Indianapolis restaurants have been on the rise since the Super Bowl landed here in 2012, but the scene feels like it's just staring to hit its stride. And 2019 restaurant openings keepthe metro area on a tastytrack.
Competing with 2018 openings isn'teasy. We saw favorite-son chef Jonathan Brooks roll outhis second restaurant, Beholder, and win national accolades within months. Carmel blew up with cool concepts such as Sun King's food hall and 3UProoftop loungeatopswanky Anthony's Chophouse. SoBro turned into one of the city's most tasty crossroads with , well-known chef Neal Brown's Ukiyo Japanese restaurant and Kimbal Musk's farm-to-table Next Doornearby.
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Get the dish:Follow Liz Biro on Instagram
Lower-key neighborhoods such as SoBro continueto pop with new restaurants in 2019. Double fasten your belts and book your gym time. Yourbelly is about to bust.
Studio C by Greg Hardesty
Chef Hardesty may have been done with the restaurant business when he closed his highly respected Recess, the place where top Indy cooks like Abbi Merriss of Bluebeard and Jonathan Brooks earned their chops, but he was far from finished with food.
Since leaving Recess in early 2017, Hardesty has developed a plan foraculinary studio, hence the name Studio C. Scheduled to open in February at 1051 E. 54th St., onMonon Trail, the wide-open professional kitchen seating up to12 people, will hostcustom events, dinners, hands-on cooking classes andwhatever else Indy tells Hardesty they’d like to do. “Just a commercial kitchen with a table,” Hardesty said, a place to create.
Chefalso plans atake-out coffee shop there, regular joe but made with top-quality beans and water that’s been treated to produce the best flavor.
Caffe Buondi
If you love Carmel's Convivo Italian restaurant, get ready for this breakfast and lunch spot from the same owners. "Buon di" is away to say "good morning" in Italian. When thecontemporary, 100-seat restaurant opens in winter, next door to Convivio,11529 Spring Mill Road, days can begin at the espresso barfeaturing Italy's Lavazza coffee. Weekends will focus on champagne, but Caffe Boundi will also serve other wines, beer and co*cktails.
Menu planning continues, but co-owner Andrea Melani describeddishes ranging from Italian frittata, including a build-your-own option, to sweets, smoothies, bowls, galettes, sweet and savory toasts, classic American breakfast and off-beat waffles. The lunch list includes salads, sandwiches, creative savory waffles and favorite Convivio entrees such as lasagna, manicotti and eggplant parmesan. When the cafe opens for breakfast, brunch and lunch, Convivio will become a dinner-only restaurant.
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Sauce on the Side
Every kind of calzone you can imagine, including the ones you dream up yourself, are atthis St. Louis-based chain. The co*ck-A-Doodle Noodle made it on Travel Channel’s “Food Paradise” thanks to a filling of mac and cheese, roasted chicken, pancetta, mozzarella, green onions, garlic oil and spicy Buffalo butter. A Carmel location opens in spring at 12751 Pennsylvania St. Look for the Indy location atHyatt Place/Hyatt Houseunder construction across from Bankers Life Fieldhousein Downtown Indianapolis.
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King Dough
I’ve been telling you since 2016 that King Dough is bringing what I consider to be among central Indiana’s top five pizzas to Indianapolis. Permit and licensing delayed the originally scheduled summer 2017 opening, but a winter 2019 date is for sure. You may be able to get one of the crackly, chewy, wood-fired pies -- mozzarella stretched in-house, local produce, gluten-free options -- before Valentine’s Day, owners Adam and Alicia Sweet said.
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The Sweets Bloomington-based concept is nearly ready ata former auto shop in Indy’s Holy Cross neighborhood. Garage doors and a 45-seat patio surround the 452 N. Highland Ave. location near Flat 12 Bierwerks. Pizza is King Dough’s signature, but pasta, salads and, at some point, brunch will be on the Indy menu as well as Italian-inspired co*cktails.
