Hana Asian Fusion: Delicate, Subtle Flavors

Hana Asian Fusion, in the strip mall (where else?) on the northeast corner of Emerson & Southport, is a simple, elegant space with ultra modern furniture and fixtures and a light atmosphere.  They have a varied menu of sushi, sashimi, and cuisines from all over Asia.  I hate to say that I generally prefer my Asian food to be cheap, inauthentic, and bold-flavored.  Hana is none of these (although the price is just about right, at $$).  I have to admit I was favorably impressed, though.  Everything I had there was tasty, although in a delicate, slightly subtle way (hence the above title).  Service was excellent, and quite fast given that it is not a fast-food Asian restaurant.  We're definitely going back to see if their winning streak continues!  Hai!

Tom+Chee: A Great Concept Squandered

I happened to be up on the northwest side the other day when I spied this Tom+Chee place and remembered reading about it. It is part of a chain featured on the TV show Shark Tank, and which (I think) is based out of Cincinnati, which would explain why they have a sandwich called the ARMAGOETTAN, or something like that. If you haven't heard of it, goetta is like scrapple, ground up parts of the pig and cow which you would rather not know about but which actually taste really decent, rather like sausage. The meat or quasi-meat is mixed with an extender, which in goetta is steel - cut oats. I chose that sandwich because I was in the one place I've ever seen goetta available outside the Cincinnati area.

The place has a simple exposed brick wall and chalkboard-menu type decor which is reminiscent of a deli.  I purchased a BLT+CHEE and a bowl of creamy tomato basil soup for The Little Woman to go, and I had chunky tomato basil soup as well as my ARMAGOETTAN sandwich and a medium iced tea, all for only $27! (Holding up my SARCASM sign here.) If the price wasn't bad enough, the food certainly was. I mean, with all that gourmet cheese they supposedly use, you would think it would produce a rich, flavorful experience.

But it just doesn't... For all the greasiness and cheesiness, both sandwiches were rather bland and just okay. Same for the soups-- I'm sure there must have been some basil in there somewhere, but I couldn't taste it, and they could have used at least a FEW spices. Campbell's from the can has a better flavor, and it's a hell of a lot cheaper. I love the concept of this place, but to say the execution was disappointing is an understatement. Cue the WA WAAAAA horns, Charlie Brown.....

Greek's Pizzeria: What the Heck is a "Lotto" Pizza?

Greek's Pizzeria is actually a chain, but since most of their locations are in Indiana I guess I can consider it a local restaurant, right? No?  Well, by golly, it's my blog and I'll write if I want to....  We went to the one located in a you-know-what kind of building on the southwest corner of Emerson and Stop 11 Road, a very simply but pleasantly decorated place with red and white checkered oil cloth tablecloths.  They serve beer and wine at what looked to be more than reasonable restaurant prices, and the pies are not outrageously expensive, either.  TLW got the small (9") Chicken Fajita Pizza for like $6.95 and I opted for the Saturday special, a 12" Lotto pizza for eleven-something bucks. A Lotto pizza? The waiter/manager explained it is where you just kinda say "Hit me!" and they make a pizza with a little of this and a little of that, whatever strikes the chef's fancy.  I had mixed feelings about it, but what the heck, how bad could it be?  You know what they say about sex and pizza! (Read the Aunt Polly's post if you don't remember da joke.)

The great thing about her Chicken Fajita pizza was that even though it had spicy chunks of grilled chicken and jalapeno slices, it still tasted like pizza, unlike Pizza Hut's Mexican Pizza which tasted like a big taco.  The white sauce was good and the jalapeno's were not hot, just enough to nicely flavor the pie.  My Lotto had two pieces that were green pepper & onion, two that were chicken and bacon, two sausage and black olives, and two fajita chicken & bacon.  All were quite good.  I like how they didn't skimp on the cheese but you could still taste the red sauce, which was just a little sweet for my taste, although it went well with my Diet Pepsi. "WHAT? No beer? What kinda barfly are you?!" you might say.  This is one exception to my drunken ways-- no beer, no wine, NUTTIN' tastes as good with pizza as a good ole' cola.  I guess we won the lotto wit dis place! (Insert groan here.)

Aunt Judy's Country Kitchen: Comfort Food Worth the Trip.

Aunt Judy's Country Kitchen is in Franklin, Indiana, in the same strip mall in the 300 block of E. Jefferson Street as Bojack's Pub (see post), but to call the building a strip mall doesn't really do it justice: It runs at a right angle to the street, along a wooded creek.  It's a brick building which fits in nicely with Franklin University next door and stately houses nearby, so right away Aunt Judy's has more class than your usual home-cooking diner.  The pale yellow walls and brown wood tables & chairs inside make it seem like your Mom's (or your aunt's) kitchen, and all the tables have a little vase with a fresh-cut sunflower from JR Parker Flowers, the other business in the building (like maybe Judy is the J in JR? Hmm...) that completes the homey atmosphere.

The Little Woman had her usual Grilled Tenderloin sammich and I got one of the day's specials, fried Alaskan Pollock with fries.  The Tenderloin was near-perfect for our tastes, pounded out thin and nicely browned, with crispy fresh lettuce, tomato, and onion. The fish was so lightly breaded and fried that I was surprised it held together so well on my fork, yet it melted in my mouth!  That Judy knows how to fry stuff... my fries were cooked just right, though I suppose there was nothing remarkable about them.  We met several locals at different times that night who extolled the virtues of Thursday night at Aunt Judy's, when folks come from miles around to sample their Fried Chicken, which is to die for, they said, so DANGIT, we're goin' back!   

