Maybe I need to do a better job of reading calendars as these two kind of snuck up on me… 

From September 6th through September 18th, you can take advantage of Northside Nights and Savor the Southside.  These events are similar to Devour Downtown where several restaurants are offering deals at the $30 price point. 

What’s interesting about these two events is that the participants aren’t just clumped together in one small geographic area like the downtown event.  These restaurants consist of establishments scattered across their loosely defined metro areas.  For example, Northside Nights consists of restaurants in Carmel, Castleton, Fishers, Geist, Noblesville and Zionsville. 

For your reference, we have reviewed several of these participating establishments.  Here’s the list:

Northside Nights

Claddagh Irish Pub

Daddy Jack’s #1

Daddy Jack’s #2

Eddie Merlot’s

Mitchell’s Fish Market

OAKLEYS bistro #1

OAKLEYS bistro #2

Peterson’s

Pizzology #1

Pizzology #2

Sahm’s Bar & Grill

Scotty’s Brewhouse #1

Scotty’s Brewhouse #2

Scotty’s Lakehouse

Stone Creek Dining

Savor the Southside

Augustino’s

Fireside Brewhouse

Stone Creek Dining

So, if you are looking to dine with a deal at some quality Northside or Southside establishments, check it out before it ends on the 18th.

-IndianapolisEater

Zacky’s Hot Dogs
1315 South Rangeline Road
Carmel, Indiana  46032
http://www.zackyshotdogs.com/

There are a handful of people that know that I write this blog and I got two calls in the same week from friends that told me that I have to give it a try.   I like a good hot dog from time to time and I was pretty amped to give it a try.

What I Ate:  Chili Dog and Mac and Cheese and a drink.  Around $7.00 with tax

The Vienna Beef hot dog had chili, raw onions and cheese on it.  It was a normal sized dog and bun.  I have to admit, I didn’t think that it was anything to write home about.  It surely wasn’t bad, but there wasn’t anything about it that I haven’t had before.   I would be interested to know if the chili is homemade.  There was so much cheese on this, I could barely taste the chili.

The mac and cheese was pretty tasty.   I added a little salt and pepper and I really enjoyed it.  It had a little bit of a browned crust on it.  I can’t say that I would run there only for the mac and cheese, but I have no reservations in ordering it again.

Would I Buy It Again?   No to the chili dog, but yes to Zacky’s.   They are extremely friendly and this place reminds me of the million hot dog places in Chicago and Northwest Indiana (my ‘hood).  They have an Italian Beef sandwich and that is on my radar for next time.   They also have a lot of different hot dogs with bacon, blue cheese, Mexican dogs, etc.  You can get pretty crazy here.

-wibia

Stacked Pickle
12545 Old Meridian Suite 150
Carmel, Indiana  46032
http://www.stackedpickle.com/ 

Stacked Pickle has been around for a few years and is close to my new hangout.   Simple menu of burger, a few entrees, sandwiches, wings, etc…you get the point.  They have good specials, like a $5 burger on Monday night, so check out their website.  They are expanding to Fishers, so watch out.

What I ate:   The Cuban; $6.99.  Pulled pork, ham, pickle, mustard and onions on a hoagie roll.

When I think of a Cuban, I think of pressed bread.   This was the wrong type of bread here.  However, it stated it in the description and I decided to forge ahead anyway.  My bad.  To be honest with you, it was pretty bad.   There was a lot of meat, but all of it lacked flavor.  The mustard punched through everything else.  There was a lot of pulled pork, but very little ham.   Their fries are pretty tasty, nothing fancy, but they always hit the spot.

Would I Buy It Again?   NO to the Cuban, but yes to the Stacked Pickle.   The Cuban is a total miss on a decent menu.  I have been here at least five times and the food has always been average to pleasant and the service is always solid.  It is not going to expand your culinary pallet, but for a neighborhood bar, it is not offensive.  Also, if you are single, this place opens up after nine and on the weekends.

-wibia

Bellacino’s Pizza & Grinders
12590 North Meridian Street
Carmel, IN 46032
http://www.orderbellacinos.com/

Bellacino’s is a small pizza and grinder franchise with several locations throughout the city and also throughout the country.  Along with pizzas and grinders (obviously), they also offer salads, pastas, wings and a few other smaller items.

Spurred on by a recent Eversave (one of the many growing number of clones/competitors for Groupon) offer for the Carmel location, I decided to give it a shot for my first visit ever.

What I Got:  Reuben Grinder Combo (served with 22 ounce drink and cole slaw); $8.34 + tax.

The Bellacino’s Reuben consists of “Tender corned beef piled high, lots of sauerkraut, Thousand Island dressing and cheese.”  Being the amateur Sherlock Holmes that I am, I can confirm that all those toppings were on the grinder, although  the descriptions of the amount of corned beef and sauerkraut may have been a bit of an exaggeration.  It was definitely on there in a fair amount, but nothing about those amounts could be considered “piled high” or “lots.”  Oh well, I’m splitting hairs.  The sandwich also came with a pickle in addition to the cole slaw that came as my side (not pictured).

