Garuda

Ever had Indonesian cuisine before? FLOE neither...until Garuda! The new SoBro Indonesian Restaurant off of College and 52nd is tucked behind Taste and is very muted in its outward appearance. We had no idea what to expect. Once inside, some minimalist decor showcased a small dining area open to the very busy kitchen.

The hostess was a bit awkward(not sure what to do, more nervous than accommodating), but we'll chalk it up to being only open about one month at the time. Our server was very polite, but again, awkward. We were glad to see a small menu---makes it a little easier to pick new things.

We noticed a lot of satay(skewered meats), some curry, and rice and noodle dishes with island flair. We decided to start with Lumpia, Garuda's Indonesian spring rolls. Fred had to have the Kare Opur(Indonesian Curry) with chicken and Libby the Beef Randang. Ozzy opted for a side of rice and Stella would sample from the lot.

Beverage orders were never requested, but we were brought water to drink. Hm. The menu also stated we could specify how spicy we would like our dishes and that never happened either.

The Lumpia came out pretty quickly and was just delightful! Visually very familiar, there was something different. The fried outside was thick like a chinese egg roll and had a hidden sweetness, while the inside had some curried tofu and mixed veggies that were more reminiscent of a spring roll. It was fried perfectly, nice and crunchy outside with a warm, tender inside. The pineapple chili sauce on the side was a great touch. Even Stella approved!

Entrees took a little longer, even though there were only two seated tables in the whole place and an army of folks in the back. Finally, they arrived and they were beautiful! And in appropriate proportions. Not the mega-size so many of us have become so accustomed to.

Fred's Kare Opur was so aromatic! It was quite mild with incredibly well blended spices--- the flavors had melded in the pot. It was familiar yet different in it's subtlety. Definitely a dish worth coming back for!

Libby's Beef Randang was actually the Beef Satay dinner. This was suspected, but not confirmed until after dinner when a quick look at the online menu checked out. Rather than a slow-roasted meat in coconut milk and indonesian spices, it was skewered beef with a side of rice and acar(a vegetable salad with cucumbers, pineapples and carrots marinated in a ginger-shallot lime sauce garnished with cilantro). One bite was all it took to see the value in these simple plates. Tender, flavorful, and so tasty it made Libby regret her earlier thoughts that less is more! More! More! The rice on the side and the acar worked better together than on their own. The yellow rice was again very mild in flavor---the acid from the veg was necessary. So, even though there was a bit of ordering confusion, Libby was very pleased with her surprise dish.

Finally, we had to try the Pisang Goreng--- more well known as fried plantains. Yummy. This version had coconut and rice-flour battered plantains, fried and sprinkled with coconut over a nutella and caramel sauce topped with coconut ice cream. This flavor combo was truly pleasing and the perfect sweet ending to a most satisfying dinner. Again, subtlety was the art of this dish. Lightly battered, lightly sweetened and even the coconut ice cream was more milky that sweet. One suggestion we would have is to have thinner slices. Plantains are naturally a bit bitter and the thicker slices caused the bitter plantain to compete with the already light sweetness. Otherwise, it was just de-lite-ful!

http://www.garudadine.com/


Wrap Up
Price-$$-Well priced for delicate, international cuisine.
Atmosphere**, Nothing exciting, but we're expecting it to flesh out over time. We did quite enjoy being able to view all of the chaos in the back!
Service*,- Very polite but GREEN. These guys need more experienced help to pay attention to detail and be on top of customer needs. There was a hostess, two servers, and what appeared to be two owners around, not to mention 4-5 chefs in the back. If they are struggling with only two tables filled, we cringe to think what a busy night would be like!

Overall
Fred- B-, I'd give the food more of an A-, very good. But the service was so poor, it weighed down the overall experience. I would like to go back to see if it's improved. If not, then that would be a huge red flag.
Libby-B+, Wonderful food, but the service was just bad. The kind of service where you know they are trying and can't seem to get it right. There's nothing worse than feeling sorry for your servers when the chefs are doing their part in the kitchen.
Ozzy- C+, Ozzy was not too impressed with his yellow rice, but he ate it and very much enjoyed the plantain sauce, rather than the plantain itself.
Estelle- B, Stella sampled from everything and preferred the acar, the curry, and the rice. The meat may have been too difficult for her to chew, but she seemed content overall.

