Golden Wok
8350 East 96th Street
Fishers, Indiana  46037

We’ve been doing a lot of Chinese takeout place reviews here recently and that is a good thing, but I always appreciate knowing about good Chinese food.  That said, have you ever tried to find one that actually delivers?  It seems like it would be an easy task, but when you live in the Castleton area like I do, it’s really not.  On a recent Saturday, I was having auto issues and therefore was kind of tied down to having food delivered because I didn’t feel like cooking.  I didn’t want pizza, chicken wings or any other sort of concoction that a pizza delivery place would offer and I was feeling like Chinese, so I embarked on a quest to find a place that delivered.  After calling five different places, I finally found a place that delivered:  Golden Wok.  I had Golden Wok years ago, so technically this is not a “new” review, but since it has been so long, I would classify this as basically a first time offering (later when I got their menu after the delivery, it said they were under new ownership, so it ends up that this could be classified as a new review).

What I Got:  Roast Pork Lo Mein combination dinner; $6.99.  Includes entree, pork fried rice, egg roll and egg drop soup.

I’ve discussed how I test out a Chinese place on a first time visit before on this blog and using that criteria (“staple” dishes like General’s chicken or Lo Mein), I decided to order one of my basic standby orders, Roast Pork Lo Mein.  As you can see from the picture above, the Roast Pork Lo Mein combination comes with quite a variety of food and frankly, it comes in HUGE portions.  On the size-to-value scale, you definitely are a leg up on the competition here.

Unfortunately, that’s where any legs up ended because this food wasn’t even average.  It wasn’t horrible, but I would classify it as below average.  If a “C” grade is average, then I give this a “C-”.  The Roast Pork Lo Mein itself was bland, dry and the meat was tough.  The pork fried rice faced the same problems and that was not appetizing at all as it was as if I was chewing on crunchy, not fully cooked rice as opposed to soft,  pillowy rice as I would prefer.  The egg roll was also one of the greasiest egg rolls that I’ve ever had in my life and I honestly felt like taking a shower after eating it to get all the grease off of me.  Yuck.  The only thing that I found even remotely appealing about all the options was the egg drop soup and frankly, it was just average at best.  It lacked salt (a recurring theme in ALL the items) and the broth was a thick texture, which was unexpected and sort of odd.  The best compliment I can give the soup was that at least it was hot.

Would I Buy It Again?  No.   Huge portions are a good thing sometimes when they are good, but in this case, all the huge portions did was give me more bland, flavorless food to eat.  I definitely was not excited after this meal and I don’t think anyone else would be either.

The problem here is that it may be the only delivery option in my area and that could be a major problem.  Does anyone else know of Chinese places that deliver in the Castleton area?  I’d be indebted for life if someone could help me out here because I’m sure this won’t be the last time that I’m feeling lazy and don’t want to go get my own Chinese food.

-IndianapolisEater

This is my favorite in the city:  $4.75 for all this and a cup of Hot and Sour soup.   This is the Schezuan Beef at Sesame Chinese at 86th and Ditch.

So, what is your favorite cheap lunch?   Out-of-towners are welcome to play.  Just post a link!!

-wibia

OAKLEYS bistro
http://www.oakleysbistro.com/

Does the name ring a bell?  You may remember when we did our “Get to Know” segment with Chef Stephen Oakley.

I will save you the suspense, but I am a big fan of OAKLEYS.  A welcoming staff, casual/comfortable decor and most importantly, consistently good food.  I had a day off of work and decided to take my six month old to lunch.  Since it was special time with father and son, I wanted to give that boy some culture!

Soup of the day was Lobster Bisque ($6.25) and it is one of my favorites.  Like French Onion, it is extremely easy to make, but there are many horrible versions out there, so I waited with fingers crossed.  The soup arrived with an aroma and heat that cleared up my stuffy nose from the Indiana winter.  The soup was combined with a mirepoix mixture, a little rice and garnish with a little bit of herb oil.  It was a lighter bisque then average and had a hint of saffron in the broth.  I really enjoyed this soup and I liked the interpretation of adding the rice and mirepoix to the soup.  I have had three soups at OAKLEYS and this is my favorite.   It is definitely one of the better lobster bisques you can find in this city.

For the main course, I ordered:
Chicken: $12.75. Potato Puree/Bok Choy/Mushroom Puree/Giardana Vegetables/Pear Relish.
Honestly, everything sounded good except for the pears.  Chicken and pears, pears and mushrooms..not sure about this, but since I have been to OAKLEYS before, so I trust the chef and that is a good place to be in.

