Egg Roll #1

The quintessential classics that should be required eating for all Hoosiers. This is your eat sheet: A rollout of Indy’s 25 essential dishes, ranked.

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The hulking meatloaf biscuit with smoked cheddar sauce and tomato jam at 22nd Street Diner (2205 N. Delaware St., 317-602-6726) in the spot formerly occupied by LongBranch. Thinly sliced brisket piled inside a sandwich at Caplinger’s Fresh Catch (7460 N. Shadeland Ave., 317-288-7263; 15009 N. Gray Rd., Noblesville, 317-218-3221; 6685 Whitestown Pkwy., Whitestown, 317-769-0033). The Mi Sate […]

Gossamer-skinned shrimp spring rolls packed tight with meat and cool veggies that will tide you over until the noodles arrive at Pho No. 1 (4540 S. Emerson Ave., 317-787-2225). The Garden Table‘s (342 Massachusetts Ave., 317-638-0321) basil-infused espresso drink, Pablo Honey, sweetened with pepper honey for a smooth finish. The dramatic shrimp cocktail at Hyde Park […]

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So you’ve munched on corn at the Indiana State Fair and had your mouth set afire by a certain shrimp-cocktail sauce. But what are the modern-day rites of passage? We have answers.

A salad of fregula tossed with peas, black walnuts, roasted fennel, and pea tendrils shot through with nibs of Traders Point Creamery’s cheese—served on a plate dotted with sweet carrot vinaigrette at Napolese downtown.

1.    Fin & Shellfish Stew in a spicy Pernod broth at The Oceanaire Seafood Room (30 S. Meridian St., 317-955-2277).

2.    The banana-and-Nutella crepe at Petite Chou (823 W. Westfield Blvd., 317-259-0765).

3.    Eddie Merlot’s (3645 E. 96th St., 317-846-8303) Trio of Medallions—a mini steak flight of four-ounce filets. One has a bubbled crown of bacon and Gorgonzola, the second an elaborate Oscar treatment, and the third a mild peppercorn sauce.

4.    The Vietnamese beef bun at the recently expanded Egg Roll #1 (4576 S. Emerson Ave., 317-787-2225). A deep bowl of cold vermicelli noodles is layered with fresh greens, veggies, sprouts, and strips of caramelized meat topped with crushed peanuts and the most delicate fried egg roll hacked into bite-sized pieces. Addictive.

5.    Extra chunky potato soup at Kitley Inn (825 S. Kitley Ave., 317-357-3160).