Valerie S.'s Profile

**Incorrect website -- they are only on twitter @sweetjeanius1**

Food Tried:
- Grand Velvet Cupcake ($4)

I've talked and thought frequently about market weight, which I'm fairly certain is my term for what business people call something else entirely. By market weight, I mean how much weight the market can bear in a particular industry. For example, how many food trucks can the city of Indianapolis have before the market is overburdened and those trucks start to relatively lose business?

Sweet Jeanius has two things going for it that make me less concerned about their immediate business future as the economy continues to add trucks:
1. They don't come downtown often, preferring to stay up north in Kokomo, meaning that when they do, all of the food truckies and food truck collectors want to try them.
2. They are a dessert truck. One can never have too much dessert. Okay, that's not true, but having options in the dessert truck sub-market is a good thing.
Specializing in cookies, brownies, pies, puddings and cupcakes, Sweet Jeanius is a great end to a food truck based meal, and you'll likely find them out and about with Rollin Wit Da Roux. It's really a great setup.

I have been meaning to catch up with them since the Super Bowl (like I said, they're not around often), with my eyes set on the Grand Velvet cupcake. There are some words that when used to describe food just exponentially increase the likelihood I will order them, and "grand" is one of them. The Grand Velvet has a Ghiradelli chocolate center, Grand Marnier infused cream cheese frosting. With that kind of product placement, you know it's going to be good. Moist, fluffy, and the exact flavor to teach you how dynamic red velvet tastes. I was busy stuffing myself with dinner foods at the First Friday Food Truck Fest, but grabbed a Grand Velvet prior to leaving. When I started home, it looked great. When I got home, the heat had done a number on that pretty icing. Not to be dissuaded, I enjoyed every bite anyway, and it tasted just as good all melty.

For the size of the cupcake, which I have a feeling was really meant to be shared -- you can bet there was none of that sharing nonsense when I tried it -- it's a very reasonable cap on an evening of street food. There's also such a nice variety of desserts that you can find something everyone will like, in portions you can share.

Closing thoughts:
1. You'll never hear me say this, but I really love the plastic containers! They fit a cupcake perfectly! Do they make them from any other materials or are they recyclable?
2. I can't remember because it was a while ago, but do you serve drinks from the truck normally? Like, local cider and homemade hot cocoa in the winter, and various milks in the summer? perfect with a dessert!
3. Do you have website? I wasn't able to find one!
In general, I was pleased with my Grand Velvet, and how personable the ladies at Sweet Jeanius have always been when I've stopped to say hello.

Food Tried:
- Mango-Ginger Nicey Treat ($3)

Okay, okay, Nicey Treat is not a food truck. I have tinkered with the idea of expanding my food truck search to include all kinds of mobile cuisine, and hadn't really committed. Then I realized that Floribbean Flair, Der Pretzel Wagen, Mabel on the Move, Smoke House, and Chef Dan's Indy were all trailers... In fact, I'm not sure they were the only ones! And really, trailers aren't trucks, so I've already crossed the line into mobile cuisine and at that point, it would be simply rude to discriminate Nicey Treat simply because their primary momentum force is human-powered. No, they don't have humans pulling a cart, but they are a Food Bicycle. It's called the Nice-ycle, and it's a pretty sweet blend of ice cream cooler and bike and umbrella and AWESOME.

Nicey Treat does popcycles, but they do them like taking those really great fruit popcycles that you weren't allowed to have when you had to be on a clear liquid diet because they actually had fruit in them, and then they're better. Think Pineapple-Basil flavored. Or Strawberry-Mint. 'Not-so-hot Chocolate.' Avocado. I tried Mango-Ginger, because like I am a Fan of food trucks, I am a Fan of mangoes.

Mango-Ginger is fresh mango, fresh ginger, juice concentrate and, I think the awesome Nicey man said, sugar. That's it. Flash-frozen to lock in the flavor and creamyness of the blended mix. Mounted on one of Nicey's own popcycle sticks (it's always a nice day, when you've just finished a Nicey Treat, because the popcycle stick tells you so! And you've just finished a Nicey Treat!). Cheaper than an ice cream truck too, though not likely to be found roaming neighborhoods unless somebody at Nicey is up for some serious biking.

