Joseph Ball
Some of the city’s favorite restaurants are serving their last meals:
Zydeco’s Cajun Actual, a 26-year-old Creole spot at 11 E. Main St. in Mooresville, announced on social media that it will go dark on December 27 after its owners decided to sell its building. “We were hoping whoever bought would want to continue as Zydeco’s,” they say, but that’s apparently not the case. The restaurant will be open open Thursday through Saturday until its final day of service, for those wishing to pay their final respects.
A few days before that news, 10-year-old Broad Ripple bowls, soups, and salads spot Public Greens also announced it will shutter via Instagram, characterizing itself as “a trailblazing restaurant with a unique purpose: to serve as a gathering place for our community.” The business is part of Won’t Stop Hospitality Inc., the company behind Cafe Patachou, Petite Chou, and other local institutions. As of June, Won’t Stop has handed significant control of its business to private equity firm Hargett Hunter with an eye to expanding its core brand, so it’s perhaps unsurprising that Public Greens, with its less-scalable micro-farm model, has come to an end. Public Greens’ last day of service will be Sunday, December 1. (902 E. 64th St., 317-964-0865)
Two months after it shuttered its downtown location, Gallery Pastry has abruptly closed its 319 E. 16th St. outpost, Gallery on 16th. The shutter follows a spike in complaints on discussion platforms such as Reddit (a couple examples here and here) alleging unsafe food preparation conditions and making claims of worker mistreatment. In a statement to the Star, owner Alison Keefer said those allegations are false and that the decision to close the location was made because, according to Keefer: “I just had to refocus my time on my family.” As noted by the paper, at least two prominent local vendors have filed suit against Gallery in recent months; its last location, at 4573 N. College Ave. (317-820-5526), remains open as of publication time.
Brunch and lunch standby Four Seasons Family Restaurant (1935 N. Shadeland Ave., 317-375-0520) was seriously damaged in a fire Thursday, WRTV reports. “The cook and I walked in, turned the lights on, and within maybe a minute, I saw some smoke coming out of the lights in the dining room, and I ran back there and turned the breaker off with the lights,” an employee told the broadcast station. No one was injured in the blaze, but it looks like the building will need significant repairs to reopen. According to a fundraiser started by an employee of the business, “We are out of income and work day by day just to survive for our family.” As of this writing, a little more than $16,000 has been donated to support the restaurant’s 35 workers.
And now for some exciting new openings:
· The Garage food hall’s newest tenant, Yoke Social Table, opened this week with a menu of salads and bowls. (906 Carrollton Ave.)
· Max & Tilly’s, a British-style chip shop, has quietly opened at 8701 E. 116th St. in Fishers. Its menu includes standards such as mushy peas and Bakewell coffee cake, as well as more adventurous items such as vegan crab cakes and onion gravy poutine.
· SubDaze Sandwich Shop will open Monday at 640 S. Main St. in Zionsville, the IBJ reports. The sandwich spot comes from the owners of local mini-chain Fundae’s Ice Cream & Treats.
· The freshly renovated Omni Severin at 40 W. Jackson Pl. (just across from Union Station) boasts a couple new spots to dine, per the Star: railroad-themed coffee shop 8th Notch and Bar Cardinale, a restaurant and lounge with a German-inspired menu and “a speakeasy, Prohibition Era mood with decor inspired by The Great Gatsby and the Roaring ’20s.” (Surely, I am not the only person who is ready for the now-ubiquitous “speakeasy” trend to pass? Anyone? Bueller?)
· Salad chain Sweetgreen will celebrate the opening of yet another Indy location at Clay Terrace (14390 Clay Terrace Blvd., Carmel) on Tuesday, November 26, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
· Carmel steakhouse Lone Pine swung its doors open last week with a familiar set of local food figures in the kitchen and offerings including ribeyes, steak frites, and a burger. Bonus intel: Valet parking there is free. (710 S. Rangeline Rd., 317-907-0177)
· That’s not the only aged beef news for Carmel: The IBJ reports that Charred will open at 61 W. City Center Dr. at some point in the near future with a “cozy, dimly lit ambiance,” so those over 40 should bring a headlamp to read the menu, I assume. Meanwhile, St. Elmo spinoff 1933 Lounge announced via Instagram that it, too, will open a location in Carmel “in early 2025” in a post with an image that centers a large overhead light. Looks like at least one spot knows its audience.
· The downtown space last occupied by Pearings Cafe + Frozen Yogurt (6 W. Washington St.) will soon be home to Arden Cafe & Cocktail Lounge, an all-day restaurant with an over-the-top design ethos and a menu of—per the IBJ—“pastries, sandwiches, soups, salads, coffee drinks, and boba teas.” It had hoped to open last week but announced via Instagram that it has “decided to postpone our soft and grand openings until next month.” An opening date will be announced soon, it says.
