Indy's Burger Joint: Good, but Good Enough?

Indy's Burger Joint is NOT in a strip mall, it's in a free-standing building on the lot of a strip mall at Emerson and Stop 11 Road.  Since it was first built that building has been one of those black-hole locations where no business survives for very long: It was a new Huddle House, then a couple years later it was somebody's blah blah cafe, then it limped along for several years under different owners as Diana's Diner.  Now it has been open for 6-8 months as Indy's Burger Joint, not to be confused with Teddy's Burger Joint at a different black-hole which closed a few years ago (but has reopened as Between the Bun's new location).

From the menu that had been circulating I kind of assumed it was an upscale sort of place because the burgers looked a little more like $$$ and they advertised a full bar.  When we pulled in at like 9 in the evening on a Sunday night, however, it had more of a greasy spoon ambiance that was only a little spiffier than the diner it replaced, with bright lighting, wood tables, and cushioned wood chairs.  The bar looked more like a soda counter with unlabled chrome spigots for beer and no liquor bottles visible anywhere. There was a faint musty odor about the interior, too, which I thought might be natural gas but The Little Woman took to be old sour mop smell.

Those unpleasantries aside, the food and service were very good. My Cantina Burger was like $12 but it was quality ground beef perfectly cooked and had a thick slab of pepper jack cheese, spicy aoli, and jalapenos that gave it some good heat and made it very tasty.  TLW's Turkey Wrap was likewise very flavorful, with the tortilla wrap nicely browned.  Both came with a mess of seasoned natural-cut fries that were reeeeeally good.  I paid extra to get the Garlic Parmesan fries with a garlic sauce applied as well as a generous sprinkling of grated parmesan, but the base fries were just as good. Our server was very attentive and kept our drinks constantly refilled.

All in all, we will likely eat there again, probably sometime early in the day when my beloved The Tailgate (which is maybe 100 yards away in the strip mall) is not yet open. It depends on the type of burger you want, but The Tailgate's charcoal-grilled masterpieces are equal to or better than IBJ's griddle creations and a little cheaper. Dangit, I'm hungry now!