Three Sisters Cafe

On our short list, Three Sister's Cafe made the cut a couple of weeks ago when Libby had a rare Saturday night off. A roadtrip for breakfast Sunday morning was on the agenda! FLOE was well aware that one of our food-porn heroes, Guy Fieri, had sampled some eats and we couldn't wait to try it our for ourselves!

Located in the heart of Broadripple, Three Sister's is situated in an old house with all the antiquated charms---creaky wooden floors, large windows, small rooms and quaint architectural details. We didn't realize it at the time, but we were super lucky to be seated immediately. Within 20 minutes, the line was out the door.

One very fun and friendly type of seating they do for small groups is "family" seating. If there is one large table, you could get seated with other guests...some may scoff at this, but we found it kinda cool. Could be good to meet some new people. :)

With a newly printed menu after triple D's visit, Libby decided to sample one of the show's featured items, the raspberry corn cakes with lemon curd. Fred had to try the omelet with calico potatoes. Ozzy requested the bear banana pancakes and Stella indulged in her own entree as well, the french toast. And can we just say, their coffee was FABULOUS. Nice and bold, not for the Folgers crowd.

After a fairly lengthy wait, the beautiful plates arrived! We were more than a little excited. Libby, being the lucky tester of the corncakes, was completely satisfied with her choice. The corncakes were bursting with raspberries...but let's not mince words---it's all about that lemon curd. OMG, this was pure lemon heaven. Breakfast? This was a straight up dessert! Beautifully simple and totally indulgent. Fantastic! A must have from now on, whenever we get back.

Fred's a 5-ingredient omelet with a side of calico potatoes and an order of sourdough toast really hit the tastebuds front & center. The mixture of exotic mushrooms, kalamata olives, brie, spinach and basil was to die for. Creamy, briney, mushroomy goodness with enough green stuff to make you almost feel like it's healthy. Of course any mistaken notion of that went out the window with the pound of melted butter on the very sour sourdough. Not that Fred was complaining!

Unfortunately the calico potatoes may actually have been healthy. They certainly tasted like it. We wanted to like this mixture of white & sweet potato hash browns. They had some spice to them, but they just tasted. . . . healthy. Perhaps it was just a lack of salt, but there just wasn't the depth of flavor that we were expecting. Sadly, they looked a lot better than they tasted.

The kids were not on the same page with their meals. Ozzy was a little disappointed with the banana-i-ness of his choice. Apparently, he didn't connect the whole banana-in-a-pancake concept and said he would prefer them sans bananas. There was still plenty that he would like there, but this was not his dish. Stella, on the other hand, was happily munching away on her french toast and had little to complain about during our entire stay. She was in a good place.


Wrap Up
Price-$-$$,- Comparable to any chain breakfast place. But this sure ain't Bob Evans!!
Atmosphere***, You could feel the love. It was Grandma's house with a little Broadripple flair.
Service***,- The wait for the food made it seem like something had happened in the kitchen, but the server was very attentive throughout.

Overall
Fred- A-, Now I'm on my 3rd killer breakfast spot in Indy. Between Zest, Hoaglin To Go and 3 Sisters, who can decide where to go?!? I'll give you a hint -- it won't be Denny's. A little more salt on the calico potatoes during cooking would have pushed it into A territory.
Libby-A+, If I were in a hurry, this rating might be different. But the fact is the coffee was delicious and my corn cake with lemon curd was "City Hall in Flavortown".
Ozzy- C+, While he was having problems with both the wait and his chosen meal, Three Sisters had plenty of other options and the atmosphere was very conducive to a loud 6 year old.
Estelle- B+, She had the best seat in the house for people watching and her french toast was more than deserving of the adult menu.

New Bethel Ordinary

Having heard that one of the best pizza's in town was actually not in town, we drove out to Wanamaker to visit the New Bethel Ordinary (NBO).  Upon entering and seeing the scorched wooden tables and an incredibly small town vibe, we immediately felt at home.  There's no pretense here.

The NBO could be found in any small town in the midwest complete with 1950's style plastic letter wall special advertisements to an original antiquated main street building to a bit of confusion around import beers.  With no set beer menu, our waitress was unable to provide us with a full listing of their beers.  When we decided on a Guiness, she offered a frosty mug, we declined, she then just brought the cans...?

