Ideal Indian Wife Practice - Take 1

If you didn't already know, P is a young, single, Indian girl that is looking for a husband - sort of. But before she can find one, she needs to work on becoming a good Indian wife. Part of being a good Indian wife is learning how to cook Indian food. My other roommates and I have unselfishly volunteered to be her guinea pigs. So along with reviewing restaurants, featuring the occasional meals that I cook, I'm going to have this special side series: Ideal Indian Wife Practice, featuring P's preparation of becoming the ideal Indian wife.

Last night she made tandoori chicken and chickpeas. The other sides of cabbage & lentils and sambar were made by P's umma.

The Verdict: Terrible. Even though I ate every bite and got seconds, I don't think P's quite ready to be a good wife. She definitely needs A LOT more practice. Guess I'm going to have to volunteer again...and again...and again...

My rude boyfriend asked if I could take a lesson from P and learn to be an ideal Asian wife too by cooking more. He apparently doesn't believe I can cook. Maybe this will turn into Ideal Asian Wife Practice for the both of us....

Fat Dan's Deli

After my failed 8 mile run (damn you shins!), Mike and I walked (painfully) for something to eat and stumbled upon Fat Dan's Deli on Broad Ripple Ave. Little did I realize, it was on Jamie's restaurant list. Mike and I both thought it was just all right. Solid food...but not spectacular. Fat Dan's Deli has late night hours, and I think I would like it better after a night of drinking....

Fat Dan's Deli boasts to be a "No Bull. No Chains. No Gimmicks." authentic Chicago-style deli and pub. And that's exactly what it is. Mike ordered the Italian beef; I got the pulled pork; and we split the fries. The sandwiches were individually wrapped, and the fries came out on a giant piece of paper. Very, VERY casual.

The fries were hand cut, and you could tell because they came in all different sizes and shapes. Which was interesting, but made it tough to dip in ketchup. You're better off just dumping your ketchup on the paper the fries come out on. They weren't very crispy but it's probably because of the size of some of the slices.

Mike's Italian Beef was pretty good. The peppers give it a nice spicy kick and it works really well with the thinly sliced beef. I really liked the french roll that all of it came piled on. The bread was soft, but dense enough not to fall apart from the juice, which I wish they gave more of. I wish I had ordered that instead of my pulled pork.

My pulled pork was ok. The pork wasn't tough, but it wasn't incredibly tender or flavorful. They just put it on a miserable white hamburger bun that just fell apart. It was just a miserable sandwich. (but I bet I would have loved it after at 2am Saturday morning, like I love Taco Bell.)

The Rating

Info

Fat Dan's Deli

815 Broad Ripple Ave.

Indianapolis, IN 46220

(317) 259-7777

www.fatdansdeli.com

Irish Stout Stew

Warm stew and gin and tonics are required on cold Saturdays. Around St. Patrick's Day, I found this recipe for Irish Stout Stew using Guinness. Ingredients included beef, carrots, potatoes, garlic, and other spices. I cheated and put everything together and just boiled for an hour, instead of putting the meat in - boil 1 hour, then add veggies - boil another hour. Still turned out really well. Paired it with some lightly toasted Rosemary and olive oil bread and it was very yum. Recipe available upon request.

Sensu - Grand Opening

Last night, my friends and I went to the grand opening of Sensu in downtown Indy. For $10, we enjoyed an all you can eat buffet of samples from their menu. And if the samples actually represent the food that's going to be served there, this place is going to do fine!

The following samples were served: (Photos courtesy of Sensu Indy, except for the one of the scallops)

Variety of Sushi

Black Cod with Miso

Creamy Spicy Crab: Snow crab with creamy spicy sauce garnished with scallions and chives

Spicy Tuna Poke on Crispy Wontons: Tuna with chili pepper, green onion, ginger and soy served on crispy wonton

Tuna Flatbread: Ahi Tuna on crispy flatbread with greens, grape tomato, and wasabi aioli

Kobe Beef Toban Yaki (really tender!)

Scallop with Jalapeno Salsa (one of my favorites!)

Rock Shrimp Tempura with Creamy Spicy Sauce

Toast and Jam: Crispy Shrimp Toast with Spicy Tuna Jam (AMAZING!)

