NACHO NEWS Near-southsiders are rejoicing this week at the news that La Margarita—which closed its decades-old spot in Fountain Square in March, is reopening nearby, a brisk walk up the street. The family-owned favorite for tacos and cocktails will open a new location at 501 Virginia Ave. on the ground floor of the Slate Apartments. It’s the space last occupied by a location of Aroma Indian Cuisine, which quietly shuttered in recent weeks. (“How quietly?” you might ask. So quietly that the location remains listed on Aroma’s website and Instagram.) That address, once the home of Fletcher Place dining icon Rook, won’t be opening for business until the La Marg folks get their other project off the ground: Daisy Bar, their restaurant at Factory Arts District. That launch is expected in June, co-owner Jon Carlos Rangel tells me, so if all goes well, we might be crunching on nachos in Fletcher Place by this fall.
MAYOR APPROVED In his 2023 State of the City address, Noblesville mayor Chris Jensen teased a new restaurant called Bocado, set to open in the under-development Federal Hill Apartment complex near the downtown area. Less than two years later, the business—which is the sixth restaurant in local entrepreneur Hugo Zavala’s portfolio (he also owns Los Agaves and Mornings Breakfast & Brunch)—opened this week at 188 Westfield Rd. (317-764-2922) and is now named Bocado Brunch & Te’Kila. Hours are 7 a.m.–10 p.m., and the full menu—yes, that includes its breakfast and brunch options—is available all day at seats indoors and outside. “You can have tacos and tequila for breakfast and eggs Benedict for dinner,” he says. After the week I’ve had, that sounds pretty grand.
WAWA WONDER Readers, I need your help. Why are people so wild about Wawa? The national chain of gas station/convenience stores is coming to Indiana for the first time ever, opening its Daleville location on May 15, in Noblesville on May 22, and in Clarksville May 30. My East Coast pals can’t stop talking about the—I’ll say it again—gas station’s sandwiches, with one saying he “dreams about them” and hasn’t found any local options that compare. My esteemed former colleagues at Eater, all of whom have extremely discerning palates, even rhapsodize about Wawa’s offerings. As I click around on Wawa’s site, I do find myself slightly swayed by its stated commitment to equity and diversity, but even I admit that admirable politics do not always translate to excellent dining. The hype has me curious enough that I will drive my electric car (as if my prior sentence failed to establish my pinko creds) to that Noblesville gas station to see things for myself. If you have Wawa viewpoints to share, please drop me a line.
ROLLING UP Bloomington fave Gables Bagels will open a second location in Zionsville, Current reports. The bagelry began three years ago as a spinoff business inside college town restaurant BuffaLouie’s, when Queens-born founder Ed Schwartzman decided to take matters into his own hands when he couldn’t find NYC kosher water bagels in the region. Gables has since become a business in its own right, drawing notable weekend lines for its hearty sandwiches and schmears to go. The Indy-area outpost at Zionsville’s 270 S. Main St. will include outdoor seating on a wraparound deck and a to-go window. It’s expected to open this summer.
BURNING UP Blaze Pizza, the international pizza chain from the founders of mall carb vendors Wetzel’s Pretzels, announced a new wave of Indiana restaurants under a pair of seasoned franchisees this week. According to a press release from the company, Richie Patel and Manish Malhotra bring their experience owning locations of businesses like Arby’s, Teriyaki Madness, Zaxby’s, and Wings Etc. to new Blaze locations in Evansville (opening this summer) and Bloomington—both places, I’ll note, with excellent independent pizza options as well. Will those towns’ residents turn away from their neighbors’ offerings for Blaze’s templatized promise of pizza made in three minutes? We’ll see this summer, when the Evansville outpost is expected to open.
FARMER, FISHER(S) Plans are evolving for an urban farm at 106th Street and Allisonville Road in Fishers, the Star reports. The 30-acre AgriPark II will grow produce that can be picked for free and house farm animals, with a “wildflower field and native prairie plantings” also in the works. Development of the area, which will be managed by the Fishers Parks and Recreation Department, is expected to begin this fall, with a first round of picking planned for spring, 2026.
