"Anonymous" chided us awhile back for not posting about Papa Roux. After visiting there, all we can say is "THANK YOU ANONYMOUS". There's a lot to love here. We love how cozy it is and how the owners made a humble space unique, warm, and inviting (even encouraging writing on the walls as is pictured). We love that iced tea is free (until 3:00, Tue-Fri with a meal purchase). We love that we now know where another muffaletta is in Indy besides the one downtown at City Market. We love that it is on the east side. We love that a husband and wife team are behind it and, must importantly, we love the food. The set-up is that you walk in, order at the counter and pay, then find a seat and, very quickly in our case, the food comes out to you. Everything on the menu looked good but we went with the Hoppin' Hot Creole with shrimp and the Spicy Sausage with Red Bean Gravy Po-Boy sandwich. There's a nice portion of the menu listing vegetarian options that you can keep vegetarian or add a meat of your choice. The choices of sides to have with the Creole were all tempting but we narrowed it down to cornbread and applesauce. With the hot kick of the creole we were glad to have the cool applesauce. The Po-Boy was so big that it could be made into two meals. It was as good as we've ever had- and we have had po-boys in New Orleans.
We are continually grateful to our blog readers for giving us tips like this. Remember, you can always email suggestions for places that we should visit, particularly if they are under the radar and you love them and want to spread the word so that they don't close in these tough times. We can't promise that we'll get there (and if we go and don't like it we just won't mention it) but all tips are welcome.
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Since you asked for under-the-radar restaurant tips, let me mention a couple of my favorites that fall into this category.
Ichiban Noodles
8355 Bash St (near I-69 and 82nd exit in Castleton)
Located in an old house-turned-Sheriff’s station-turned-restaurant on Bash St, just north of 82nd and just behind Loon Lake Lodge, this is one of the best kept secrets in town. A wonderful Japanese restaurant providing a full complement of Japanese dishes and a sushi bar. I love the ramen dishes, and their Katsu-don is great too. The place looks horribly off-putting from the outside, but just go in and try it. You’ll be glad you did. Lunch specials are very reasonably priced. Family run, very nice people.
Gyro ‘n’ Kabab
3681 W 86th St (near 86th and Michigan in the Goodyear tire store strip mall)
This place is just great. All kinds of fresh and full-flavored Greek and Lebanese food, all quickly made. Pictures of everything on the wall, just point and order. I love the Greek salad with traditional Gyros (about six bucks). My daughter loves the lamb kabobs over rice. During the week they have a large lunch buffet, which I think is $6.99. My kids love watching the Turkish soap operas, dubbed into Lebanese (or is it the other way around?) always playing on the big screen TV. This is also a great place for food to go. Also family run, also very nice people.
Tom B.
Thanks, thanks, thanks! We'll put those on our list.
ok I just had an etoufee that was like something out of a dream. the sausage was a little spicy for me but actually it wasnt too bad with all the creaminess of the etoufee, it was quite yummy.
the portion size was really generous, and the people there are quite nice. you do have to go up to the counter for drink refills though, they don't seem to have anyone that comes out to check on tables or anything. Not a real big deal, but worth noting.
looks like they have neat special events sometimes, like concerts and stuff. The dining room is on the small side, so I don't know how they can really do much, but it seems like a neat thing to have on the east side anyway.
overall it sure was a nice change from the usual, the food was good, lots of flavor, and at a good price considering the personal attention that goes into each dish.
thanks for writing about this place.
the etouffe was WAY better than what i had in new orleans! and gumbo like nothing i've ever tasted before.
ichiban noodles is good too -- i'm glad to see they're still around. don't get up that way these days.
a middle-eastern buffet? i'll have to check that out! papa roux is my new-and-forever favorite though!
I was up in INDY over the weekend and well to be honest, I wanted something different and not a connected to any chains. Then the local I visited was telling me about all the non-chain restaurants that were available or that they liked and well I like cajun food and so I said thats where I want to go. So we loaded up the car and had other locals meet us there too. I didn't know what to expect because the local said they usually have something 'special' that gets shipped in from New Orleans...but wasn't sure just had to look at the menu once we got there.
I settled for the Jambalaya (large - I'm a big guy) and of course red beans with rice and the cole slaw, it was off the hook!!! Got's to get that, no matter what you order, the cole slaw is a must.
I will tell you the Creole was spicey (my GF doesn't like spicey - but not always is it that spicey) so ask for sour cream to help soothe that feeling. :-)
As I was sitting around, I had a wild hair and HAD to sign the wall!!! TWICE!! Once up high over the 2nd door to the left in Red and Black & again over next to the head (bathroom) right at eye-level (red n black).
Thanks for the great food!!!
It took me long enough but I finally made it out here, and I'm hooked! We went last saturday, and fell in love with the shrimp po' boy. Then we heard about the dinner special, crab cake, a whole (big!) steamed crab, and a half shrimp po' boy.....for $20 a plate! They just drove a mess of seafood back from the gulf, so it couldn't be much fresher. I LOVE this place!!!
Oh, we're so glad you liked it. Now that we're not worried about repeating restaurants that we go to, we need to get back there.
Have driven past this little place for years. Decided to treat myself to lunch of red beans and rice with sausage. Corn bread. Bread pudding custard. WOW!!! Haven't had red beans and rice that good since high school in Biloxi long, long ago ('58-'60). I will be back ... and I will drag along friends who must experience the atmosphere, friendliness and the food.
Lee/Jan. 13, 2010
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