We perused the menu, knowing we were getting a pie, to see if an appy was appealing.  Since we were worried that Stella really is not a pizza person yet, we thought we would maximize our chances with an appy sampler---the fried onion rings, fried cauliflower, and fried cheese sticks.  The pie we chose?  We decided to go ultra simple since the ingredient list wasn't blowing our skirts up---half cheese(for Ozzy) and half pepperoni.  Simple should suffice, right?

The sampler came out quickly, and looked like it came straight from the bag---maybe the onion rings were done in house, but there is NO WAY the cheese sticks or cauliflower were made within 500 miles of the place.  Not really very good.  Stella tried some of everything and Fred was so happy to see she is not an onion person either. ;)  Ozzy made a valiant attempt at a cheese stick, but as it got gooey, he vetoed the effort.  Fred and Libby quite enjoyed the cauliflower, but all in all, it was a bust.

At this point, other diners started rolling in and it was obvious, pizza was the star of the menu.  This was both heartening and foreboding in that everyone was ordering 4-7 toppings...did we mess this up?  Well, showtime, here came the pie...TONS of cheese!  Ozzy looked a little apprehensive.  A nice touch, the demarcation made with a green herb and was a great concept-- something we would like to see on other pies.  It was obvious where one side stopped and the other began.

Unfortunately, the great first impression soon fell incredibly flat.  The mounds of cheese that were so obvious at first glance were in fact, straight mozorella on a not so exciting sauce and an overwhelmed, underdone crust.  One side sitting in a pool of unappetising pepperoni grease.  You can't pick up this pizza, a hand-tossed...you must use the knife and fork.

We soon found that where most places would put a single pepperoni, the NBO stacked three or four.  This was obviously done in an attempt to provide abundant toppings, but doesn't work well with buried pepperoni.  As other pies started coming out with mounds of toppings on them, we recognized our fatal flaw...NBO doesn't do simple.  But what pizza place can't make a pepperoni pizza?!?!?!?!

Only a couple of weeks ago we had outstanding cheese pizza at Thr3e Wise Men...is it really so hard?

Really?  Fred and Libby immediately went into a diatribe of how they were pretty sure that that one time they were weak and tried a Sam's Club Pepperoni pizza, that it was better than this! How is that possible?  A pound of mozzerella does not a good pizza make!  How can the crust cook right with a layer of insulation on top?  Why didn't we order 5, 6, 7 toppings?!  *sigh*

Having only eaten one to one 1/2 slices each, we decided that it simply was not worth ingesting anymore.  We left, not satisfying our hunger, but still feeling that there was a ball of mozzerlla stuck in our gullets.  Both of us fantasized of purging roman style and going to get, perhaps, some Brozzini's.  Ozzy on the other hand, could not be disuaded of his "pretty good" rating.  And Stella, while she didn't really eat much, certainly enjoyed her experience and was welcomed warmly by staff and the other customers.

This brings us to the final tally, where Fred had some serious sticker shock.  $44, before a good tip, as the service was fine for a 16 inch pizza, a mediocre fried appy, and two (not exotic!) beers.  Huh?!  An example...last night at Oaken Barrel---which is arguably very inexpensive and amazing for the price--two dinner entrees, a kids entree, a dessert, and 5 WAY better beers came to a grand total of $36.  Explain that to us!

In our diner's remorse, we dialed a friend who loved the place.  He explained, it's about the massive number of multiple toppings.  So, a word to the wise...don't do it.  Don't try to be simple, get the mother load and maybe it's a whole new ball game.  But as far as FLOE is concerned, we won't be trecking to Wanamaker to give it another chance.

http://www.nbopizza.net/

Wrap Up
Price-$$-$$$,- Apparently, Guiness charges a shit ton to go to Wanamaker.  There was a special to get a 16 inch and a bucket o' domestic for $30...yet somehow two Guiness and an appy added up to almost $45? Oy.
Atmosphere**, Small town, comfortable, homey, in a historic-ly ancient building in town.
Service***,-  Other than a little beer-snobbery on our part, the service was fine. :)

Overall
Fred- F, I understand it's a toppings place, but what pizza place can't do a pepperoni pizza?!  And if you're a toppings place, then you need to up the ante on the toppings---nothing extraordinary or interesting here .
Libby-D-, I have never only eaten one piece of pizza in my LIFE!  This was not good.  It was depressing that so much cheese was going to see the dumpster.  The only saving grace for me was the fried cauliflower--don't know if it was from the bag or not, but it was all I had...it was all I had.
Ozzy- B, The boy took every ounce of cheese off but ate up his crust.  He insisted it was "pretty good."  Alright son, whatever you say.
Estelle- B, Content to snack and soak it all in.