Wasabi Pea Crusted Salmon

All of the food was amazing. Some of it was on the salty side, but I didn't have anything too bad. My faves were the toast and jam, the creamy spicy crab, the kobe beef and the scallop. I didn't get to try the black cod with miso, and no amount of flirting with the buffet line attendant allowed me to cut or made him save me a plate. I should have put in more effort into my outfit. Oh well, next time.

Sensu turns into a club after dinner, and it looks like it has potential. It has 2 levels and looks really nice. They clearly put in a lot of money into the place and didn't half ass any of the construction and just called it urban or industrial. One down side is that in a place like that I really like to order my Extra dirty Grey Goose martini with bleu cheese stuffed olives. They didn't have bleu cheese stuffed olives, so I ordered something else. Boo.

The Rating

Info

Sensu Asian Fusion Restaurant and Nightclub

225 S. Meridian St. Indianapolis, IN, 46225

Dinner Reservations: (317) 536-0036

VIP Accomodations: (317) 488-9020

www.sensuindy.com

Baileys Brownies

Since dinner was so disappointing, I made some Baileys Brownies. I can't remember who gave this recipe to me, so I'm sorry I can't give you the credit you deserve. These are the best brownies that I've ever eaten. They're gooey on the inside with a slight crunch on the outside. Amazing. We topped our brownies with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and a drizzle of Baileys. Mmmm.... Definitely made the night better.

Tips

1. I prefer the Ghirardelli Baker's Chocolate. Melts really well and always tastes delicious.
2. To melt the chocolate and butter, use the double boiler method. This prevents the chocolate from burning.
3. Double the recipe. 1 batch doesn't seem to be enough.
4. Normally I'd say, the more alcohol the better, but don't pour too much Baileys on top. You don't want Baileys soup.

Baileys Brownies

2oz dark continental chocolate (75% cocoa)
1 stick butter
2 large eggs, beaten
1 cup granulated sugar
6 Tbsp plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
¼ tsp salt
2 Tbsp Baileys Irish Cream
1 Tbsp nut liqueur

Put the chocolate and butter together in a large mixing bowl placed over a pan of simmering water – do not let the bowl touch the water. Allow the chocolate to melt, then beat it smooth, remove from the heat and simply stir in all the other ingredients until thoroughly blended. Spread the mixture evenly into a well greased 7x11 inches (or 8x8) pan lined with baking parchment to 1 inch above the tin. Bake in the center of the oven at 350°F for 30 minutes, or until springy in the center. These brownies will be slightly crisp on the outside but deliciously soft within.

(If you double the recipe and use an 8x8 glass pan, cook time is about 45 mins at 350°F.)

Garuda Indonesian Restaurant

Like every day that I know I'm going to try a new place for dinner, today I was super excited to try Garuda Indonesian Restaurant. My trainer told me about it. It had just opened up a couple of weeks ago, and he said it was really good. So good, that he recommended it to me again yesterday.

We at the Part Time Animal House minus Sarah ordered carryout and shared the lumpia (spring rolls), Nasi Uduk (Satay and Lemongrass Coconut Rice with half beef/half chicken), Ketoprak (Noodles in Peanut Sauce with half chicken/half tofu), and Beef Rendang (slow roasted beef). Before you get too excited...I forgot to take pictures. :-(

But you're not missing much because the food wasn't good. The Noodles in Peanut Sauce were the best part though. They were tasty. The Satay and Lemongrass Coconut Rice was very underwhelming, but even worse, the rice was way undercooked. Maybe because we're Asian we are more particular about our rice? Eh, no. Undercooked rice is just no good. P did like the vegetable salad that came with it though. The flavor of the Beef Rendang was pretty good. It had a lot of spice and just enough heat, but the potatoes in the dish were raw which ruined it. Maybe because I love potatoes so much I am being to harsh? Eh, no. Because I love potatoes so much I kept eating the raw potatoes hoping for a cooked one.

The three of us were incredibly disappointed today. Since this place is still new, I'm going to give it another try in about 6 months.

The Rating

- for good flavors and potential

Info

Garuda Indonesian Restaurant

653 E. 52nd St.

Indianapolis, IN 46205

(317) 920-8121

P.S. Since this was sooo disappointing, I made Baileys Brownies. See next post.

