Food & Drinks

Keystone at the Crossing continues to fill in in the gaps along its new restaurant row. You could chart a course with points of culinary interest along the way: Seasons 52, First Watch, Late Harvest Kitchen, the north-side Harry & Izzy’s outpost, and the recently opened Brewstone Beer Company, in the former Music Mill location. On June 7, diners will have one more place to refuel, post The Container Store. That's when Ocean Prime, an Ohio-based “modern American supper club,” opens its ninth location at 8555 N. River Road, on the eastern edge of The Fashion Mall.

When asked about the Indiana scene, Gunthorp says Indianapolis is taking the sustainable trend to new levels. “It’s going gangbusters,” he says. Chicago’s Rick Bayless is his biggest customer, but Chris Eley from Smoking Goose is a close second.

Indy's largest brewer, Sun King, appears to have conquered another frontier. At the taps at Victory Field, you can no longer order a Razz-Wheat or Victory Amber, both produced by Oaken Barrel in Greenwood. In their place is Victory Lager, a site-specific brew from Sun King.

With all of the crowds clogging breakfast and brunch places around town, we were excited that First Watch, the Florida-based “daytime cafe” with nearly 100 outlets in 14 states, had finally touched down across from the Fashion Mall

Truffled bologna from the deli case at Goose the Market (2503 N. Delaware St., 317-924-4944). Peppercorn-studded lunchmeat channels the nutty, musky essence of black truffles. The sweet-tart pickled red onions, sliced thin, flecked with mustard seeds, and offered as a deliciously bracing relish alongside the artichoke dip appetizer at

My fiance loves carbs, especially bread, in all forms. Sides of potatoes are a must when we make beef and noodles. And huge, doughy breadsticks come with every pizza delivery. Unfortunately, I’m no baker. If it’s a recipe that has any combination of yeast and precision, I will somehow find a way to mutilate it. Dough-making evenings usually end with emergency restaurant runs. And wine.

Jack in the Box, the San Diego-based hamburger chain that boasts over 2,200 stores in 20 states, has finally put down roots in the Indianapolis area, with locations in Avon (9769 E. U.S. 36, 317-209-8279) and Greenwood (8950 S. U.S.31, 317-883-3035), as well as a third eatery to open at 2130 N. Post Road on April 16. Hoosiers have already grown accustomed to the chain's eclectic menu that ranges from hamburgers and chicken sandwiches to tacos and teriyaki bowls. Even the Jumbo Jack and bacon shake have entered our fast-casual lexicon. But what local diners might not know about this recent transplant is that the chain's antenna ball-headed mascot, Jack, has a distinctive Hoosier connection. In fact, he and Indiana go way back, as witnessed in this Jack in the Box commercial that aired a few years ago:

In honor of National Grilled Cheese Day, we are having tomato-soup dreams about three of our favorites in town: The panini-grilled three-cheese version at Pogue's Run Grocer (2828 E. 10th St., 317-426-4963); the spectacular Scratch Truck grilled cheese adorned with red-wine–braised short rib, caramelized onions, and arugula; and our own monstrosity, Trisha Lindsley's Mac Daddy, stuffed with pulled pork and mac 'n' cheese, assembled by checklist at The Night Porter (921 Broad Ripple Ave., 317-253-5252).

Newly appointed as the head chef of Meridian Restaurant & Bar (5694 N. Meridian St., 317-466-1111) Layton Roberts brings some lusty, low-country cooking to Meridian-Kessler. (SPOILER ALERT: That means the return of the fried chicken dinner.) The 30-year-old toque, who started his career in Louisville before arriving in Indianapolis five years ago, headed up the kitchen at 14 West and most recently served as chef de cuisine at Mesh on Mass—an impressive resume in its own right. Using a dog-eared Meridian menu heavily annotated with handwritten notes as his show-and-tell, Roberts gives us a preview of what he has planned for one of Indy’s longest-standing eateries.