Late Harvest Kitchen

Gone are the rustic mailboxes, the grape-vine wreaths, and the weathered tin watering cans. But chef-owner Ryan Nelson, former executive chef at The Oceanaire Seafood Room, has kept a good deal of the woodsy charm of the old Smith and Hawken location for his first solo effort, Late Harvest Kitchen (8605 River Crossing, 317-663-8063), which opened officially to the public on Friday night. We had fun trying to imagine where a bank of shelves might have been or whether we were dining in a former storage room or not (and dreaming of warmer weather to dine in the pergola outside). Nelson has definitely made the space his own, and a cozy bar inside the entryway, a dining room with sweeping ceilings, and elegant dark wood against white walls demonstrate the attention that’s gone into converting this former retail space into the latest seasonally inspired eatery to open in town.