Stiltsville
Past "Top Chef" competitors Jeff McInnis and Janine Booth of Miami bring awood-fired seafood restaurant to Meridian-Kessler by spring. Going intothe historic building that last housedBig Al's Superstore, 46th Street and College Ave., Stiltsville will host achef's counter bar and, in the kitchen,a chef's table where diners may be invited fora drink and tour. You might see how cooks build the surf-and-turf burger with butter-poached lobster and black garlic.
Read the full story:'Top Chef' contestants are putting a seafood restaurant in Meridian-Kessler
Shani's Secret Chicken
Fried chicken needs three things: crispy coating, spicy seasoning and a cherished family recipe. Popular Pakistani/Indian/Middle Eastern restaurantChapati does all three in 2019 at Shani’s Secret Chicken. The place is under development next door to Chapati, on the west side at 4930 Lafayette Road.Always fresh, halal, bone-in chicken and chicken sandwiches will be made using “Mom’s recipe.” Chapati also relies on family recipes.
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Ale Emporium
Greenwoodgets its fill ofAle's spicy sweet, dry-rubbed, fried-then-grilled Hermanaki wings when the Indianapolis restaurant brings what many people consider the city's best wings to the south side. The 400-plus-seat, family-friendly pub, furnished with around 120 televisions,opens in early spring, maybe before the end of March, at former Fireside Brewhouse, 997 County Line Road.
Wahlburgers
Still no word on exactly where Mark Wahlberg and his brothers’ burger restaurant will go. Gabe Schuchman, managing director ofALRIG USA Development, told IndyStar in August 2018 thatMark, Donnie and Paul Walhberg would be at asummer 2019 opening. Schuchmanand Wahlburgers' corporate office haveyet to respond to calls for more details, but ALRIG USA’s website shows an available space near Meijer supermarket on West Carmel Drive in Carmel.
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Gallery Pastry Shop No. 2
Brunch all day, perfect macarons, Insta-worthy European pastries and big picture windows to light every delicious bite. What could make this place better? Sit by the open kitchen and watch pastry chefs craft eye-popping sweets and specialty cakes. The Broad Ripple-based dessert bar opens its second location in summer. Watch it blossom at 1572 N. College Ave., in Old Northside at 16th Street.
Half Liter BBQ & Beer Hall
SoBro’s former Bent Rail Brewery was a huge space for Sahm’s Restaurant Group to tackle. Sahm’s did it withthree different concepts: Big Lug brewery, German-inspired Liter House restaurant and, coming in January, barbecue-centric Half Liter, all at 5301 Winthrop Ave.
Peek inside:Liter House restaurant brings German beer, food south of Broad Ripple
Indy chef and pitmaster Blake Ellis will oversee meat smoking in the two-story pavilion hosting glass garage doors on both levels and a view of cookingoperations. Liter House guests will be able to walk from the main restaurant to the pavilion without stepping outside.
Upland Brewing Co.
A huge beer hall, beer garden and brewery complex focused on barrel-aged and innovative, small-batch beersh*ts Fountain Square by spring at shuttered Value World store,1201 E. Prospect St. And, oh yeah, there’s a bicycle shop in the 13,000-square-foot mix, too. Arotating menu featuring local ingredients, hearty smoked meats, ancient grains, fresh vegetables and lots of vegetarian options is slated for the 225-seat beer hall.
Jailbird
Thunderbird owner Joshua Gonzales’next project is a south-side neighborhood bar with uncomplicated drinks, straight-up food and a name inspired by the Kurt Vonnegut novel“Jailbird.”The book explores labor vs. corporate, questionable authority, who we are and who we wish we could be. Such heady points may fuel mild debates over wings and beer at 60-seat Jailbird, 4022 S. Shelby St., scheduled to open, Gonzales said, “when it’s ready.”
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LouVino
Known for its no-pressure wine list and new American dishes inspired by Southern cooking, the 165-seat restaurant, already in Fishers, opens in FebruaryatPenrose on Mass, 530 Mass Ave., between East and New Jersey streets.
