The Libertine
38 E. Washington Street
Indianapolis, Indiana  46204
http://www.libertineindy.com/

I am calling this a short review because my memory got a little dicey after a bender.  I was on double date and they have no clue that I write this blog, so I didn’t want to be snapping a ton of pics.  Plus, it was pretty dark in the joint, so I didn’t want to bring more attention to myself in addition to my baby face and chiseled physique.

The Drinks:

I ran through the three Tequila drinks on the menu.   I apologize for the lack of description, but again…bender, lack of notes, etc.

*Paloma Smash; $10.   Sold by our server as “if you like a Margarita, you will like this.”  Not the case at all.   I love Margaritas (not from a mix type) and I hated this drink.   The worst of all the drinks I had (over six drinks tested).  None else at the table liked it either.

The other two tequila drinks were very good.  The Nouveau Carre ($11) and the Gringo Reform ($11) were both winners.  The one with the egg yolks was my favorite.  The Pimms Cup ($10) was a favorite at the table and I was fond of it as well.   I drank most of my date’s order here.

The Food:  

A little bit of this and that.  Some really good bites in here.

*Hamachi Carpaccio; $11.  Held over from L’exploutour, I am glad to see it again.  As good as I remember it.

*Deviled Eggs; $8.  Didn’t love any of these, but I like the idea of them on the menu.

*Porchetta Sandwich; $13.  Get this and…you’re welcome.

*Sloppy Joe; $9.  Sloppy in execution.  Nothing special, but on a pretzel roll.  I liked that part of it.

*BBQ Ribs; $10.  Three bones and an awesome cole slaw with it.  The ribs were tender, but the sauce could’ve used a little heat.   Cole slaw should be added in some additional places on the menu.

*Tomato Terrine; $8.  By far my favorite thing on the menu.  Great presentation and horseradish with tomato, who knew?!   It was really really good.  I mean, really good.

Would I Buy It Again?   Yes.   A pretty much pointless post here, but I have heard from friends that they wait to go to places until I post it.  Go figure?   For the record, go and try it.   I really liked a few items here and there were a few that I didn’t care for at all.  However, the presentation and originality were kept at a high level.

This is the first week and the servers didn’t have a tight grasp on some of the drinks, though they were proficient.  I would like to for the menu to help pair some of the food and drinks together.  Also, the food menu is a bit over the place.  While I appericate the opportunity to put a sloppy joe right next to beef tartar, there is a touch of “jack of all trades, master of none”  going on.

Overall this is a good concept, good location and a very solid start.  I’m looking forward to seeing Libertine hit full stride.

-wibia

Tags: Bar, deviled eggs, drinks, Food, hamachi carpaccio, libertine, liquor, margarita, Neal Brown, porchetta, Ribs, sloppy joe, tomato terrine, wine

This entry was posted on Thursday, September 22nd, 2011 at 6:00 am and is filed under Food Reviews, Location: Indianapolis, IN. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.