Squealers BBQ - Mooresville' Finest!

I don't know if the title is true for sure, really, since I haven't been to every restaurant in Mooresville-- there are more of them than you might expect for the town's small size.  Like everyone else in Indianapolis, The Little Woman and I were going cabin fever stir-crazy, so when restaurants were allowed to reopen in the donut counties we fled the city for some dining out relief.  We had lunch at Squealers BBQ, 390 E. High Street in Mooresville, and surprise! We were seated immediately, at a table surrounded by off-limits tables to maintain social distance.  It's a sort of old-fashioned place with timber frame cabin walls, old metal signs and neon, etc., which is quite comfortable and familiar to an old fart like myself.  

TLW had the ($10) Breaded Tenderloin sandwich and a ($5) glass of house wine while I had the daily special ($7) Pulled Pork sandwich and fries along with a ($5.50) good 'n cold 22 oz. mug of Oaken Barrel Amber Ale. They have a good selection of both wine and beers.  The Tenderloin was quite good, pounded only medium thin with a fried-chicken type breading and seasoned nicely. The Pulled Pork was good but could have been a little more smoky for my taste, although their barbecue cookoff trophies on the wall might disagree with me.  I opted for their Spicy Hot barbecue sauce, which is EXCELLENT, a little smoky and sweet but not too sweet, and some very tasty heat to it.  I would have purchased a bottle to take-home (much to TLW's chagrin-- "Where're we gonna put THAT? You've got 4 other BBQ sauces already!") but their crew was beginning to get very busy with other escaping Indianapolites (er, Indianapolitans? I dunno).  Maybe next time...  YEEHAW!

Ralph and Ava's Public House:a Class Act in Mooresville

Continuing our Valentine's Day weekend, The Little Woman and I went for a (very) little drive and wound up in downtown Mooresville, Indiana looking for a good place for a late lunch.  We went into  Ralph & Ava's Public House at 6 W. Main Street thinking it was your average small-town bar, but it turned out to be a scrupulously clean little cafe with polished old-wood and brass decor that happens to have a full bar along the back wall.  There was a little group of well-dressed women at one of the tables who appeared to be taking a break from shopping...  

When I came to Indianapolis decades ago, Mooresville had kind of a country bumpkin sort of reputation, but it has become, like most of the satellite towns around Indy, a sort of bastion of middle and upper middle class living.  When we first visited M-town 'way back when, we went into a bar where there was a woman in curlers wearing a house coat, pajamas, and furry slippers who was drunk and playing pool.  We left a bit prematurely to avoid a fight when for some reason she took a shine to me and became kind of obnoxious about it! I felt disgusted and a little flattered at the same time.

That bar may still be there, but you would have to search for it among all the coffee and antique shops, tea rooms, and a vintage clothing store downtown.  Ralph & Ava's fits in nicely with them, but that's not to say I didn't like it.  They have an eclectic menu that nevertheless offers the usual pub grub. TLW and I split a Breaded Tenderloin Deluxe Sandwich and a bowl of Chili.  The tenderloin was excellent, pounded out only to about a half-inch thick with a very tasty sort of fried chicken style breading.  Our server thoughtfully split the chili into 2 small bowls: it was quintessential Indiana-style chili with fresh, quality ingredients and very little grease. It wasn't very spicy, but a little Tabasco cured that nicely. They have a number of local and imported craft beers on draft and a wide assortment of bottled beers as well, and the array of liquors on display was quite impressive. Despite all the upscale appearances, the price of our meal was not outrageous, still within $$ range.  SCORE!