Seventeen outstanding new reasons to love the city, everything from a music-video bar to a trampoline park:
Girls Night Out
As if dulcet sips of New Day Meadery’s handcrafted honey wines and ciders (the Breakfast Magpie is black-raspberry heaven in a glass) weren’t enough to take the edge off after a long day, at “Mead & Knead” every Wednesday evening, the Fountain Square spot adds chair massages from Focus Therapeutic to its minimalist tasting room with fresh pops of yellow. How sweet it is. $10 for a glass of wine or cider and a 10-minute massage. 1102 Prospect St., 426-5721, newdaymeadery.com.
Big Burger
Matt the Miller’s Tavern stacks a 12-ounce monster to its tipping point with all the standard toppings—plus bacon, Swiss, cheddar, an onion ring, creamy slaw, and garlic sauce—and holds it all together in a rosemary-studded potato bun with a steak knife, without sacrificing quality for quantity. The Miller is the kind of crispy-gooey balance of meat and cheese that renders doggy bags unnecessary. $13.99. City Center, Carmel, 805-1860, mtmtavern.com.
Little Burger
Don’t call the Burger Snack at Bru Burger Bar a slider just because it’s half the size of the eatery’s behemoth sandwiches. The four-ounce patty (re-member sensible portions?) is made from the same blend of locally sourced sirloin, chuck, and brisket and dressed with the classics. Your eyes won’t pop out of your head when it arrives at the table, but your button won’t pop off your pants later, either. $4. 410 Massachusetts Ave., 635-4278, bruonmass.com.
Street Food
At La Chinita Poblana, a colorful taqueria in Broad Ripple, customers stand at wall counters inside to devour chef George Munoz’s evolved tacos with Asian accents, like blackened tilapia, red-curry–marinated skirt steak, and salt-and-pepper shrimp. Custom salsas, avocado crema, and fresh herbs further distance these eats from the last-call fare of your Broad Ripple years. 927 Westfield Blvd., 722-8108, lachinitapoblana.com.
Photos by Tony Valainis
This article appeared in the December 2012 issue.
