We’re in the final days of summer and comfort is top of mind. That applies to food.
New restaurants around the Indianapolis area that have opened over the past month are rich with comfort food, whether it’s in the form of southern meals, takes on Hoosier classics or introducing us to Filipino fusion.
These restaurants deserve spots on your list of places to check out in September.
Natural State Provisions
414 Dorman St., Indianapolis, naturalstateprovisions.com
The team behind King Dough is opening this massive eatery and beer hall in Holy Cross in September.
Diners may remember Natural State as one of the inaugural kitchen startups at Fishers Test Kitchen, which served to show off the culinary specialties of chef Adam Sweet’s beloved home state of Arkansas. The southern fried chicken and greens served there have been tweaked though in the move into the new digs, formerly home to Rad Brewing Co.
Collard greens will be cooked with whiskey instead of the beer that Sweet has been using.
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The fried bologna sandwich gets spicy with pickled jalapeno, American cheese, red onion and secret sauce on Texas toast. With a side, it’s $12.
Also on the menu at the counter-service restaurant are fried catfish, loaded tots and a $7 smashburger with cheese on a potato bun. Dessert-wise, soft-serve ice cream and a marshmallow fluff banana pudding.
Expect gluten-free options, as well.
Drinks from Pax Verum Brewing Co., out of Lapel, Indiana, will take over the beer hall.
The 8,000-square-foot facility will have a dog park.
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Queen Eggroll
773 E. Main St., Brownsburg
The Filipino fusion take-out will have its grand opening on Sept. 6 with a specialty of egg rolls, as one might surmise from the name. These are lumpia style — typically thinner and smaller than the American version of Chinese spring rolls — and they’ll be about 20 varieties, including buffalo chicken, Philly cheesesteak and chicken alfredo. ($3.49 for a single, but also available in orders of three, six and 12.)
Dessert egg rolls ($2.99) include peach cobbler, apple pie, banana and strawberry cheesecake flavors.
Wings, fried rice and savory rice noodles are on the menu.
Restaurant operators Bryan and Myriam Murphy, a pair of Ben Davis High School grads, are no strangers to preparing Asian cuisine for local diners. They had worked at Myriam’s parents old Wok Right In at Lafayette Square Mall before its closure.
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T Street Eatz
City Market, 222 E. Market St., Indianapolis, tstreeteatz.wixsite.com
Fans of T Street Eatz’ Cajun pasta can get access to the dish more regularly, thanks to the pop-up restaurant’s participation in the new SOUL of the City Kitchen Incubator that opened at Indianapolis City Market in early August.
The signature pasta, among the elevated comfort foods, is the star here, with bowtie noodles tossed in homemade Cajun sauce, mixed peppers and onions and topped with chicken, green onions, diced tomatoes, bacon and parmesan cheese. But the menu ranges from lamb chops to crispy chicken wings (a not-so-hot honey sauce is among the varieties) with fries.
There’s also a knockout housemade punch ($4) with at least six fruit flavors, including peach, pineapple and green apple.
Get there early if you want the pasta or the housemade banana pudding cups. They sell out daily.
The Mash House
10 E. 191st St., Westfield, westforkwhiskey.com
Part of the West Fork Whiskey Co’s new craft beverage production facility in Westfield, The Mash House opened with a bang in August with diners rushing to get at chef Carlos Salazar’s Indiana-southern mashup menu. Think country-fried rib tips ($12); cornbread skillet ($8); and corn puppies served with maple butter ($9).
Salazar’s twists on staples include green tomatoes marinated and grilled and served over grits; a country-style schnitzel-fried tenderloin with a soubise sauce; and, for shrimp cocktail lovers, grilled jumbo prawns on a mayo-horseradish-ketchup base.
Contact IndyStar reporter Cheryl V. Jackson at cheryl.jackson@indystar.com or 317-444-6264. Follow her on Twitter: @cherylvjackson.
