Broad Ripple Brewpub 840 E.65th Street
This is the oldest craft brewery in the state,opening in 1990. It was modeled after an English Pub. It is a series of several connected rooms,wood-paneled and rather dark. Just the right atmosphere for sipping ESB and single malts,not so much for picture-taking.
Pat and I have both been here before. I just never felt compelled to write about it because;frankly I thought the joint was a bit boring. Not bad just not too interesting. Well they have changed their menu and have added a couple of new and exciting brews so I thought today would be a good day to review the Papa of Hoosier brewing. They have always had a good selection of vegetarian dishes and with the new menu they offer even more. The also added a cheese curd appetizer for $8.75.
These were just plain good. A nice size with just the slightest outside crunch to offset the mozzarella cheesiness inside. I think these are possibly the best in town.
Pat ordered a Pub BLT for $7.95. You could get it with Applewood smoked bacon or veggie coconut “bacon”. For 2 bucks you can add Braunschweiger as well.
I was intrigued by the Thai spiced Pork sandwich,for $10.
Marinated in our ESB and slow braised with cumin, Chinese Five Spice and fresh ginger, flat grilled on toasted baguette with shredded carrots, spicy cucumbers, fresh cilantro and mayo. 10.00
Sound really great doesn’t? Unfortunately it reads better than it eats. The bread was hard,the meat was dry and offered little flavor. If they were trying to offer a version of a Bahn mi I can think of a few ways they could have pulled it off better. I also decided on a side of onion rings which were okay. Thin slices of onion simply coated and fried. Nice but nothing to shout about.
The beers were great. The stars of the line were two cask ales. A red and an ESB. Both were very drinkable. Pat tried a mix of the two. Pretty tasty. If you are a beer drinking vegetarian this may be the place for you. They have a nice new menu on their website so one bad sandwich won’t deter me from going back.
A beer-drinking vegetarian, what a way to live. 😦 One would think that a BLT would always come toasted, but it does appear quite solid, like it would fill you up for awhile. Sorry your pork sandwich was not a home run. Do you suppose they knew the bread was hard and meat was dry? I sometimes have to let a manager know, “I think you forgot to salt the beans today. They taste like air.” And then they come back and say, “Oops, we left off the seasoning.” We did try a new place last weekend, and their wings were tough and the “thai chili” tasted like only Tabasco, but two drinks later, we suddenly didn’t seem to mind as much. So at least the ales you had were good!
September 18, 2015 at 3:04 pm
Yep that and the cheese curds. You’re right I probably should have said something at least about the bread.Come to think of it I don’t recall the bartender asking. Oh well. I think their whole approach to the dish was wrong headed. But that is just one guy’s opinion. I would think that if you were a vegetarian you would have to drink beer. Lots of it.
September 19, 2015 at 8:21 am
Every time I see cheese curds on tv, I want to try them! We don’t have them here. And yes, I agree–lots of beer.
September 19, 2015 at 12:38 pm