Food & Drinks

You can’t fault owner Hal Yeagy for taking what was essentially a sad little shotgun saloon and turning it into a blues mecca, sprawling grownup amusement park, and Indiana’s most famous nightspot.

A bar crowd that had thinned (and aged) noticeably since the Aristocrat opened 80 years ago now seems to be reinvigorated, even on weeknights.

European and American football share time on the TVs here, but in the summer, most patrons crowd around the garage-door windows and focus their attention on the stylish denizens of Mass Ave.

One of the few grown-up watering holes in Broad Ripple, this mod bar has the polish and straight lines that make for a sophisticated place to drink.

The galaktoboureko, a warmed custard-filled phyllo square with hints of orange and cinnamon, from Santorini Greek Kitchen (1417 Prospect St., 317-917-1117). Get jiggly with it. Tri-colored fried cheese sticks at Brewstone Beer Company (

More than five years ago, Cincinnati native John Lanni and his brother, Joe Lanni, opened one of their quick-service Currito food-court counters in Circle Centre. Now, the brothers are headed back to the Hoosier state to prepare for something a little more (okay, a lot more) spirited: Bakersfield Mass Ave, set to open this spring.

Martha Hoover knows when to leave a good thing alone—two words: cinnamon toast—and when to make a good thing even better. So when the Broad Ripple location of Petite Chou (823 Westfield Blvd., 317-259-0765) closed for repairs after (have your Facebook page open, please) this awfulness happened, she took the opportunity to improve the restaurant’s flow and give the place a romantic makeover.

The 75-year-old former movie theater has anchored Broad Ripple since your grandparents were going there to see talkies.

This English pub caters to scarfed soccer fans, and apparently there are a lot of them. It’s perfectly acceptable to show up alone here and belly up to the bar for the house-specialty fish and chips and an Old Speckled Hen.

Its iconic neon sign remains a beacon for the downtown legal set, returning Noblesville expats, and, on Saturday nights, a raucous karaoke crowd.

Among sports bars in Indy—and there are a lot of them—this SoBro veteran remains the champion.

Well-dressed out-of-towners make fast friends around the white marble bar and the comfy couches of the lounge. Unlike most hotel watering holes, traffic flows in and out all day, making for five-star people-watching.

After two and a half years of neighborhood opposition over zoning for parking, Nicole Harlan-Oprisu and her business partners are finally preparing to turn the lights on at 5215 N. College Ave. in the former Movie Gallery location. Slated to open next month, Delicia (Spanish for delight) will focus on Latin-fusion cuisine and craft cocktails. This will be Harlan-Oprisu’s fifth north-side venture, having collaborated with Demerly Architects to create a chic, relaxing vibe, with urbanized adobo-style accents.

Sweet sticky rice with fresh mango, a rare treat at Siam Square (936 Virginia Ave., 317-636-8424). The nectar-ripe fruit is served with a room-temp puck of starchy rice thickened with coconut milk. New chef Christopher Bator’s whimsical take on banana cream pie with pistachio cream and a pastry tuille at

Editor’s Note: This story is a companion piece to our feature on Indy’s top 20 sports bars.