Thr3e Wise Men Brewing Company

For months now, we knew that a new brewery was surfacing in Broadripple and were excited to find they had opened in January.  Almost a month ago, we planned to go on Fred's birthday, but some mean, nasty virus had other plans.  Last weekend was our moment and the melting snow and glaring sunshine made us thirsty for one thing.  A good brew!

Across Broadripple avenue from the McDonald's, Thr3e Wise Men has an excellent location...gooood parking (for Broadripple, at least).  As soon as you enter, Scotty's marketing know-how is apparent.  Not only is there great merchandising between t-shirts, growlers, very professional advertising, and a knock-out view of the heart and soul of the brewing process, but the techie factor is almost a bit much.  Even the picnic table seating went above and beyond with seat padding, smooth table surfacing, and the greatest high chair ever...a table-top latch on that really allowed Stella to be at table height.  Yay!  Since the dining area is a bit small, they made up for lost space by placing 4-tops like us at the same table as another couple.  Smart.  We've always thought it was strange that more places don't do this.  What's the worst that can happen?  You speak to a stranger?!?

There are at least 7 hanging flat screens in the very open dining area, each table has an i-pad and even the bathroom stalls have tv's?!  Naturally the faucet and soap dispenser were automatic, but even the hand dryer was some sort of high-tech freakiness.  We couldn't figure out what we were supposed to do with the i-pad(only could see a map and they'd blocked the home button) and the toilet tv wasn't getting a signal, but when it's all humming...

Anyhow, let's talk chow!  Although it may not be obvious from the fact that the name on the sign says "Brewery", this is a pizza place.  Yes, there are appetizers, salads, and a few desserts, but the main course is pizza.  This made Ozzy a happy camper.

But first, what to drink?  Why a sampler of course!  Unfortunately, they only offered three of their eight brews in each sampler, so Fred and Libby just had to get their own...shucks. Since neither of us are hop-heads, we stayed away from the single & double IPAs.  We were excited by the color & milkiness of their Blackberry Wheat, but as with most fruit beers, the flavor just didn't come through.  Pity.  Both of us decided that the Blonde was the choice of the night for our second round.  We found none of the beers to be extraordinary, just simple easy drinking beers that would all go well with pizza.  If you're really looking for a knock-out pint, there are better breweries in town (heck, there are three of them within walking distance!), but in this case, the beer does what it's intended to do, wash down a pie.


We started with the Goat Cheese and Wise Men Marinara.  Can you really go wrong with this most delicious combo?  No.  The only negative we can say is that the pizza crust chips they gave for dipping had some fairly burned up pieces -- the sauce was good, the cheese premium quality and the cooked pizza crust idea, not bad! 

For the entree, we decided to go with two pizzas.  A small plain cheese to appease Ozzy and a garlic, spinach, and basil for the rest of us.  Normally, thin crust is not our preference, but this was very impressive.  The sauce was outstanding!  The cheeses somehow different in a really good way (parmesan melted in maybe?) and the ingredients great quality.  I think we were all pretty shocked by how much we liked it.  Ozzy's comments of "Fantastic!" and "This is the best pizza ever!"  spoke volumes.  This coming from a kid whose normal praise for a meal is "pretty good."  Stella was shoveling as fast as she could....well, so were mom and dad.  Next time we'll go for a meat topping, but the spinach, basil, garlic mix was perfect to show off that awesome sauce.


 For dessert there are three options: elephant ear, brew-homemade carrot cake, and brew-homemade german chocolate cake.  Fred expressed no interest in dessert(too full), but the rest of the family was feeling chocolate!  Shaped like a small bundt cake and covered in crushed toffee bar, this was a hit.  Very rich and in Libby's opinion, was screaming for a good coffee---should've gotten some Hubbared & Cravens!  Next time.  Ozzy and Stella were equally enthusiastic.  The elephant ear looked really popular and pretty tasty.  And knowing Fred's love for carrot cake, next time he's in the mood, he'll be sampling.




 http://thr3ewisemen.com/

Wrap Up
Price-$-$$,- Large pizza & a growler for $20?!  Sounds like a deal to us.
Atmosphere***,- Reminiscent of Scotty's other establishments.  Loved the padded picnic tables.
Service***,-  Plenty of staff, but we're not so sure the electronic ordering system was really helping much.  Our waitress had to step away from our table to punch everything into a gadget strapped to her hip.  It took at about 2 minutes for her to enter the order.  By that time she could have easily written it down and walked it to the kitchen.

