Handel's Homemade Ice Cream & Yogurt (Fishers, IN)

8760 East 116th St, Fishers, IN, T: 317-525-8065

Handel's is a (North) Indianapolis institution with locations in the wealthy northern suburbs of Carmel and Fishers. It has an incredible selection of flavors of ice cream, including both classics (like chocolate and vanilla) and unexplained originals (like Buckeye, Graham Central Station, Elvis and Spouse Like A House). In addition, they have fat-free ice cream, seasonal specials, lowfat yogurts, pops, sherbets, smoothies, and sorbets. I was a bit intimidated by the choice, and confused by the pricing.

I tried to order three tastes, but was told that they could only fit two on a cone, so I decided to skip the dolce de leche and instead go for my favorite, banana, and one unique taste, that an old rocker like me couldn't refuse: Tin Lizzy. The banana was kind of bland, but the Tin Lizzy was simply decadent: vanilla ice cream with huge chunks of butterscotch and gooey caramel sauce. The cone with two flavors came to a whopping $5.35! And while it featured more like two scoops per flavor, I would have preferred just one scoop at half the price.

VERDICT: 82/100

Don't get me wrong, Handel's features some excellent and original homemade ice cream, and has enough different flavors to have you coming back for years, but some basic flavors are bland and both the portions and the prices are too much.

The Ram Restaurant & Brewery (Fishers, IN)

12750 Parkside Drive, Fishers, IN 46038, T: 317-596-0079

The Ram is a restaurant and brewery chain with locations in Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Oregon, Washington. I had previously eaten at the restaurant in downtown Indianapolis, but didn't realize that it was a chain. I probably wouldn't have returned, as the first time the food was underwhelming (despite many recommendations by colleagues).

This time I came at exactly the right time; not only was it gorgeous weather, so I could sit outside on the terrace, but it was also the 4th annual Burger-Rama, which features eight original new burgers for a limited time. I had a really hard time choosing between the Sante Fe Rodeo, Burger Dog, and Hog Heaven, but decided on the last one. The Hog Heaven ($9.99) is a burger with a thick grilled pork patty, which was tasty but a bit dry, fresh watercress and strips of carrot and slaw, some spicy powder ad sauce. The side of fries was very crispy and fresh.

VERDICT: 83/100

Given my two experiences, The Ram has not yet convinced me. To be fair, the Hog Heaven was probably not the best choice, and I do hope to return to sample the Burger Dog to provide a more accurate assessment.

Emmy's Original Pancake House & Grill (Avon, IN)

7508 Beechwood, Center Suite 300, Avon, IN 46123, T: 317-272-7200

Situated in what must be a former Chinese restaurant in one of the many strip malls along the US-36 in Avon, Emmy's doesn't look like a classic diner, but it is. It has a huge menu, including the obligatory Greek food (i.e. gyros). It specializes in breakfast, however. I had come across some good reviews of the place, but was skeptical after trying some other highly recommended places in the area.

I ordered the Big Boy's Plater ($7.49): the three eggs were perfectly prepared (medium over), the bacon was crispy, and the sausages had a nice taste. I had substituted the hash browns for wheat toast, which was basic but thick, and had chosen the banana pecan nut pancakes, which were thick and fluffy and not too dry. M ordered the Vegetable Omelette ($6.99) and added regular pancakes for a small additional fee. Both were much appreciated.


VERDICT: 85/100

Emmy's is a great old-school diner in a Chinese restaurant/game hall setting. It offers big portions of good quality breakfasts at very acceptable prices.

Some of This, Some of That (Indianapolis, IN)

This food cart moves around; its location can be followed on its Facebook page.

Some of This, Some of That (or SOTSOT) is one of the new food carts that have recently emerged in Indianapolis. It moves around the city, and tends to situate itself close to office buildings, as the owner makes most of his money on catering and uses the cart to get gigs. SOTSOT offer creole and cajun dishes, notably po-boys.

When we arrive on a regular weekday afternoon, virtually everyone ignores SOTSOT and the cupcakes cart next to it. I guess food carts are still something to get used to in the city. I order a Catfish Po-Boy ($9), which is freshly prepared in the cart. As we wait, the owner gives us a (generous) sample of his jambalaya, which is absolutely delicious. The po-boy is huge and features not just a fresh catfish fillet, which is lightly battered and spiced, but crispy lettuce and tomato, a delicious homemade creole mustard, all on a fresh piece of excellent baguette. It is a struggle to eat, and my hands and mouth are covered with sauce, but damn is it tasty!