As far as taste was concerned, they nailed this one pretty well.  The corned beef was tender and flavorful, the sauerkraut had that wonderful bite to it that good sauerkraut seems to have.  The Thousand Island dressing was just regular dressing out of a bottle, not that I was expecting anything different.  What added an interesting and positive twinge to the sandwich was the fact that Bellacino’s oven bakes their grinders.  The oven baking melted the cheese, added a crispiness to the sauerkraut and made the bread delightfully crunchy.  When you mixed all these things together, you come up with a pretty solid grinder.  The only negative, if you can call it that, was that this sandwich was very messy, so grab some extra napkins.  As more of a personal preference too, the addition of spicy deli mustard would go along way to making this grinder even more of a winner.  Overall, it wasn’t the best Reuben that I’ve had in my life, but it was a very satisfying Reuben and that’s all I was really asking for when I went there. 

The cole slaw was homemade as well and was fresh (they had to make it for me since I was one of the first customers of the day).  It was crunchy and added a nice cool refreshing taste to the tangy taste that was brought on by the sauerkraut and Thousand Island dressing of the Reuben.

Would I Buy It Again?  Yes, I would.  Bellacino’s isn’t exactly near my neighborhood, so I don’t think I’ll go there often, but if there is one in  your neighborhood, I would encourage you to visit.  They have an extensive grinder menu and it looks like their variety covers pretty much all bases.  Give it a shot if you are ever looking for a pizza, grinder or both!

-IndianapolisEater

Lenny’s Sub Shop
http://www.lennys.com/

We’ve been to Lenny’s several times throughout the blog’s history.  First, wibia was there for the Italian Sub and the second time was wibia again with the Philly Cheesesteak.  I recently got a coupon for a free sub from Lenny’s, so I made my first visit for a review (I have been to Lenny’s before) and got something a little different from the previous reviews.

What I Got:  Half Club Sub; free with my coupon on this visit, but it usually runs in the $5-$6 range.

I had been a few years since I had been to a Lenny’s, but I always had basically considered it the same thing as Jersey Mike’s with one noticeable exception:  Hot Pepper Relish.  Lenny’s has it and Jersey Mike’s doesn’t and that is what makes the biggest difference between the two.  The pepper relish at Lenny’s is a gamechanger in my book and puts it way over top in comparison to Jersey Mike’s or any other comparable sub shops.

In this visit, I had them slather my sandwich in it in addition to having it prepared the traditional way (onions, lettuce, tomato, pickles, relish, orgeano, oil) and I have to say it was delicious.  It was the middle of March and the produce wasn’t in season, but it was fresh enough to provide an excellent compliment to the provolone, ham, turkey and bacon.  Back to the important stuff though…the relish…this makes the sandwich.  It’s hot enough that it is going to let you know that it is there and give your sandwich a little kick, but it is also mild enough that if you have any sort of stomach for hot/spicy foods, you aren’t going to be too bothered by it.  Basically, it’s the greatest thing ever.  Ha!  If you don’t have the stomach for hot or spicy foods, I would recommend that you stay away.

Would I Buy It Again?  Heck yes!  This is honestly my favorite cold sub right now and it upsets me that the nearest Lenny’s to my house is at least twenty minutes away on a light traffic day.  That seems a little far to drive for a sub, but it’s a drive that I’m willing to make periodically from now on.  It’s just that good.

If you have a Lenny’s in your area and the competition is between Lenny’s and Jersey Mike’s, chooose Lenny’s every time.  Both are very good, but Lenny’s is just a little better.  If you have other shops in your area and want to compare, well, I’ll leave that up to you.  Just know that the hot pepper relish is pretty tough to beat.

-IndianapolisEater

Jersey’s Cafe
13710 N. Meridan Street
Carmel, IN 46032
http://www.jerseyscafe.com/

After finding out that Jersey’s Café was on Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives, I decided to stop by and give it a try.  First, they have been open for 13 years?  Really?  Best kept secret in the Indy, I guess.  I looked at plenty of reviews on Urbanspoon and people seem to like it, but said the food can take a while. 

Right when you walk in, there is a sign that mentioned that food could take 20 minutes to an hour because of the increased volume from Triple D.  The restaurant probably has 20 or so tables, of which, 4 were empty.  The interior reminded me of McAllister’s with a bunch of Jersey things hanging up.  The odd part is that there is a corner of the restaurant that has a few shelves floor to ceiling of teddy bears.  It appears that they were for sale, but I was thinking…why would they sell bears here instead of using this area for more tables?  Odd.

Before I start talking about the food, they have two different menus.  One menu appears to be regular deli sandwiches and breakfast.  The other menu is cheesesteak and hoagies.  There were over 40 variation of cheseteaks and over 80 variations of hoagies and sandwiches.  It took me at least 10 minutes to get through the entire menu.

What I Ate:  Philly Cheesesteak (chips and a pickle); $8.99.

American cheese, steak, onions, mushrooms and peppers. Pretty simple, but all things that I like, on a bun!  The sandwich arrived in 20 minutes, which I was thankful of considering I might have waited for an hour based on the sign.