Brugge

I've been to Brugge a few times and except for the beer, I never thought it was anything special. Crepes were ok. Mussels were all right. And fries are fries.

Maybe because I was craving mussels and fries that day...or maybe because I was really hungry...but I thought the food totally hit the spot.

Abby, Jamie, and I ordered mussels: Asian, Provencal, and Tomato Lemon Cream, respectively. All were very tasty. I took Abby's advice of taking out enough mussels until I could dip them into the sauce. The Asian came with seaweed which was a nice combo. Be careful if you eat the mussels this way because small pieces of shell could get caught in your throat. Although you'll probably be fine if you take time eating your food, instead of inhaling it like I did.

Sarah and P got sandwiches: Meatball Sandwich and Veal and Pork Meatloaf Sandwich. Both said they were just ok. I only have 1 picture of them because they looked the same. You couldn't see it under the giant pile of pomme frites. So thumbs down for presentation, but it sounds like the fries were the best part.

Mike got a the pork tenderloin with goat cheese crepe. I thought there was too much crepe relative to the meat and goat cheese, but it still tasted ok. I'm not a fan of the mustard sauce that was drizzled on top, but other people told me this combination was fantastic.

Overall, this was definitely a much more positive experience than before. Things to definitely try are the fries, mussels, and beer.

The Rating

- Thumbs up for the beer, half for the food

Info

Brugge Brasserie

1011 East Westfield Blvd #A

Indianapolis, IN 46220

(317) 255-0978

www.bruggebrasserie.com

Union Jack Pub

There are only two things I need on St. Patrick's Day: pitchers of Guinness and corned beef and cabbage. Union Jack Pub happened to have a special on corned beef and cabbage, so my friends that are new to Broad Ripple decided to go there.

I knew I could count on Abby to order the cb&c (and share) so I took this opportunity to try their deep dish pizza. I had read in a pizza food blog that Union Jack's deep dish was just as good as deep dish pizzas in Chicago. Be warned; if you order the deep dish, it takes 40 minutes! So if you're always late like me, then have your on time friends order it for you as soon as your server comes. And it was really good!

My boyfriend doesn't like deep dish pizza because there is usually too much dough and not enough toppings. That was definitely not the case here. I ordered my pizza with mushrooms and italian sausage, and there were plenty of both and tons of cheese. Mmmmm! The mushrooms were fresh mushrooms, not canned, and the sausage was the best part. There were huge salty, spicy chunks. I was really upset the next day when I was craving some of that pizza and realized I left it at the restaurant...HUGE fail...

I'm really glad I ordered the pizza, but I would have been just fine with the corned beef and cabbage. I didn't get to see the plate when it was first brought out, but everyone said that it was huge! Tons of corned beef, cabbage AND red potatoes! Definitely the best corned beef and cabbage that I've ever had. I wish they would add this to the regular menu. Until then, I'll just crave it until next St. Paddy's Day.

One Final Tip: St. Paddy's Day in Broad Ripple is ridiculous. Bring $5 for parking; otherwise, you'll spend 40 mins trying to find a free spot. And watch your food because the servers are super busy and distracted and will snatch your plate away while the fork is still in your hand! (True Story)

The Rating

Info

Union Jack Pub

924 Broad Ripple Avenue

Indianapolis, IN 46220

(317) 257-4343

www.unionjackpub-broadripple.com

Average Joe's

Every Wednesday, Mike and I have a date for wings 'n beer at Average Joe's in Broad Ripple. Why on Wednesdays? Why Average Joe's?

Because it's good and cheap; which are my two favorite words to describe food. Each wing is only 25 cents. The deal is dine in only, and there is a 6 wing minimum. So instead of spending $35-$40 on dinner, we only spend $6.75 - $15 before tip, depending on whether or not we get beers. Very cheap date! And there's FREE pool!