Aunt Polly's Pizza: The Original is Back!

Aunt Polly's Pizza & Subs has been around for at least the 24 years I've been in Indy, in various locations. When I used to work late shift it was on E. Michigan Street, I think, and they had the best cheesy bread and sandwiches you get at that hour, and at one time they were open 24 hours a day....  At some point, however, the business was sold, then went outa bidness, I think, but now the original owners are back and operating out of a small storefront location at 5339 E. English Avenue (which is in a building with two other storefronts, but I don't think that qualifies as a strip mall... or does it?), so their current business is strictly take out or delivery.  Their delivery service is amazing-- they will deliver anywhere in the city for a $10 fee.  They're open 3:00 p.m. to 1:30 a.m. or later, most days.

Everyone seems to be at least a little bit particular about how they like their pizza, so I will describe the HUMUNGOUS 18" works pizza we had and you can make your own determination.  They make their own pizza dough, and the crust is fairly thick yet kind of light and just a little chewy, which is not The Little Woman's favorite, but she didn't have any trouble wolfing down a couple pieces.  The cheese is deliciously tasty but there isn't a lot of it-- you could easily see areas of sauce exposed around the edges, so if you're expecting The New Bethel Ordinary's inch-thick layer of cheese you'll be disappointed. I liked that you could really taste the sauce that way. The Works has pepperoni, sausage, onions, and green peppers in decent amounts. It was a good, balanced pizza experience, so we'll probably order from there again. It's been said that pizza is like sex:  when it's good, it's VERY good, but when it's bad, it's still pretty damn' good!  I hope to try one of their famous sandwiches, next time.  Mangia! 

Guerrero's: Not Different, But Good.

Guerrero's is (say it with me) in a strip mall on the northeast corner of Madison and Edgewood Avenues. It just opened in the space occupied previously by Tequila's, and before that it was my beloved watering hole, Shigg's Digs, so it remains to be seen whether the Black Hole Phenomenon will suck this place under, too. They kept Tequila's rich dark-wood decor, which I like, although I suppose it does kind of make the place seem a little dark.  The service was excellent, with chips and salsa brought to our table almost as soon as we were seated.  TLW had the taco 'n enchilada combo plate and I ordered Camarones ala Diabla, wondering if I'd have to drink a gallon of milk with it like I did with the same dish from El Compa (see post). She said the crunchy taco was perhaps the best she's ever eaten, especially the shell, which was light, crispy, and flavorful.  She had it down before I could filch any of it, but she took pity on me and gave me part of her enchilada. (Actually, she almost always gives me part of her meal.  That's why I've been on the cover of OFG* magazine.)  The ground beef in it was especially tasty, very well-seasoned.  My Camarones dish was more substantial than El Compa's, having onion and tomato mixed in with the shrimp and sauce, but though decent, it just wasn't quite as delicious. It didn't set my lips ablaze either, which was a good thing.  The food was good even though it was standard Mexican fare, and the price was reasonable, so we'll probably be back soon.  !Andale!

*Old Fat Guy

El Compadre Taqueria: Some LIke It Hot!

The last couple times we've stopped in at the Green Door Lounge (see post), which doesn't serve much in the way of food, someone has come into the bar with a bag of tacos from El Compa Carniceria & Taqueria, in the same strip mall as The Door at 711 E. Thompson Road.   Taquerias are generally little lunch counters either attached to or inside of a Latino Market, kind of like the snack bars you old people used to see inside those ancient corner drug stores when you were kids, or so I'm told, anyway. Some have tables and chairs where you can eat, and others like El Compa are strictly to-go.  The tacos these good ole' boys were bringing in were FANTASTIC traditional Mexican soft tacos-- corn tortilla, chunks of tasty marinated and seasoned beef with cilantro and lime juice.  When I later saw that they have $1 tacos on Tuesdays, I had to stop in and pick up lunch for The Little Woman and myself.  I got her 3 tacos and the Camarones ala Diabla platter for me.  The guy warned me that the platter is very spicy: "Bring it on!" I said.  He smiled and said since we like spicy food, he would give me some hot salsa for the tacos as well as the green sauce he'd already put in the bag. I think heard evil laughter echoing behind me as I left the store....

The Camarones ala Diabla was a simple collection of shrimp in the devil sauce, with (I think) rice and beans on the side.  I say "I think" because the sauce wiped out most of the rest of my memory of the meal-- it was oh, SO tasty, but it was also oh, SO SPICY HOT!  Now, TLW shares my love of spicy food, but she took one bite and immediately ran to the kitchen to fetch us some milk and maybe a fire extinguisher.  Thankfully she had more milk standing by when she tried a little of the red salsa on her taco, because it set her lips on fire.  I think it was even hotter than the Diabla sauce....  I finished my meal because it was sooooo delicious, but I drenched my tongue in milk and it was still burning for several minutes afterward.  TLW very graciously gave me one of her tacos, and we ate them with the verde sauce, which was tasty but also had a little kick.  I think the whole meal cost like $11, so it was well worth it.  We'll definitely go back, but we'll go green, in regard to the sauce, anyway.  !SALUD!