Napolese

114 E. 49th St.

Indianapolis, IN

(317) 925-0765

Napolese

I've been waiting to write about Napolese for a while. I wanted to get a few visits under my belt before formulating my opinion. My conclusion is that Napolese is my favorite pizza in the city. The service and the food has always been top notch. I also love the neighborhood. I have always loved the homes in the area, and the whole block at 49th and Penn just really comes out of nowhere. The businesses are really part of the neighborhood. The only issue I have is that it gets pretty busy and you often have to wait for a table, as they do not take reservations. There are two sides to the restaurant and a patio. I have only sat in the main dining room and the patio. When I walked in, the first thing i noticed was the pizza oven. I enjoyed being able to see how the pizza was being made from start to finish. There are a few bar stools in front of the cooking area. It reminded me of Noble Roman's pizza growing up where you could watch the pizza artists through the window. You get a sense of how fresh the ingredients are as you can see the chefs chopping, rolling out the dough, and assembling the pizza. The key to a good wood fired pizza is the movement of the pizzas in the oven. You do not want to keep the pizza in the same place as it will burn. On the contrary if you add a pizza to the oven, you do not want to place it where you removed the last pizza as it will not be as hot. It becomes an art and the chefs at Napolese are pros.

When you are seated, you are brought a mixed sampling of olives. Only within the past few years have I become a fan of olives. These are pitted and can be eaten by themselves or to accompany any part of your meal. Not only does Napolese have the best pizza in the city, I'm convinced their double chopped salad is the best as well. I always add a few olives to the wonderful blend of ingredients. It is a base of romaine lettuce. The salad also has shredded mozzarella, gorgonzola, roasted peppers, crispy pancetta, thick sliced pepperoni, white corn and chickpeas. It is dressed with a balsamic vinaigrette. Each bite has something different and each ingredient works well with each other. It is a symphony of flavors. The ingredients aren't listed on the menu, but believe me, you will not be disappointed.

I feel like the pizzas change season to season. We went in the beginning of summer and they had this pesto based pizza with ham, pineapple, and jalepeno. When I went a few days ago, it was nowhere to be found. Luckily the Hamaker's corner pizza is a regular on the menu. It is pepperoni, sausage, mushrooms, and provolone. It is a pretty basic pizza in comparison to the others on the menu. The pepperoni is thick cut and has great flavor. There are pretty decent sized pieces of sausage which give the pizza a mild spicy taste. The button mushrooms bring a wonderful, earthy flavor. The other pizzas I have had are the broken yolk, which is the margherita pizza with an egg cracked in the middle. This might scare off some, but it is so unique that we had to try it. I feel like this pizza would be better around brunch time. Elliot's pie is pancetta, potatoes, and gorgonzola. This wasn't my favorite, but it was still very good. The potatoes dried out in the cooking process. I just enjoy how everything is so fresh, which is probably why certain pizzas are available depending on the season. Since Napolese has the same owner as Cafe Patachou, you know you are getting the best, freshest ingredients. This restaurant is a great example of farm to table dining.

"Want to learn to EAt a lot? Here it is: EAt a little. That way you will be around long enough to EAt a lot." -Anthony Robbins

Thai Cafe

1041 Broad Ripple Avenue

Indianapolis, IN  46220

317-722-1008

Thai Cafe

The last destination to find the best Thai fried rice in Indianapolis led me to Thai Cafe in Broad Ripple. I had been told that this is the best in the City by my roommate and my brother. I had a couple days off during Christmas and JBH and I decided to give it a try. It is located on Broad Ripple Ave in the shopping center across from the high school.

Thai Cafe is bigger than Thai Papaya, but smaller than Sawasdee. The tables are close to each other, but it wasn't crowded enough that you were stacked on top of someone else. The decor is Thai inspired, just like the other restaurants. The service was quick and the wait staff is very friendly. 

Our soup came out within minutes of ordering and the entrees followed soon after. The flavor of the soup was unlike anything I have had in Thai restaurants. I seems like it has a lemongrass base with chili oil on top. The flavor develops as you eat the soup. It starts out mild then then sour, and it has a kick at the end. They also give you the crispy noodles to add to the soup. Those add a nice crunch and a little bit of saltiness. There is also cilantro and Thai basil which add freshness. I ordered the Kao Pad. It is fried rice with your choice of protien with onion, peas, carrots, and egg.  Here the heat levels range from 1 to 5. The first two times I chose 3. The last time, I manned up and ordered a 4. The 3 is how a medium should be. It has definite heat, but not over powering. I think I will stick to the four. It brought the perfect amount of heat. I broke a little bit of a sweat eating it, but it was a healthy burn. The 5 would be a little too much for me. I will have to agree with my brother and roommate and say that this is the best Thai in the city. The entire dish just worked as a whole. The peas and carrots added a little bit of sweetness to an otherwise spicy dish. The egg added texture. The rice was not as greasy as the other restaurants. I can't remember the last time I went to a restaurant 3 times in the span of a month. That is just proof how much I liked the Thai Cafe. I have a feeling that this will become like Yen Ching and the staff will know me by name whenever I come in. Apologies for the lack of pictures on the fried rice. My pictures were wiped clean on my phone and I will have to add the next time I go back. 