And you don't have to feel bad about all the fantastic wings you're going to scarf down. They're GRILLED! So they're way less calories than fried wings. (Unless you dunk each piece in bleu cheese dressing like we do. Eh.) Tip: Ask for them extra crispy/well done. You get a little more char that way. We've tried most of the sauces, except for the super hot ones. The hottest we got was Real Tough Guy, which isn't bad, but one day I felt like crying it was so hot. Out of the ones we've tried our 4 favorites (the same 4 we always order) are garlic butter, medium, hot teriyaki, and honey bbq. Average Joe's also has other food like fries, sandwiches, and pizza. All of it is typical bar food, but the real stars are the wings.

If you go, try to get there early enough to sit at the bar. The bartenders are great at taking care of you. One is super bubbly, and the other seems like a bad ass chick that could kick your butt. And I'm sure they're tired of seeing our faces.

The Rating
- Good and cheap

Info
Average Joe's
814-816 Broad Ripple Ave., Indianapolis, IN 46220
(317) 253-5844
http://www.averagejoes.ws/

Binford Cafe

Mike won a gift card for the Binford Cafe, so it was an obvious choice for breakfast over the weekend.

Binford Cafe is a small place with some tables, a diner counter, and a window into the kitchen. We felt like we were eating in someone's kitchen. There were family pictures and utility bills out. I'm just imagining this in my head, but it seemed like there were 3 generations working there. Parents in the kitchen; daughter is the waitress; and the grandson helps out where he can. Regulars went right up to the kitchen window and said hi to the cooks. That's nice to see.

The menu is standard breakfast food and sandwiches and some wraps. Nothing fancy. We didn't order from the regular menu, but the list of specials they had that day. Mike got the club omelet and I got the Hungry Hoosier (eggs, bacon, hashbrown casserole, baked apples, and biscuit and gravy) and a side of grits. Before you judge, I shared! Mike's omelet was pretty good. They didn't skimp on the fillings of tomatos, turkey, ham and bacon. And the potatoes were mixed with peppers and onions..yum. For me, the baked apples were the best part. They were warm and perfectly sweet. Everything else was just eh. I ordered my eggs over-easy, they came out over-medium. Bacon was extra crispy. The gravy had chunks of sausage, but was dry and needed a lot of salt. The grits were also very dry, but they made them with water instead of milk, which is what I prefer. When we were waiting for our check, the waitress took out some eggs benedict (also part of the specials menu), and it looked tasty. I should have ordered that.

I don't know if people are actually going for the food, but I imagine it's for the atmosphere.

The Rating

-Up for the atmosphere, down for the food

Info

Binford Cafe

6406 Rucker Rd.

Indianapolis, IN 46220

317-466-9631

No coupons, but they do offer a drawing for a free lunch every week.

Canal Bistro

This is one of those situations where I wish I actually used a real camera instead of my phone camera. The pictures I have do not do the food justice at all!

This was my fourth time to Canal Bistro. 3 of those times I went with my boyfriend, and we usually order the same thing. We'll spice things up by choosing a different appetizer, but we always split the same entrees. He orders the Gyros platter, and I'd get the lamb kabobs - served medium rare. If you don't ask for that, they tend to overcook the lamb. yuck.

The Gyros platter is very solid. It's big enough to split between 2 people. You don't get pita with it, but you get everything else and I prefer that. The meat is so tasty and really well seasoned. Definitely, my favorite gyro meat in Indy.

Since I now have a food blog, I thought I'd try something new. It was one of the best decisions I've ever made (food-wise, of course). I decided to get the moussaka.

And this is why I wish I used a real camera! It kind of looks like mush in that picture, but it was SOOOOOOOOOOOO good. The server described it like lasagna. It's a layered dish with potatoes, eggplant, tenderloin that's ground in house, creamy bechamel sauce and cinnamon. I was apprehensive about the cinnamon, but it made it smell so good and wasn't overpowering at all. My roommate broke my heart saying that it's difficult to make. I guess I'll just have to go back to Canal Bistro again.

Oh, we got the calamari for an appetizer. It had 2 big tentacle pieces and lots of small rings. The rings barely had any meat inside. It was pretty terrible, unless you like to only eat fried rings.

The Rating

- For the moussaka

Info

Canal Bistro

6349 Guilford Ave.

Indianapolis, IN 46220

317-254-8700

www.canal-bistro.com

No coupons found, but be on the look out for Groupon and Living Social deals.

