order when we got there. He had never been there before, and I had never visited their new location off Broad Ripple Ave. The nice thing about their old location was that you could order food while you were out on the patio of Monkey's Tale. The downside was that it was WAY too small. Both times I went it was too crowded to sit down. These burgers are on the messy side, so you definitely need room to eat. I just hope the new location is just as successful. The last restaurant there, The Red Eye Cafe, was only open for a brief period of time. We went a few times on a hungover morning, and it wasn't bad. I think the problem was that it is kind of off the beaten path and they had strange hours. Closed one day during the weekday, and they would deliver late night food. I can just assume the operating costs were astronomical. It was also pretty dark and dingy. Boogie Burger did a bang up job of redoing the interior. It is much brighter and there are more booths. They also built an outdoor patio. The downside is there is not a lot of parking. The staff was young, upbeat, and very friendly. The young lady taking our order decided she wanted to try to guess the names of the patrons before they ordered. She chose Frank for me and Brandon for KJM. I guess if that helps you get through the work day...more power to you.

So back to me trying to figure out what KJM was going to order. You see, he has a very simple pallet. So cheeseburger with ketchup, lettuce, tomato. Boy was I wrong. I said what I was going to order, and KJM said, "That sounds good, I'll have that too." Each 1/3 pound burger comes with lettuce, tomato, red onion, mayo, and a pickle spear. I had mine without mayo, KJM no onion and mayo. We both ordered the Wild West Burger, which is advertised as their most famous burger. It is a single patty with cheddar cheese, onion rings, hickory smoked bacon, and BBQ sauce. I ordered their garlic fries and KJM got the onion rings. Also surprising was we both agreed on the taste of the burger. With all those toppings, the only ingredient we could taste was the bacon. Each bite had a little bit of something else, but the bacon was the star of the show. I really couldn't figure it out why. Now I love bacon, but I just wish I could have tasted the BBQ sauce or the onion rings. The garlic fries were enough for two people, so I was unable to finish them. There was enough garlic to ward off the vampires. I'm not saying that is a bad thing, because they are delicious, but you could smell them throughout the entire restaurant. They are crispy, not soggy. It is a pretty good size fry as well, not as thick as a steak fry, but larger than traditional fast food fries. The parsley gives a nice fresh taste, but it is overpowered by the large chunks of garlic. I do not recommend this place as a first date restaurant, as you will be reaching for the Altoids soon after the meal is over.

I would definitely go back, but I would probably order a different burger. PJB said that the Buffalo Chicken sandwich is pretty good as well. If I were to rank my favorite places to grab a burger in the Nap, I would go in order: 96th St. Steak-burgers, Five Guys Burgers & Fries, then Boogie Burger. I have heard good things about the burgers at The Sinking Ship, and today my coworker raved about the burger he had at 20 Tap at 54th and College. Where is your favorite place to grab a burger?

I apologize I do not have a picture. Luckily the website has many pictures. I promise when I go back, I will take a couple pictures.

"When I EAt with my friends, it is a moment of real pleasure, when I really enjoy my life." -Monica Bellucci

Moe & Johnny's

5380 N. College Avenue
Indianapolis, IN 46220
(317) 255-6376
Moe & Johnny's

Following the IU vs Butler Men's soccer game RFS, PJB, and I decided to grab a bite to eat. Having eaten at Yats a few days prior, Moe & Johnny's became our destination. It had been a while since we been there, and I have never eaten there. I have only had a few adult beverages there. Although it is a great sports bar, and THE place to be before, during, and after Butler Basketball games, there is a reason we call it Smokey Moe's. I think I have mentioned before that this city needs to go smoke free in bars. Who's with me? Other than that, Moe & Johnny's has an abundance of TV's and tons of space to move around (with the exception the Bulldog's Final Four runs the past two years). The patio is also a great place to hang out during the nice summer nights.

For dinner I decided to go with a cup of meat chili and a buffalo chicken salad. First, the chili. It comes with an option for cheese and onions. I would compare this chili to Steak n Shake's chili. It has beans, onion, and beef. I couldn't really pin point any other ingredients. As for flavor, it was on the mild side. There wasn't a lot of heat, which is smart. When I cook my chili, I am guilty of adding a little too much heat, so it is more of a medium to hot flavor. The texture wasn't too soupy, and there was a lot of meat. During the fall and winter, I have a hard time turning a good cup of chili. I would def order this again, maybe ask for some hot sauce. The salad was amazing. It was the perfect size. I often don't get full on an entree salad, but this was not the case. The chicken fingers were nicely sauced with buffalo sauce, they had the kick I was wanting in my chili. The tenders seem like they were breaded in just flour, as it was just a light coating. They were pretty crispy The base of the salad was romaine and field greens.. There was also croutons, cheese, carrots, tomatoes, and red onions. It came with a soft and sweet dinner roll. I went with the Bleu Cheese dressing, as I am still going on my Bleu Cheese phase. Although there were two cups of dressing, one was enough for me. I'm not sure if I would get the salad again, as I can't predict a situation where I would be going to Moe & Johnny's just for food. But at least I know, if I were to order the salad, it would be enough food to hold me over. I have known only one person to order a salad at a bar, RWG. It was at Harry's on a Friday afternoon. BOILER UP, you Cobb salad eating fool!. FYI, Moe & Johnny's has an all you can eat brunch on Sundays from 9am to 1pm. I've heard decent things about this, and plan on trying it out eventually.

