Saturday, April 10, 2010

Restaurant Review: R Bistro

I've been meaning to write this review for awhile. We visited R Bistro in early March for our anniversary weekend! The quaint and modern restaurant has been located on Massachusetts Avenue downtown Indianapolis for about eight years. The talented owner and executive chef is Regina Mehallick; she is a James Beard Best Chef semi-finalist this year which is a high honor.

We made a reservation for a Friday lunch. The service was excellent and our server very knowlegeable. He answered our questions and gave us some of the history of the restaurant, building, and surrounding area. We were very impressed. The winter lunch menu was unassuming but everything sounded delicious. The lunch menu changes quarterly to reflect the seasons and features local ingredients. While it's a pricey lunch, we felt it was worth every penny.

I ordered a panini which highlighted a local kielbasa sausage made just down the street, saurkraut, and horseradish. It was bliss...absolutely delicious and very likely the best sandwich I've ever had! My husband ordered a panini that had a sweet tomato chutney, bacon, avacado, and watercress. It also exceeded our expectations and was wonderful! Each sandwich came with a small mixed green salad which was a light and delicious accompaniment. After such delectable cuisine, we had to try dessert - it was our anniversary after all! I ordered the sticky toffee pudding (a British dessert) and was not disappointed. It was buttery, sweet, and divine. Andrew ordered the buttermilk pie which he liked but didn't love. We didn't want to reach the end of this meal - it was delightful.

R Bistro rocketed to the top of our favorite Indy restaurants. We will definitely go back for a special occasion! We would also enjoy trying their dinner menu which changes weekly to ensure the freshest seasonal and local ingredients. And we have it on good authority that recipes are not usually repeated for at least three years. I cannot imagine the exciting challenge of coming up with new and original items every week! You can sign up to receive their weekly menu via e-mail.

If you live in Indy or find yourself visiting our city, take the time to visit this excellent restaurant!

**Very unfortunately, I did not bring my camera and the attempt at phone photography just didn't work with the restaurant lighting.**

3 comments:

  1. Thanks for the restaurant review. Sounded utterly delicious. :-) Just wish I was nearby to try those mouthwatering dishes.
    Unfortunately I live halfway around the world...*sigh*
    Sometimes life is just NOT fair.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Have you seen Regina Mehalick's cookbook, "Regina's Seasonal Table?" It features recipes from the restaurant adapted for home kitchens with emphasis on seasonal and locally grown ingredients. We especially enjoyed "Traditional Irish salad with cream dressing" and her "White Chicken Chili."

    ReplyDelete
  3. The Cooks Next DoorApril 13, 2010 at 10:55 AM

    Yes! I was so tempted to add the cookbook to my growing collection but decided to wait and put it on a gift list. :) Thanks for your review of it!

    ReplyDelete