Given that Nicey Treat is not a food truck and offers only one type of food in many varieties, and they offer dessert, it's hard to offer comparisons in some areas I normally do. I can say that I was pleased to see how many people were enjoying Nicey Treat as I walked into the First Friday Food Truck Fest, and they're clearly in a niche in the food 'truck' market.

More 'food' for thought:
1. While I'm not the biggest fan of the plastic wrappers for the sake of our big Nicey Earth, I see the advantages of them (so many different flavors, gotta see what color it is to know what flavor it is!), and I appreciate that I didn't have to dispose of the plastic wrapper myself-Mr. Nicey took care of that for me. It's not that I'm lazy, but it's more likely that an entire bag of just those little wrappers could be recycled. Or, I'll just tell myself that.
2. It could be fun, but could you do Nicey flavor contests? Like, via twitter or something, that would allow people to make a combo for others to try.
3. I appreciate how many awesome flavors Nicey has to offer, but ten (if I counted correctly) is a bit overwhelming. I'd be interested to see how the sales distribution for flavors looks; do they all sell a lot, or are some big sellers? Could you cut it down to 6 or 7 so that people can more easily make decisions?
4. Would LOVE to see you grow. I'm thinking Victory Field on a hot summers day, Indians up by three in the sixth inning, and a Nicey in my hand...
Nicey is the perfect Indianapolis summer treat. Can I say anything more marketable?

Food Tried:
- Mama's Ultimate Nachos ($6):  blue chips & queso, topped with a mix of brown rice, black beans, bell peppers, onions, corn, tomatoes, and chipotle sour cream. Served with salsa fresca.

One of the only foods I can successfully cook is chili. This is because chili is my favorite food. But when I go to eat chili, wherever I am, I usually don't crumble my crackers on top (unless I face a limited supply of crackers); I like to scoop the chili onto the crackers. Which is to say, I like to eat my chili, nacho-style. So really, what I love is nachos with chili on them, because this is the best combination of chili and eatability. Now, Nacho Mama's Food Truck does not serve chili, but I'm guessing you can guess what they do serve...

NACHOS.

And some other Mexican foods. But mostly NACHOS.

Actually, Nacho Mama's is the refurbished Indy Cheez Steak, this time manned by ladies doling out the nachoey goodness. It was no question that at the First Friday Food Truck Festival (May edition), I would be all about the NACHOS.

The Ultimate nachos were just that. Crunchy blue corn tortilla chips (always great for adding color and flavor to a dish o' nachos). Smooth and creamy cheese and sour cream. Black beans, which I always order on my nachos, and brown rice, which I never order, together forming the heartiness of the nachos, and leaving every chip piled high with toppins'. Fresh tomato and onion salsa that cooled the whole flavor in my mouth. Can you see where I'm going here? (I very much enjoyed my meal.) Basically, a well crafted, flavorful, interesting and colorful plate of nachos. Thumbs up.

The price was very reasonable on their whole menu, ranging around the $6-7 range. Their portion for the nachos was certainly generous, as I only meant to eat half but it was so good I ate it all and then I felt kind of unwell because I was full of nacho average nachos. See what I did with that?

Because every reviewer is really a critic trying to avoid feeling bad about criticizing, I will give you my feedback as nicely as possible!
1. Styrofoam makes me want to cry. I know it's cheaper, but it's also spawn of the demon responsible for Ford Explorers and mercury in batteries. Recyclable, por favor?
2. It was a little bit disorganized with the giving of the orders and the giving of the monies and the getting of the food and the getting of the change for the monies I gave... I'm sure that's a kink you will work out as the business moves along though. Or, was something different happening because it was Food Truck Fest?
3. I will admit, this could totally be me off in my memory, or it could be that the Old National doesn't allow you to sell drinks. Either way, I don't remember what you do sell, but it would be great to have a Mexican Coke with your meals. Just a thought on food-drink pairings!
But really, thank you for an amazing nacho experience. It's my favorite food for a reason, and though it's not great walk-and-eat food, it was a great meal.