In case you were wondering about the soccer game, your Indiana Hoosiers prevailed 1-0. We scored with under 10 minutes left in the game. Although the score does not reflect this, IU possessed the ball for the majority of the game. Butler's keeper made a couple of amazing saves, but their scoring opportunities were few and far between. IU Futbol...so much more successful than IU Football.

"Nothing would be more tiresome that EAting and drinking if God had not made them a pleasure as much as a necessity." -Voltaire

Hoaglin to Go

448 Massachusetts Avenue
Indianapolis, IN 46204
(317) 423-0300
Hoaglin To Go

It was a Friday afternoon, and I took a half day at work. I was going to run some errands downtown and had previously ordered take out with JBH once, and had wanted to go back. I never really eat alone, but it is a nice change of pace. Often times, you are too busy conversing and never really get the chance to relax a little bit, think, and enjoy your meal. Hoaglin is located on Mass Ave, and Michigan St. It is a quaint little bistro with about 20 or so tables. Take note of the hours, as it is not open all day. It was pretty busy, as it was the one time I went to pick up food to go. The clientele is a nice blend of workers on their lunch break, students on their laptops, moms with their kids, and a few hipsters. I'm surprised they aren't busy occupying something. I think I am going to occupy my roommate's bedroom until he lets me get cable in my bedroom. That might get a little weird though and I think he will kick me out. Good thing he doesn't read this. Back to the decor of the restaurant. I loved it. Each table had a fresh Gerber daisy in a tiny vase (I only noticed this because the ladies next to me mentioned that they always have fresh daisies). It was intimate, yet not cramped. I guess the only problem I had was that I was sharing a bench with another lady and she leaned forward and brought me with her. I didn't think that was possible as I am a pretty big guy and I had my entire weight on the bench. She wasn't an exceptionally large lady, she was just Country Strong. Right WJB?

I absolutely loved the egg salad last time I ordered it, and was debating between one of four of their chicken salads or the egg salad. I couldn't pass up the egg salad. According to Indianapolis Monthly, it is the city's best egg salad. I am going to have to agree with them. I know it is not as good as the egg salad at Lil' Guys, but it sure is close. The difference is Hoaglin's is a little more creamy than Lil' Guys. Probably has a little more mayo/mustard. The other ingredients are onion, bell pepper, and fresh dill. I chose the sourdough bread. The only problem with sourdough is that unless toasted, it falls apart pretty easily. Each bite, the bread would crumble, so it was a little on the messy side. No major complaints though, because each bit also had ample amounts of egg salad. I decided to swap out the kettle chips for a cup of soup ($3 extra). They had two soups to choose from; chicken corn chowder and black bean. I asked the waiter for his suggestion and he said the chicken complete with a caveat that one lady did not like it. I wanted some sort of meat with my meal, so I went with the chicken. I'm used to chowders being a little more creamy, this one was had a chicken stock base. It was more of like a chicken soup than a chowder. It was all white meat chicken though, and had onion, carrots, and bell peppers. It was pretty good. It was a chilly day, so it hit the spot. I promise I won't try to start a trend of soup/salad or soup/sandwich posts, but with the seasons ahead, it looks like it might be the case.

"The most important things to do in the world are to get something to EAt, something to drink, and somebody to love you." -Brenda Ueland