The sandwich itself was really good.  The steak was cut a little thick for my liking, but it had a ton of cheese on it and I liked the bread it was on.  I could’ve used a little more seasoning as I put just a touch of salt on it and some pepper.  Sometimes I put a smear of mayo my cheesesteak because it can get a little dry, but not here.  Everything here –  just worked and I really liked my sandwich.

Would I Buy It Again?  Yes, but with a few reservations.

What I liked:
*This is the best cheesesteak in Indy.
*The Hot Hoagies looked awesome, I am going to get one of those next time.
*Good value.
*Friendly service.
*The only great sandwich place in Carmel.

What I didn’t like:
*Long wait times to make a sandwich.
*Hard chairs didn’t make the wait time comfortable.
*Long menu.
*Creepy stuffed Teddy Bear corner with those beady little eyes watching me down my sandwich.

I am really not sure what to say about this place.  If Penn Station can make a cheeseteak in 5 minutes, then am I crazy to think that 10 – 20 minutes max is acceptable?  Good Food and Quick Food does not have to be mutually exclusive.  I can get a torta in 5 minutes in at any of my good taquerias…and they taste awesome. 

But, who am I to say?  They have been open for 13 years, so they must be doing something right.  If they could consistently push out food within 20 minutes maximum, I would be a frequent customer.  Good food is worth waiting for and I would sacrifice speed for quality, but one hour for a sandwich is not going to happen.  My two year old would never make it and that doesn’t leave me enough time to go there for lunch.  It seems like if they took their menu under 100+ sandwiches, then they just might be able to streamline the process a little bit.

Still, Jersey’s is surely worth a try – whenever you have the time.

-wibia

Muldoon’s
111 W Main St
Carmel, IN 46032
http://www.muldoons.net/index.htm

March’s Tenderloin of The Month brings us to Muldoon’s in Carmel.  Something tells me that I have had this one before, but I didn’t remember any of the details.  Muldoon’s is usually one of the most recommended places to get a tenderloin, so I thought that I would see what the hype is all about.

Muldoon’s is an Irish themed bar.  Just because a bar carries Guinness, it surely doesn’t mean that it is an Irish bar.  Now, I have never been to Ireland to experience the real deal, but my wife is of Irish decent so I will continue on with my consistent know-it-all attitude.

What I Ate: Breaded tenderloin; served with a choice of sides and I went with chips,  $7.95

Served on a toasted sesame seed bun and with a tomato, lettuce, red onion and mayo.  At first glance, this tenderloin was huge.  I ripped of a piece of the meat and it was juicy and flavorful.  The thickness of the tenderloin and the breading-to-meat ratio was perfect.  It wasn’t the overly pounded out thin and dry type.  Considering the size, I thought that it would be thinner.  I would’ve liked a little more lettuce and tomato, but what they gave me did the trick.  Chips were straight out of a bag, so I will pick a different side next time.

Would I Buy It Again?  Yes and frequently. It was one of the best tenderloins that I have ever had and a fine representation of the Indiana state sandwich.  At roughly $8, it is competitively priced and well worth a trip to give it a try.  On a number scale, I would give it a 9.5/10, only leaving .5 for anything that I run across that is better, if it exists.

In tenderloins we trust,

-wibia

Some Guys Pizza
12552 N. Gray Road
Carmel, IN 46033
http://www.someguyspizza.com/

Whenever I review pizza on the North side of Indianapolis, people always ask me if I have tried Some Guys Pizza.  Giving into peer pressure, I decided to give it a try.  Upon walking in, you are greeted by a server and taken to a table.  The interior is nice for a pizza place, but not as comfortable as most Italian Restaurants.  Also, the color scheme is right out of the 1990s, and so is the website. They could use a little updating. At the time, we were one of two tables at 6:00 on a Thursday night, however take out business was steady.

What I Ate:  Classic Pizza $14.25 for a medium.  Sausage, Pepperoni, Mushroom and Extra cheese.  In fact, my favorite pizza combination and the one I judge all others by.  My wife ordered the Penne Vodka $11.95.

They brought out complimentary garlic bread.  There were two different kinds, but they tasted very similar and were barely warm.  I was thinking, “uh oh…screw up garlic bread and how are you going to make a decent pizza?”

The pizza arrived promptly and overall, it looked pretty good.  There was a good amount of sausage, but it could’ve used a few more slices of pepperoni.  The crust was slightly thicker than Donato’s and had a little bend to it.  As far as the taste…eh…it didn’t blow my socks off.  I found it to be a little bland.  They could benefit from a dash of oregano or something…

On the other hand, I had a few bites of the Penne Vodka.  I enjoyed the Vodka cream sauce so much that I put the leftovers on top of my leftover pizza.  This was just sauce and noodles, no meat here.

Would I Buy It Again?  Ehh…maybe? I wasn’t disappointed, I just didn’t love it.  Here is the problem:  Some Guys lacks a niche.  If I wanted pasta and didn’t want to travel, I would drive a few blocks and hit Pizzology.  If I wanted pizza in the area, I would probably just order whatever is on special from Jet’s or Donato’s.  I have heard that they do an amazing Lasagna a few times a month and that might be worth a try.  Maybe they shine outside of the standard ingredients, who knows.

-wibia