Rosita's Mexican Breaks the Cookie Cutter!

The Little Woman reeeeeeeally likes Mexican food, so we probably eat 1 out of 3 meals out at one Mexican place or another.  There's one near our house that we frequent for the sake of convenience, and several others fairly close by.  They're all decent, but in most respects they are ALL THE SAME, at least in the dishes they offer.  So, imagine my surprise when we visit Rosita's Mexican Restaurant, 8908 S. St. Peter Street, in a (yawn) strip mall just across County Line Road from the Greenwood Park Mall, and find an extensive menu with many variations on traditional dishes and a few items I've never heard of. (Yes, I ended a sentence with a preposition, so what?!  It's almost impossible not to do.... DANG! Did I just do it again?  Sigh....)

We've been there twice, now:  on both occasions, TLW had two chicken tacos and loved them-- they use a LOT of cilantro and spices, so they were very, very tasty.  I had the Burrito Roqueta the first time;  it's a burrito covered with a yellow-green cilantro sauce, the likes of which I've never had before-- it was deeeelicious!  On our second visit I had the Fajitas Toluca-- a combination of steak, chicken, and shrimp fajitas combined with ground Chorizo in the sauce, which was FANDAMTASTIC.  My iced tea was real brewed tea, which is quite the find for someone who really likes tea.  The service was excellent, and the waitresses both times were quite easy on the eyes (OW!  Sorry, dear....).  The only thing not stellar about this place was that the rice and beans were good but just like everywhere else.  I can't wait to go back and try the Molcajete that everyone on Tripadvisor is talking about-- it's named after the Mexican version of a mortar and pestle, and I think its served in the mortar, a combination of various meats and vegetables cooked together.  Umm....  Comemos!

Janko's Little Zagreb: You Vill LIKE IT, OR ELSE!

Just kiddin' about that "or else" part.  Janko's Little Zagreb,  223 W. 6th Street in Bloomington, IN:  The name of the place was so intriguing to me, conjuring up images of Eastern European dishes-- goulash and waitresses in Gypsy costumes and such, but there's nothing really exotic about this restaurant, although they do have some Old World dishes on the menu.  It has old fashioned pine paneling, red and white checkered tablecloths, and Indiana University athletic memorabilia on the walls, so it's nice and comfortable but nothing fancy.  The steak I ordered wasn't cheap, but oh, was it something to behold!  Two inches thick, with a delightful light char outside and tender, juicy inside. Omigosh, I was in HEAVEN, I tell ya!  It's a good thing we don't live in Bloomngton, else I would be broke from eatin' there all the danged time, but FAT and HAPPY, too.  

Sushi Club South - Exceptional Asian!

My wife and I were out and about for lunch and wanted to do some adventure eating, and I don't know which of us pointed over to Sushi Club, 8028 S. Emerson Avenue #BB as we were driving by.  I'm not much of a sushi person, although the little sushi displays at Kroger stores have gotten me hooked on California rolls, so I figured I could eat those, if nothing else.  What a surprise this place was!  It has a simple but elegant decor which is very comfortable and from what I gather is much nicer than the other Sushi Club on W. 10th Street.  The menu has a wide range of items beyond just sushi, and they have an all-you-can eat deal for $20 per person for lunch (not sure what the dinner price would be), but you can choose to order from the menu instead.  She had the 3 sushi roll lunch for $7.99 and I had the Tempura Chicken plate for $9.99... or vice-versa, I forget.  Her dish was actually like 3 rolls of each of the three varieties she selected, and my Chicken was a big pile of grilled chicken pieces with a rich sauce, and both dishes came with Miso soup and some excellently-prepared steamed rice, so we had enough for leftovers.  I'm told that the dinner menu there is more like $$$, but the lunch we had was definitely worth the price we paid.  Shoku beyou!  

IT'S ALIVE! Nick's Chili Parlor

When I first arrived in Indianapolis 25 years ago, there were (I think) three Nick's Chili Parlors: one 'way up North somewhere, the original at 2621 Lafayette Road, and the one I knew in the strip mall on the Northwest corner of Stop 11 Road and Madison Avenue.  I ate there once, really liked the chili and vowed to return, but by the time I did, the danged place had closed.  In its infinite wisdom, however, the strip mall management left the sign for the place up on their marquee out by the street for at least a year or longer, taunting me.  "Don't you wish you could eat here again?" it would sneer. I think the Northside location closed, too, and I actually had no idea at the time where the original location was, so I just assumed they had all closed.

