In the age of Netflix, Hulu, and HBONow, where a movie night usually means sitting on your couch with a remote in hand, film-going is a becoming a lost art. But thanks to a growing number of film festivals and a dedicated group of local cinephiles, Indianapolis has been finding its joys all over again.
“It was outrageous, and the audience gave a standing ovation,” says Pauline Moffat of A**holes & Aureoles. “That was the night I knew IndyFringe audiences were open-minded and ready for the next generation of uncensored and unjuried fringe performances.”
Erin Edds always was a fan of the Bloody Mary, but she could never find one worth her while. When an event planner asked her to submit an Indy-centric pro-duct for some Super Bowl suite baskets in 2010, Edds, then co-owner of local gourmet packaged-goods company Country Mouse City Mouse, took the opportunity to fill the void. “If I could make a Bloody Mary that I loved,” she says, “I’d guarantee other people would love it, too.”
Small is the new big at Mass Ave bar-in-the-works, Tini, scheduled to open in early December next to Chatham Tap. True, it will be a martini bar, but the name speaks to more than the featured beverage. At only 1,200 square feet, this space maxes out at 50 people. Don’t be deterred by the size. The theme is Vodka and Video, with a full bar boasting more than 50 vodkas–including some local and organic labels–and six 40-inch flatscreens showcasing music videos. “Part of the whole concept is to bring back what I consider a lost art of music videos,” says owner Brad Kime, who envisions themed weeknights (such as a One Hit Wonder Night or Lady Gaga Night), with corresponding beverages. “It’s going to be a little more fun,” adds Kime, an Indy native and long-time local barfly. This is his first venture in bar ownership. “I know about the business from sitting on that side of the bar,” he says. “Now there are a lot of things I’m going to learn on this side of the bar.”
Art Bouvier grew up in New Orleans, where almost everyone he knew owned a restaurant, and he was pretty sure that wasn’t the life he wanted. He even moved north, seeking a corporate career that would keep him safely out of the hospitality business. But eventually the cubicle lifestyle wore him down. Good for us. In 2007, Bouvier left his seven-year IT career at Eli Lilly to open his authentically Cajun Papa Roux on the east side. “At the time, everyone thought I was nuts,” says Bouvier. “Now I don’t look so nuts.”
Chef Daniel Orr of FARMbloomington (108 E Kirkwood Ave, Bloomington) and Indiana University Press have released a new cookbook, Paradise Kitchen, featuring Caribbean-inspired recipes. You might be surprised at this Indiana native writing a tropical cookbook that includes the likes of conch chowder, pomelo salad, and saltfish beignets. But after years of working in kitchens in France, Belgium, and New York, Orr actually spent two years on the Island of Angu
By October, Naked Tchopstix hopes to be set up in its new downtown location, a 7,000-square-foot space in the basement of the King Cole Building (1 N. Meridian St.). Owner Maggie Lee expects to attract business folk for the lunch crowd and out-of-towners in the evenings. “So it will have a lot of smaller side rooms you can have smaller parties in,” Lee says. “But the basic idea will be the same. Good food, nice drink, in a comfortable atmosphere.”
Lisa Snow grew up in an Italian home that loved food, and she has been cooking handed-down recipes all her life. Last September, she decided to try catering, and “it kind of just took off,” she says. Tomorrow, she celebrates the grand opening of her 20-seat Cannoli Queen Cafe (1279 N. Emerson Ave, Greenwood, 882-1908), where she will serve up her best handmade family recipes, including sandwiches, pasta, and de