The chicken was grilled perfectly and I found the pear relish to be a surprisingly good addition to the plate.  Very balanced spices and I usually find myself reaching for the salt shaker with white meat chicken, but that was not the case here.  I used the mushroom puree as the “gravy” and the pear relish consistently cleansed my palate and added a nice crunch. I really enjoyed this dish.  Probably one of my favorite OAKLEYS meals, second only to a braised beef short rib I had there last winter.

Would I Buy It Again? Yes, and I will add to our Hall of Fame.  First review on WIBIA, but I have been there plenty of times before. OAKLEYS continues to be one of the better choices in Indy.  I like the fact that you can make OAKLEYS a special occasion meal or you could go there in jeans as if you eat there everyday.  I left the lunch with a continued affirmation that we truly have some great restaurants here in Indianapolis.

-WIBIA

Indy Winter Farmer’s Market
http://indywinterfarmersmarket.blogspot.com/

It’s funny what a personal invite can do at times.  I knew about IWFM, but after a conversation with Erin from Country Mouse/City Mouse, she said that I really need to come check it out.   I have made plenty of excuses not to go, but I told her that she would see me there within the next two weeks.  Last Saturday, my two weeks were up so I packed up Mini WIBIA and we took the twenty minute trek downtown.

There are over fifty tables and there is a good variety of just about everything at the market.   On my short list was to pick up some winter veggies so I can start making my son’s food instead of him eating 100% Gerber.   The bad news was that I only found just a few produce stands.  What was there, was really good though and there were a lot of winter greens to choose from.  However, I found plenty of other goodies as well.

Rene’s Bakery
My first booth was Renee’s Bakery where I had a chocolate chip cookie for breakfast. The cookie was excellent and definitely more about the chocolate than the cookie, which is the way it should be, in my opinion. In hindsight, I should’ve bought more here.  They had a lot of good looking bread as well.
http://www.renesbakery.com/

Country Mouse City Mouse
I picked up a Romesco Sauce and Red Lentil Soup. My Sunday lunch was a bowl of the Red Lentil and a grilled cheese… a dynamite combination. I really enjoyed the Romesco sauce a lot! I found plenty of uses throughout the week, including making a few crustinis with goat cheese and Romesco.  I really like the CMCM offerings as they are consistently good and comfortable food.  Just a reminder, they also do catering.
http://www.countrymousecitymouseindy.com/

Taste of Philly Pretzel - Country Mouse/City Mouse Romesco

Taste of Philly
I first learned about Taste of Philly from local blog Indianapolis Amy.  Amy’s blog is my favorite food/lifestyle blog in Indianapolis.  If you haven’t checked it out, you should!

Taste of Philly had a table of traditional Philly pretzels.   I bought the three link pretzel (can’t remember the technical name) and I really enjoyed this. It has a nice chew to it and was really tasty.  My only recommendation would be to add a little more salt to it, but I can understand the desire to error on the conservative side.  Pic is above…sorry, I ate a link on the way home.
http://www.indypretzel.com/

Nicole & Taylor’s Pasta
I am a big fan of fresh pasta but I don’t like doing all the work, so Nicole & Taylor’s is the place to get it from.  Every time I am at a farmer’s market, they are there, so I buy their pasta and am always pleased.   $1.50 a stack and super tasty.  This time, I picked up the Porcini Mushroom and Parpadelle.
http://nicoletaylorspasta.com/

Nicole and Taylor's Pasta

I really enjoyed my trip to IWFM. It appears to be pretty popular and they are quickly running out of space. FYI, if you have a young one, it is easier to leave the stroller out in the car and strap ‘em to you.

-WIBIA

I love soup, Hot and Sour, Lobster Bisque, French Onion etc…  I rarely make soup in the summer, it just doesn’t taste as good.  If I am having a group of friends over, I like to make a few things in advance.  This pea soup recipe is so easy and it always impresses the group (except for my wife, she hates this).

1 Bag of Frozen Peas (thawed)
1/3 Cup of Canola Oil
1 Can Vegetable Broth
1/2 Lemon Juice
Salt and Pepper to Taste

(You can also add a hint of herbs if you want.  Scallion, parsley, cilantro, chives, you get the drift.)

Toss all this in the food processor and press the button until it looks like something you want to eat.  Toss it in the fridge to chill, when ready…top with bacon, garnish with scallion and serve in a ramekin.

Simple, cheap and tasty.  Viola!

-wibia