Overall
Fred- B+,  Very good pizza, but there's so much better beer in Broadripple... Maybe if they'd called themselves Thr3e Wise Men Pizza Co I would have had lower expectations...  But all in all, it's a good deal and I'd definitely go back.
Libby-B+, I had a great time just soaking it all in---beer and atmosphere.  I was really happy to see they use as many local ingredients as they can--thank you, Thr3e Wise Men!  Next time, we'll have to try a meat pizza and hopefully they will have the amber available since so many seem to enjoy it.
Ozzy- A+, We've never heard such high praise from our boy!
Estelle- A+, Awesome high chair and she loved every bite.

Ichiban Sushi Bar & Sammy's Asian Cuisine

We're back in the saddle after more than a month of post-holiday quarantine!  Weather and illness woes be gone!  Oddly, we were in the mood for sushi.  With Ozzy's lunch finickiness the school's problem today, we decided to see what has been going on at Ichiban.

Being very familiar with Ichiban for the past several years, we noticed something different a few months back.  Not only a much longer name, but more than twice the space!  The entry alone made it clear this place had gone from neighborhood (charming) hole in the wall to new southside dining hotspot!  Just beautiful!  Somebody dropped a dime and kept it classy for a strip mall locale.

It's about 4 times the size of the old place with a private dining room, a second bar and a lot of intimate dining space for such an open feel.The menu has changed a bit adding a few more pan-asian dishes, but we chose to ignore this and eat what we came for---the best sushi on the southside.

Crazy Roll sans tail ends...forgot to photograph before diving in!

So accustomed to grabbing a sushi order ticket, we were happy to see a few lunch roll combos available that would more than satisfy our appetites---including a small third diner who would sample from everyone.  All sushi combos come with miso soup and a small salad with house asian ginger dressing.  Knowing what we wanted, we couldn't stop with just the combo.  We had to add the true guilty sushi pleasure---the crazy roll...to share. :)

As yummy as it is gorgeous!

Service was as expected---fast, professional and accommodating.  Our salads and soups came out quickly and something was pleasantly different about the dressing.  Not that it was at all bad before, but a small amount of yummy liquid sat at the bottom of the bowl and really kicked it up a notch...Stella agreed!  Seeing her eat salad is a real treat after the long standing protests from Ozzy.

We did end up getting Stella one of the kids meals as we weren't sure how she would respond to sushi.  We were happily surprised she sampled a bit of everything with great zest!  Her favorites were the sticky rice, orange pieces, and salad.  She wanted to like the shrimp, but the texture was too challenging for her to master without far too much of a choking hazard.  

The sushi was fast and especially pleasing to the eye as you can see.  If you haven't experienced the crazy roll...it really shouldn't qualify as sushi.  But it is such a delightful fried treat wrapped in a sushi package---basically a tempura roll with extra crab meat and some killer sauces to boot!  There's no denying this is a creation for the western palate.

We also went with two eels rolls, a tuna roll, and a shrimp tempura(as if there wasn't enough fried goodness from the crazy roll).  All fantastic!  Fred proclaimed being weak in the knees, while Libby silently stared off into space.
We were so glad to get out and get some really good food after such a long time.

http://www.ichiban31.com/

Wrap Up
Price-$-$$$,- Half priced Monday's still available, but for sushi, you can't complain about the price.
Atmosphere****,-Absolutely beautiful!!!  Well designed and no spared expense.
Service***,-Same good service we have always experienced.

Overall
Fred- A+ , The best sushi I've had outside the coasts!  With an atmosphere like that, it makes me proud to finally say there is a classy, high-end restaurant on the south side.
Libby- A+, Just what the doctor ordered.  A perfectly prepared meal in a quiet, intimate atmosphere that made us feel like we were going out, rather than just grabbing some lunch.
Ozzy- school lunch today.
Estelle- A+, Stella was not out of place in the least and seemed to appreciate everything she ate.  One happy baby!