LouVino’s signature fried chicken tacos comepacked withcheddar, garlic mashed potatoes and pepper gravy. For brunch, there might bebreakfast “corndogs,” sausage links dipped in pancake batter, fried and served with spicy maple aioli.
Cake Bake Shop
The shockingly beautiful café that started in Broad Ripple and is known for towering layer cakes loved by celebrities opens in spring at Carmel City Center. This second Cake Bake location will be twice as big as the original, withoutdoor dining andfree parking.
"I am the most excited about having a large enough kitchen to make all the yummy things I want to make," owner Gwendolyn Rogers said. "I have been waiting to make beignets and pommes frites for three years now."
The Savory Swine
The Columbus, Ind.-based butcher business brings a two-story complex including a deli, meat market and lounge offering wine and craft beer at former 501 Eagle nightclub, three blocks south of Mass Ave.When it opens in spring, pop in for custom-cut and grab-and-go meats, eat-in or take-out sandwiches and heat-and-eat dishes like The Savory Swine’s popular lasagna with ground beef and housemade sausage.
Krueger's Tavern
The Cincinnati company behind crazy popular Mass Ave. restaurants Bakersfield (tacos) and The Eagle (fried chicken) adds this burger, sausage and canned craft beer place in mid- to late January at the Mass Ave. and Delaware Street crossroads.
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Named after the first brewing company to put beer in cans, Krueger’soriginal location, which debuted in December 2014 in Cincinnati., has 44 canned beers on its list. House-ground meats go into every burger andsausage, as well as meatballs. Most of the six burgers offered are classics, but each one is a double, including the ghost pepper jack cheeseburger with spicy homemade pickles and chipotle habanero slaw.
Maialina
The family that runs Ambrosia Italian restaurant near Broad Ripple opens this contemporary Italian restaurant in winter inside the Fountain Square Theatre building. Shareable dishes and a casual atmosphere are what owners Francesca Pizzi and her stepbrother Lawrence Green have in mind.
“We will be offering classic dishes from Ambrosia like lasagna and the tiramisu. We will also be offering new items like fried meatballs and zeppole,” Pizzi said.
The 80-seat place, with potential for sidewalk seating, will be family friendly but also include a full bar. Pizzi’s father, Gino Pizzi, launchedAmbrosia in 1979 in Broad Ripple and later moved the restaurant just south of the neighborhood.
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Blu Pointe Oyster
Ambrosia’s Gino Pizzi is behind 56-seat Blu Point Oyster Bar scheduled for a late spring debut at The MK apartments under construction at 5858 N. College Ave., at Kessler Boulevard.
Pizzi ran an oyster bar by the same name years ago in Broad Ripple. Consider this incarnation a full restaurant and bar, with a small oyster bar, that will serve some dishes from the original Blu Point as well as plenty of new items, Pizzi said.
The preliminary menu lists raw East Coast oysters, clam bakes, lobster rolls, chowders, clams casino, oysters Rockefeller, mussels steamed in red chili broth, from-scratch linguini with fresh clams, scallop ceviche with chili and orange and grilled baby octopus with asparagus, puffed rice and red pepper sauce. Pizzi described the décor as “clean nautical fresh.”
Another Patachourestaurant
The company behind the city’s popular Café Patachou restaurants opens itsPublic Greens concept in winter at the Cummins tower, 301 E. Market St. Like theoriginal Public Greensthat launched in December 2014 in Broad Ripple, the 75-seat downtown restaurant, includinga 16-seat patio, will offer cafeteria-style service of soups, salads, sandwiches, entrees, desserts and breakfast.
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Taxman Gastropub
Burgers, sandwiches, Belgian-stylefries andwaffles at Taxman in Bargersville and Fortville are about as popular as the brewery’s fine beers. The menu will be similar at this 3,000-square-foot beer garden and 130-seat restaurant launching in September at CityWay 2.0. The spot isat the Delaware and South streets intersection, near The Alexander hotel, downtown Indianapolis.