"If there hadn't been women, we'd still be squatting in a cave EAting raw meat, because we made civilization in order to impress our girlfriends." -Orson Welles

Tomo: Japanese Steakhouse

7141 N. Keystone Ave.
Indianapolis, IN 46240-3375
317-254-8665
Tomo Japanese Steakhouse & Sushi Bar

I knew you all were getting excited since a week had gone by without a post. Better luck next time! I just got my phone back yesterday, so expect me to tweet more pictures. I had a loaner phone from Best Buy while mine was being repaired, and it was the worst. I don't think I could ever go back to a Blackberry, especially the flip phone that I had to use for 4 days. Am I overreacting? Probably. But those of you who saw what I was working with can feel my pain. I want to also apologize for the lack of pictures. I got antsy and dove in before I took any pictures. All I have is a picture of the soup. I know I'll be back, so I will add more at a later date.

I have been to Tomo twice in the past month. I feel like Butler Basketball guard, Ronald Nored, who is all about this restaurant. There was a streak over the summer where he went multiple times in the same week. So it was not so surprising when I saw #5 and a few other Bulldogs dining there. The Teppanyaki part of the restaurant has 4 total grills, two on each side of the room. I would say that the room holds about 30 patrons, with about 10 other tables in the main part of the restaurant. The interior was a lot nicer than I thought it was going to be, as it is located at the end of a strip mall which houses a tanning salon and a smoke shop. The service both times was terrific. As soon as you sit down, you are offered a warm towel. The first time I was offered a warm towel was when I went on Spring Break with MWF's family. We flew first class from Indy to Cleveland and I was sitting by myself. I had to take MWF's lead on what to do with the towel. The food came out quickly and we did not have to wait very long for the Teppanyaki chef to come and prepare the food. For those of you familiar with the wire, it was like the time Bunny Colvin took the hooligans to Ruth's Chris. As you know the cooking at a Japanese steakhouse, is essentially a show. Almost all the classic Teppanyaki tricks were done for us: the sake fire, the onion volcano, and the egg roll into the egg toss into the hat. The only thing missing was our chef did not toss the shrimp tails into our mouths. Instead, he threw clumps of rice. All in all, both experiences were fun and entertaining.

I was overly impressed by the food. I ordered the combo of steak and shrimp both times. The meal comes with a salad, soup, grilled veggies, two shrimp, and fried rice. The salad has carrots, tomatoes, iceberg lettuce, and a ginger based dressing. The soup is a clear based soup with thinly sliced shitake mushrooms. The grilled veggies are mushrooms, zucchini, carrots, and onions. The fried rice was my favorite part of the meal. I don't know why it tastes so good, but it does. It is the best fried rice I have ever had. My best guess as to why it is so delicious, is it contains the perfect mix of "yummy yummy sauce" and "Japanese Coca-Cola". If you have ever been to a Japanese steakhouse, you know what I am talking about. The dipping sauces at the table are the "yummy yummy sauce" and some other ginger based sauce. To cap off the meal, they leave a sliced orange for you. It is a nice refreshing end to a very solid dinner. I want to try the sushi sometime, but after having the Teppanyaki I find it hard to stray away from the grill.

"Women EAt while they are talking, men talk while they are EAting." -Malcolm de Chazal

Chow Down Midtown

http://www.chowdownmidtown.com/

Just a quick post to remind you that Chow Down Midtown started on Monday and runs through June 16 (so you have a week to get out there). Sorry for the delay again. This will be the LAST time I apologize for the last of writing. I never knew how much of an undertaking writing a blog can be. I will take someone to dinner if they can figure out a way to keep me focused on posting regularly. Honestly, I blame the weather, as I will not sit inside if it is nice out. Yeah, it has been unbearably hot recently, but still it beats the snow and ice we had to deal with 4 months ago.

As for Chow Down Midtown. It is similar to Devour Downtown in that restaurants in the Broad Ripple/Tarkington Area/SoBro neighborhoods are offering prixe fixe menus. There are some great deals out there, but I can't say I am as impressed with the offerings as I am when Devour rolls around. The restaurants that stick out the most to me are Recess, Mama Corolla's, and Illinois St. Food Emporium. I've always wanted to go to Recess, because I love Chef Hardesty's concept. "I will cook whatever I want, and you eat it. If you don't like my menu, tough cookies! I'm sure there is a McDonalds nearby to make you happy." I can only imagine that was the thought running through his head when he opened Recess. That concept seems to be paying off for him.  The menu changes frequently and I have heard nothing but good things about that restaurant. So why haven't I eaten there? Well I just haven't been able to justify spending $40-$60 on myself for dinner. With the Chow Down Midtown menu, it is only $30 for three courses there. A very good deal if you ask me. I like the Mama Corolla's menu and Illinois St. because they are 2 meals for $30. Many of the other bar/grills are offering 2 for $30, but the menus just do not blow me away. If any of you go to these restaurants, let me know where you went and the how your experience was.

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