Fast forward to the present:  I had cause to drive up Lafayette Road for work the other day, and lo and behold, what do I see but a big Nick's Chili Parlor sign out in front of the original location!  Welllll, you just know I had to have me some, even though I'd just finished lunch.  I locked up the brakes, returned the obscene gesture of the trucker who'd been behind me, and pulled onto the lot.  Contrary to the photos you'll see on Google, the place is quite nice and has a warm, modern feel.  It was about 2:00 in the afternoon, so the lunch rush was over, and I was able to step right up to the counter.  It was then that my digesting lunch audibly reminded me of its presence... so I decided to forego the delicious-looking hot dogs on the steam table and ordered a half-gallon of chili to go for something like $16.99.  The two ladies behind the counter acknowledged my order and then resumed their conversation, with one complaining about how her family members take advantage of her, and the other commiserating.  They acted like I wasn't there, but they worked as they talked and soon had my order ready, so I didn't mind.  

To cut to the chase, Nick's chili may not be the best restaurant chili I've ever had, but it's darned close: The Five Way had a really nice balance of meat, beans, and spaghetti, with two big portions of shredded cheese and diced onions on the side.  The liquid part of the chili was not a broth, it was opague, thick, and delicious.  It was the epitome of Midwestern-style chili, flavorful but not very spicy, so I had to add some Tabasco sauce, but that was just for to satisfy my Southern tastes.  The Little Woman and I ate half of it that night, and the rest will surely disappear before the week is out. It's worth the trip up to the 'hood, y'all!  

Thai Recipe Restaurant - Authentic? WHO CARES, IT'S DELICIOUS!

Thai Recipe, 404 E. Thompson Road, is (say it with me) in a strip mall and the storefront is so small you might miss it if you're not looking for it.  The dining room is bigger than it looks from outside, thank Heaven, and it is very well-appointed with simple but elegant furniture and decoration.  Simple but elegant describes the food, as well:  For lunch I ordered Pad Thai (stir-fried rice noodles with scallions, bean sprouts, little bits of egg, and ground peanuts in peanut sauce) with pork, which was FANDAMTASTIC, and The Little Woman had Original Fried Rice with shrimp, which was soooo tasty I almost wish I'd ordered it instead.  Both dishes came with elegantly presented Tom Yum soup, a spicy semi-clear broth with two little cubes of tofu and a leaf of cilantro floating in it, and a vegetable spring roll, both of which were incredibly flavorful. All that for $7.78 each!  

They give you a choice of 4 spice levels:  Mild, Medium, Hot, and Thai Hot.  Hey, I love spicy food, so I ordered mine Hot, and it was right at that fine line between "Wow That's Tasty But Almost Too Hot" and "Where's The Damn' Milk Already!".  I imagine if you order the Thai Hot they also give you the business card of a good plastic surgeon to repair your melted face....  Mau!  (Sorry, I don't know any Thai words, so I stole that terrible Vietnamese line from The Deer Hunter.)

Smokehouse on Shelby: Great 'Cue, Sides are Hit 'n Miss.

(D'oh!  I wrote this in February, forgot to publish it.)
Smokehouse on Shelby is in the Fountain Square Theatre Building in the heart of, you guessed it, Fountain Square.  It's a really neat space right on the northwest corner of the building (I think when the building opened in the 1920's it was a big drugstore) that is a little bit dark, but with huge windows through which you can watch the passing hipsters, BluIndy shared electric cars, and people on ungainly PACER rental bicycles.  The huge dining area has like 20-foot ceilings, giant old B-movie ad posters on the walls, and 60's-era booths and tables.

Some colleagues went there to celebrate one guy's birthday, and since he's even older'n me and soon to be retired and/or dead, I figured I'd better attend.  I ordered their signature Barbecued Brisket sandwich, which comes with a pickle and two sides, and I ordered a BLT to go for The Little Woman.  They have quite an array of side items, so I had mustard potato salad and coleslaw, and she got mac 'n cheese and sweet potato fries.

I'll cut to the chase:  the Brisket Sandwich was EXCELLENT, cooked just right and very smokey and on a delicious soft roll, while the BLT was very good, with really tasty Applewood bacon and fresh lettuce and tomato.  The accompanying sweet potato fries, too, were GREAT!   The coleslaw and mac 'n cheese , however, were lackluster, being rather bland and tasteless.  I'm not a big fan of Miracle Whip, but Good Lord, man, you simply MUST use it in coleslaw, 'cause if you don't, the result is basically just milky cabbage.  They at least TRIED to create flavor with two kinds of cheese food in the mac 'n cheese, but whatever variety of Kraft singles they melted to make the sauce was 'way too mild.  So, IMHO, I will go back there again, but will stick with the MEAT and SWEET POTATOES.