Bloomington Sandwich Co. - Bloomington, IN

118 East Kirkwood Avenue
Bloomington, IN 47408-3330
Bloomington Sandwich Company

The Bloomington Sandwich Co. (BSC) is my favorite sandwich shop in the state. (I only go to Shapiro's for the Reuben, whereas I have loved every sandwich at the BSC). It was a rainy Saturday afternoon and we came back to Bloomington to play in a fraternity basketball tournament (it was rained out, so lunch was our next best option). Now the BSC used to be located the square, but it has since moved to Kirkwood. The first time I ever ate at this restaurant was after I graduated college (one of my biggest regrets in college). I know I would have been a regular, if I had known that this place existed. Based on the BSC Bloomingpedia page, the BSC was started by Mike and Carole Moy in 2005. If my memory is correct, Mike is from the Chicago area. I know this because we had a conversation about the Italian Beef Sandwich on the menu, and my affinity for giardinera. The Italian Beef is only one of the reasons I fell in love with this restaurant. The first being, the Reuben... It ranks #5 on the All Time Reuben List. Here is where Mike and I have a discrepancy. I have told you I order the Reuben NY Style, with cole slaw instead of sauerkraut. Mike refers to it as New Jersey style. He said that he had some dudes from jersey come into the store and they said that the cole slaw style originated in NJ. Of course they would say that. Anyone that went to IU could spot said "dudes from jersey" from a mile a way. You know the type, with their "shirts before the shirts", Yankees flat bills, orange skin, bottle service at Sports. Because those dudes annoy me to no end, I will not let them take credit for the cole slaw on the Reuben. It will always be NY Style in my eyes, because New Yorkers are so much better. 

So why is the Reuben #5? It's not stacked with corned beef like the other Reubens on the list, but it is the total package. The meat is tender, juicy and delightfully seasoned. The rye bread is toasted to perfection. There is a perfect amount of cole slaw and 1000 island dressing, so it isn't runny and messy. The Swiss cheese is melted just right. It just tastes fresh. I honestly think I could eat about 3 of these in one sitting because they taste so darn good, but just the one with a side dish will leave you satisfied. I chose the potato salad. It is nothing spectacular, but it does the trick. Beyond the sandwiches and service, the one thing that sold me on the BSC was the tasty treat they give you at the end of the meal. It is just a sample of their many flavors of Italian Ice, but after your meal, just a sample is enough. 

Round 2

RFS and I went back to Bloomington to meet with our fraternity advisor before we went to Columbus, IN for a wedding. KM had never been there before and he is a B-town native, so we had to go. Was I tempted to get the Reuben, absolutely. I had to opt for something different. I must say that the Combo meal that the BSC offers is one of the best I have ever seen. For the price of just a sandwich, you get a 1/2 sandwich, EITHER potato salad or Cole Slaw, then pick from the following: chips and drink, fries, side salad, cup of soup, cup of chili, OR chips and salsa. I decided to go with the BSC club: Bacon, Turkey, Ham, Lettuce, Tomato, Mayo on toasted sourdough bread. I went with the Caesar side salad and potato salad for my sides. Once again, the potato salad is just your run of the mill potato salad. The Caesar salad didn't wow me either, but I was feeling a salad, and hadn't had a Caesar in a while. It was just chopped Romaine lettuce, croutons, and shredded Parmesan cheese. As I stated before, the meat they use at the BSC is so fresh. Really any option you choose, you are guaranteed a freshly sliced stack of meat and fixins. The lettuce is crisp and you really get a bite of each ingredient every time. I also like how they don't put too much mayo on the sandwich. I only like small amounts of mayo on my sandwiches. I know I mentioned I would go on a Sandwich hiatus, but I had this entry queued up. Be on the lookout for Mother Bear's Pizza, Sensu, and Hotcakes Pancake Emporium. 

"I am proud to be an American. Because an American can EAt anything on the face of this earth as long as he has two pieces of bread." - Bill Cosby   

Midday Gourmet Deli

5501 W 86th St # G Indianapolis,IN 46268
Midday Gourmet Deli


Sorry for the delay again. It has been a pretty busy couple weeks. Be prepared for a slew of new posts here in the next couple days. My brother introduced me to this little sandwich place when I first started my job, as it was one of his go-to restaurants to dine during lunch. They are only open for weekday lunches from 11am to 2:30pm. The restaurant isn't very big, but I have never had a problem getting a table. The service is very quick. You walk up to the counter, place your order, and within 5 minutes they bring it to you. The do a good job catering to the work crowd, as they get you in and out pretty quickly. 

I decided to go with the daily lunch special, the Rachel. The Rachel is like a Reuben, but it is pastrami instead of corned beef, and cole slaw instead of sauerkraut. In my next post, I speak at length about my affinity for the Reuben Sandwich.  The lunch special included chips and a drink. The sandwich itself was pretty average. I have had better food at Midday. The meat tasted fresh and I really liked the sourdough bread as it was nicely toasted. The sandwich just didn't blow me away. I probably wouldn't order it again.  I think it was the cole slaw. I am very particular about my cole slaw. I do like a creamier slaw as opposed to a more vinegar based slaw. I also like the cabbage chopped more fine instead of longer strands of cabbage. There was a nice crunch to the sandwich, which I enjoy, but the slaw just didn't add a whole lot of flavor. The thousand island was not too overpowering


I will definitely come back, as they have a delicious egg salad which is a great option for you Catholics out there that need a non-meat option during Lent. 


“Civilization has taught us to EAt with a fork, but even now if nobody is around we use our fingers.” - Will Rogers