VERDICT: 90/100

SOTSOT is a fantastic food cart with a great owner, who deserves more business for both his cart and catering. The food is amazing, but the price is a bit (too) high.

Cafe Olivia (Indianapolis, IN)

222 East Market St, Indianapolis, IN 46204, T: 317-385-7839

Cafe Olivia in many ways defies conventions: (1) it serves great food in a market all; (2) it is run by Asians, yet specializes in Creole food; and (3) it serves great sandwiches in the Midwest. It has a couple of entrees as daily specials, but stands out for its broad range of sandwiches, many original creations. Unfortunately, as all stores in the Market Hall, it closes very early (usually around 2 PM).

I have been to Cafe Olivia several times and my favorite sandwich was the Porchetta, which somewhat resembles the Cuban, but combines smoked pork with bacon and a homemade spicy mayo. Tragically, they recently changed the menu and dropped the Porchetta! :-( So this time I settled for the closest resemblance, which was a sandwich with smoked pork, lettuce, tomato, and spicy mayo-and I added the crispy bacon. The sandwich is full of flavors and comes on a nice baguette, which is crispy and absorbs the juices and sauce.

VERDICT: 90/100

Cafe Olivia serves the best sandwiches in Indianapolis, hands down. It has a broad variety of sandwiches, which come on some of the best baguettes in the city. Just make sure that you are there for breakfast or (early) lunch, as it closes early!

La Boulangerie (New Orleans, LA)

4526 Magazine St, New Orleans, LA 70115, T: 504-269-3777

Few things are what they seem in New Orleans, but La Boulangerie looks and is a real French bakery serving Old Continent quality bread, pastries, and sandwiches. It is located in Uptown, a hipster area close to Tulane University-and an oasis of relaxation after several days in the loud and tacky French Quarter. The place is always crowded with locals and tourists alike.

For a European stranded in the United States, who has enjoyed eight years of great bread and pastries in Antwerp, La Boulangerie is as close to heaven as you can get. It has an incredible range of breads and pastries, all freshly made with authentic ingredients. We had a whole range of things, which we spread out over breakfast and lunch. The croissant was crispy and flaky with a thin sweet coating-seriously one of the best I have ever had (even in France!). The chocolate croissant had the same base, but had two small sticks of high quality chocolate-delicious! The chicken sandwich had chunks of grilled chicken, lettuce, tomato, and egg on a solid but not crunchy baguette-very tasty. The apple cinnamon pasty was a fresh, not too sweet, flaky pastry-top quality, reminding me of the best bakeries in Antwerp. Finally, the almond chocolate croissant was covered with slivers of almond and filled with almond paste and chocolate-SCRUMPTIOUS!!! In addition, they had some good coffee too.

VERDICT: 97/100

La Boulangerie is as close to France as you can get in the US. It is not just the best French bakery I have visited in the US, it would even be considered a good place in Paris.

Sahara Mediterranean Cuisine (Lexington, KY)

306 Fieldstone Way, suite # 1200, Lexington, KY 40513, T: 859-224-1138

Sahara Mediterranean Cuisine serves Middle Eastern food in a strip mall on the outskirts of Lexington. The freshness and quality of the food is ensured by the shop next door, which is part of the same store. You go up to the counter to order, after first checking out the different meats on the skewers and salads in the counter. The variety is huge, although they tend to run out of certain dishes (undoubtedly linked to the fact that all is freshly made that day).

We ordered a regular humus ($3.29) and cucumber yoghurt salad ($3.29) as starters. Both were fresh and tasty and came with Lebanese bread. For entrees we had a Baba's Special ($11.79), where you pick two meats (I had beef kabob and beef shawarma) -which come with rice, bread, and garlic sauce, chicken shawarma over salad ($9.99), and Fattoosh ($3.29). The beef kabob was tender and well grilled, the chicken shawarma was tasy and came in an enormous portion, and the beef shawarma was ok. The Fattoosh was fresh and tasty and had amazing crispy pita chips in it. Everything tasted fresh, and was of good quality-particularly for a strip mall in Kentucky!

VERDICT: 85/100

Sahara offers some of the most authentic and fresh Middle Eastern food in the Midwest. Its portions are generous and come at very decent prices. Definitely worth a visit!