Tiger Lily
1146 West 86th Street
Indianapolis, Indiana  46260

Tiger Lily is new to the scene.   It is in the same place as Hunan was, between Ditch and Meridian on 86th Street.  Reviews on UrbanSpoon have been really solid and Indy Grub Review liked it as well.  The interior was comfortable and the staff was very attentive and welcoming.   So far, so good.   The lunch menu was a nice mix of something new and something old.  If you like Chinese food, you can easily find your favorites here and a few of their own creations.

What I Ate:  Schezuan Beef; 7.00   Included is an spring roll and crab rangoon.

The crab rangoon was good, but nothing to write home about.  The spring roll was interesting.   There were very small pieces of veggies inside and it was a little doughy.  I didn’t really care for it that much.  Also, they appear to be full size on the pic, but the spring roll is two bites and the same with the crab rangoon.

However, the sweet and sour and spicy mustard were really good.  They make the sweet and sour there and you can tell…probably the best that I have had.   I would buy the sweet and sour if they packaged it.   They do need to ditch the low rent ketchup and mustard bottles.

Next up was the Schezuan Beef.  The veggies of celery,carrot, onion and mushrooms were fresh and delicately cut with very consistent slices.  Notice that you do not see any oil on the plate, which I was glad to see.  The beef was a better quality as well and it was really flavorful with almost a crispiness on the outside.  I had one mushroom that was not cooked as much as I wanted it to be, but otherwise this dish was really good.  It easily exceeded my expectations.

All positive so far….well, not so fast.  If you read the blog, you know that I am not a light eater.  The portion size is a lot smaller than any competition.  I am sure that it is a portion that “we should be eating”, but I was starving and I was looking for a lunch that would fill me up.   This will probably make you lose your hunger, but not fill up the majority of people…especially my friends.

Would I Buy It Again?   Yes and No.  Their food is good, really good actually.  It was a very refined version of a classic, the service was awesome and this just tasted fresh.   However, they need to revamp their lunch menu.  Have the option to add on soup for $1-$2 or a larger lunch portion for $2.00 more.  I don’t care how you price it, but they need to find a way to put a little more food on the plate.   I can do two blocks away and get Sesame’s Schezuan Beef for $4.75 with a cup of soup.

With all that being said, I was surprised how good the food was.  I would love for this place to do well as it is nice enough for a weeknight date and casual at the same time.   I am going to go back for dinner and see what my wife thinks…

-wibia

Saigon Restaurant
3103 Lafayette Rd
Indianapolis, Indiana 46222

Yup, that is me…and my best Perez Hilton imitation.

Saigon is reviewed quite a bit, check out their page on Urbanspoon.  After reading Indianapolis Restaurant Scene’s review, I had to give it a try based on everyone LOVING IT!!!!!!

The interior of the restaurant was refreshingly clean.  The menu is big…Cheesecake Factory big.  I think over 140 dishes on the menu.   It took me about five minutes to get through, though the subliminal message of the sticker on the window led me to Pho.

What I Ate:  Appetizer Sampler $7.50.  #34 BBQ Pork and Seafood PHO.

The appetizer sampler included spring roll, egg roll, crab rangoon, rocket shrimp and fried dumplings.  Honestly, I wasn’t impressed by anything here.  I could squeeze oil out of the fried dumpling, the rocket shrimp were fried with a slice of onion mixed in.  The spring roll wasn’t bad, but not as good as others that I have had in town.   All in all, I was nervous to get my pho.

However, this arrived to quickly restore my faith:

The picture doesn’t do it justice.  The BBQ Pork was tender and excellent.  In fact, some of the best I have ever had. However, the general “seafood” title to the dish included shrimp, salmon,  and scallops.  The seafood was so overcooked that I found myself spitting out a piece giving my mouth a break from chewing.  The difference between the pork and the seafood was the food equivalent of Danny DeVito and Arnold Swarzenegger in “Twins.”

What really hooked me was the broth and the smell.  If I had a cold, I am 99% sure this would cure it.  I found myself just continually eating and drinking this broth…it was really something to talk about.  However, if you are not a fan of pepper, you might want to choose something else.

Would I Buy It Again?  Yes.  With 140 menu items, I am going to assume there are a few misfires.  I would get PHO again, but skip the addition of any seafood.

Btw, did I mention how big this bowl was?  I was starving and this is all that I ate.  There were a ton of rice noodles, about a pack and a half of Ramen (couldn’t think of a better comparison.)  See, check it out including an awesome painted on mustache on mini-wibia (he is in disguise to maintain anonymity)  However, he is possibly the best future eater in the land:

-wibia

Thai Papaya
3905 West 96th Street, Suite 1000
Indianapolis, Indiana 46268

WIBIA and I had been working together to help him move and we saw this place nearby.  Since I had never eaten Thai food before and wanted to try it (the food education of IndianapolisEater is a never-ending process), we decided to pop in here for a visit. 

What I Got:  Kao Padd Gra Prow (Pork) $9.95
Spicy Thai fried rice served with eggs, banana peppers, green and white onions and Thai basil.  Comes with your choice of soup, a spring roll or Thai salad (I got the spring roll).

Kao Padd Gra Prow

Since this was my first venture into Thai food, I figured I’d order something that seemed vaguely familiar, so I got this dish served with pork (chicken and beef were the other options).  You can also choose the temperature of the dish and the options were mild, medium, hot or super hot.  Since I’m semi-adventurous when it comes to hot food, I chose the hot option.  Despite this, all I can really say about this dish is “blah.”  It was pretty much just a pile of all the foods listed in the description with a nice spicy kick.  There was nothing really special about it and I must say that I was bored after eating it.  The pork was also a little dry, so that definitely subtracted from the dish as well.  If this had one thing going for it, it was a healthy portion size which was good because I needed it after the pathetically small spring roll that came with the dish.  Check out the picture below…that thing was barely bigger than a AA battery and was covered with grease.   It was not really appetizing at all.

Thai Spring Roll

Would I Buy It Again?  Definitely not. For my first venture into Thai food, I was not impressed.  Maybe it was the dish that I ordered, maybe it was the particular restaurant (this place does get positive reviews online.  Hmm…) or maybe it was just the food not being something my palate prefers, but I’m definitely not in a hurry to eat Thai food again.  It’s too bad too, because I really would like to expand my horizons and try all different kinds of cuisines.  

-IndianapolisEater