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Tried & True Alehouse
Launched in Greenwood in 2017, Tried & True lands on the north side, at 4825 E. 96th St., at the end of January. The 230-seat, family-friendly restaurant boasts “scratch-made food, cool sounds and dang cold beer.” Some 30,000 massively thick breaded pork tenderloins have come from the kitchen since 2017, making it one of the most popular dishes.
Expect 32 beer taps focusing on Indiana craft beers as well as co*cktails and wine on the north side.
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Hoagies & Hops new location
Kristina Mazza’s monster deli sandwiches, packed with meats from Philly and made on hoagie rolls from South Jersey, are just like the sandwiches Mazza grew up with in southeast Pennsylvania. The sandwich counter has been insideFlat 12 Bierwerks since October 2015. In early 2019, Mazza relocates the business to 4155 Boulevard Place, just south of Butler’s Hinkle Fieldhouse. Hoagies & Hops will serve Indy’s award-winning Chilly Water beer, some new menu items and plenty of televisions for sports fans.
Turchetti's expansion
Owner George Turkette has experienced rapid growth since launching as a wholesale charcuterie operation in 2016. In late August, he opened a weekends-only café in his 1106 Prospect St. processing facility. In early 2019, he adds a full-service, open-daily butcher shop next door. Besides meat, you’ll also find nearly every item on the café menu available fortake-out.
Daredevil Hall
Pair award-winning Daredevil ales and lagerswith food created by chef Neal Brown (Ukiyo, Pizzology). The developers are hush-hush about the menu and opening date, but dishes may incorporate beer, Daredevil co-ownerShane Pearson has told IndyStar. Wine and craft cider are also on the list. The restaurant, family friendly until 8 p.m., and taproom, for ages 21 and older, will occupy 4,200 square feet, including a patio, on Ironworks Hotel’s ground floor, 2721 E. 86th St.
Yard at Fishers District
This culinary complex where 12 food and drink spots and twice as many shops are planned has attracted various Indy-area food companies that will begin opening in fall 2019. The list includes 1933 Lounge by St. Elmo Steak House, Ironworks’ Sangiovese Ristorante, Sun King Brewing, Nicey Treats popsicles and the Meridian-Kessler area’s Kincaid’s Meat Market. Also scheduled are Havana Cigar and co*cktail Lounge and RAWkin Juice Bar. Yard at Fishers District is just east ofIKEA.
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Convivial Community Bar
Circle City Industrial Complex has been slowly growing into a food and drink destination over the past couple of years with the Indy Winter Farmers Market, Lick Ice Cream and Centerpoint Brewing in the mix. In late 2019, popular Fountain Square Mexican restaurant La Margarita brings Convivial Community Bar to 2,400 square feet on the building’s south end. The family-friendly spot will include a bar, restaurant, arcade games and craft beer.
Juniper on Main
Extensive renovations are underway at thelittle white house next door to Woody’s Library in downtown Carmel. Juniper on Main, 110 E. Main St., will serve"Southern coastal fare," according to the restaurant's Facebook page. Renderings depict a large, covered patio out front.
Midtown Brasserie
Chef Neal Brown's shuttering of Stella in late February at Mass Ave. and East Street came with some good news. Brown, the brains behind Carmel's Pizzology and SoBro's Ukiyo, announced plans for this upscale restaurant atat theart deco-stylebank building,215 E. 38thSt., between Central and Meridian streets. Brown remains in talks about exactly what Midtown Brasseriewill be and when it will open, but early on he said the restaurant wouldincorporate the bank's original architecture,vaults and safety deposit box areas, including a patio under thedrive-thru awning.
Follow IndyStar food writer Liz Biro on Twitter:@lizbiro, Instagram:@lizbiro, and on Facebook. Call her at 317-444-6264.