John's Famous Stew

Sorry for being a few days behind. Had a busy weekend filled with Lady Gaga (Be jealous!), steam vac-ing, taxes and studying. I bet you're not so jealous anymore...

At the request or complaining of some people, there will be no more nicknames. Maybe, I'll bring some of my faves back when I'm feeling nostalgic. ;-)

For lunch on Thursday, some of my co-workers went to John's Famous Stew. This place that my friend would call very "blue-collar" is one of those places where I CRAVE the food. I can't give a full review because I only order one thing everytime I go there: The Tenderloin Supreme.

It's a giant tenderloin slathered in stew that has lots of onions, peppers, and other veggies. And it's gooooood...Out of the 7 of us there, 5 of us ordered the tenderloin supreme. That should tell you something. The other 2 both ordered the stew, and it also looked really good. Since they are co-workers, I held back and didn't ask if I could try it. I haven't introduced them to "Sharing is Caring" yet. They both said their stew was delicious...maybe next time....

What adds to the experience here are the waitresses. They love the regulars (one of my coworkers is a regular), and hate you if you're difficult. You're not going to get super polite servers that do the most for you. You'll get gals that tell you how it is and give you "that look" if you try to make their life difficult. So make sure you know what you want. ;-)

And in case you were wondering, I indeed ate all of my tenderloin....mmmmm.......(Z-Weesy could not. ;-) )

The Rating

- Good and decently priced. Most of my coworkers gave this same rating.

Info

John's Famous Stew

1146 Kentucky Avenue

Indianapolis, IN 46221

317-636-6212

indysfamousstew.com

Coupons are available on their website and on coupons4indy.com

Caracas Arepas Grill

Tonight, we at the Part-Time Animal House decided to try Caracas Arepas Grill. J-Swizzle wanted to try this place after driving passed it multiple times. (RosWoww commented that she drives too quickly through the area to notice it.) Caracas Arepas Grill serves Venezuelan food. It's very cute when you walk in. RosWoww described it as a "diamond in the rough". The decor is a mix between cute/modern/ethnic/country. For some reason, there are a lot of pictures of chickens. They had Spanish TV and the Spanish versions of songs playing. While we were there we heard the Pocahontas soundtrack and Beyonce's If I Were a Boy. Definitely added to the atmosphere.

Our motto at the Part-Time Animal House is that Sharing Is Caring. We each order something different and share, so that we're able to try a variety of things off the menu. To start, we got Patacones Con Esmechada and Tequenos. The Patacones were fried plantains with shredded meat and white cheese on top. The Tequenos were fried cheese sticks, which reminded me of popcorn because of the corn batter. Both were yummy, but everyone liked the Patacones better.

For the main meal, PP aka Pooki ordered Arepa de Pabellon (left) and J-Swizzle ordered Arepa Reina (right). They were like sandwiches with dense corncakes as the bread. PP aka Pooki noted how heavy her arepa was compared to how it looked. Pooki's Arepa de Pabellon was my favorite. It had black beans, shredded beef, and fried sweet plantains. I thought the plaintains made the sandwich. The Arepa Reina was like chicken salad with chicken, avocado, and mayo.

At the waitress' recommendation, I ordered the Carne Guisada. Personally, I didn't think it was anything special. The beef was really tender, but other than that it was just some potatoes, beans, rice and plaintains. The others seemed to like it though. And for only $7, it was definitely worth trying.

The group's favorite dish belonged to RosWoww. She ordered the Chicken Sandwich. She's sleeping; otherwise I'd ask her the actual name. And it was so good! It had chicken, ham, and a fried egg. The bread was soft and a good balance with the meat. Surprisingly, this sandwich came with Arby's style curly fries. RosWoww said the fries were way better than Arby's fries.

The Rating

J-Swizzle: Good, but won't crave it like other food.

PP aka Pookie: Just all right.

RosWoww: Really good, but she only got one glass of water. Water refill is very important to RosWoww.

V: Not food baby good, but it's cheap!

Info:

Caracas Arepas Grill

7940 N. Michigan Rd., Suite 17-18

Indianapolis, IN 46268

317-228-9550

$

Coupons for this restaurant are available on www.coupons4indy.com.