Food Tried:
- Penne a la Vodka (tomatoes simmered with garlic, basil, vodka & cream then tossed with penne) ($6)
- Sicilian Chicken Salad (roasted rosemary chicken with walnuts, gala apples, sun dried cranberries & parmesean cheese mixed in an Italian basil infused aioli, served on a fresh baked croissant) ($7)

*ding ding ding* Ladies and gentlemen, we have a winner! In the contest of which food truck has the best recyclable materials in their packaging, Little Eataly is hands-down the winner. Cardboard container, tin foil, plastic cutlery and paper napkings are all recyclable! And, if I had ordered a San Pelligrino, I could have recycled that too!

Little Eataly has been elusive for me. They've been around since the Super Bowl (I mean, who wasn't around for the Super Bowl), but their schedule has been tough to pin down on the days during the week when I am available to have food truck meals. But, after seeing weeks of raving Twitter reviews of their penne al vodka, I finally messaged them and requested a day that I knew I would be available to have a midday meal in the downtown area, and they obliged in setting their schedule to accomodate.

The easiest thing to do would be to not write the review myself. I'll just let their Twitter followers do the talking:

   @BSMBlog: DELICIOUS. Totally makes up for being ditched for lunch.
   @HollyEssex: I just had the best #pennevodka ever with the cutest #cannolis ever.
   @MyIndyTV: We loved the penne, ravi fritti & cuc salad.

I mean, see? I don't even have to do work on this review. People have been raving about Little Eataly since they hit the streets. I had their Penne a la Vodka with a breadstick, and had a tasting of Sicilian Chicken Salad, because it looked so darn tasty. The chicken salad was crunchy, between the apples, walnuts and cranberries, but still very smooth, which I'm going to attribute to the aioli.

Back in college, they used to make a vodka sauce in the dining hall that was aggressive and spicy. The vodka sauce from Little Eataly is NOT this way, so if you too have had traumatic vodka sauce experiences, never fear. With Little Eataly, you can enjoy a creamy, cheesy vodka sauce seasoned with a variety of tasty herbs and offered copiously on perfectly cooked penne. The fact that the penne comes with a breadstick is vital: it will be so tasty that you want to eat the whole thing right up front, but you must save some for when you finish the pasta, as a way to enjoy all the vodka sauce left over. But, here's another important point: you're going to have to do this in two servings, because Little Eataly offers a generous size for the price, and then you get to enjoy it twice as much!

Speaking of, the prices offered by Little Eataly are really quite reasonable: dishes range from $6 to $8, and are generous in portions. I should probably cut this paragraph out considering that I haven't really had anything to comment on about prices in, uh, ever.

Let's see... Is there anything else I'd like to suggest or add? Well, since you're paying still reading...
1. I was wandering through your website and noticed that your menu link leads to your facebook page. While we all know how much I laud facebook, it would be easy to have it on its own page that matches the rest of the website, for continuity and appearances... but that's just a thought.
2. The hand-written menu nor the truck had the price of drinks listed. I'm really nitpicking here because frankly I had a great experience and it seems like a lot of the issues I've commented on in the past with other trucks aren't concerns here.
Which is to say, great job. Thanks for making me proud of my Italian heritage.

Food Tried:
- Tuna Salad Sandwich on Sourdough ($5)
- Cuban Sandwich (Cuban Pulled Pork, Ham, Swiss, Dill Pickles, Brown Mustard and Mayo on French Bread) ($6)

Let me give you a tip, as if you haven't heard enough of what I say: if you want to eat a Cuban from Gypsy Indy, GO FOR IT. If you want to go to the gym afterward, only eat half. Don't worry, the rest will keep. Deliciously. It will even re-microwave quite well. But wait, I'm getting ahead of myself.

I started at Gypsy Indy with a tuna salad sandwich, slathered with mayo and perfect for a Friday in Lent. I sat on a bench and though, this is great, but it's not their typical, so I'll have to go back! And when I turned up at Triton Brewing with the express interest of 'going back', and read that 'you can't get this sandwich just anywhere!,' I decided to give my Southeastern self a good meal.

The Cuban was great: juicy, well seasoned pulled pork absolutely heaped on an otherwise great sandwich. The pickles were tangy and crunchy, the Swiss (though not my favorite cheese) was melted and stringy in the way only good cheese can. The bread was full-bodied and fresh, and though it stood no match for the sheer quantity of innards that Gypsy Indy attempted to put inside. Really, Dexter speaks highly of Cuban sandwiches, and now I know why. (Hint: The answer is: they're damn good. And Gypsy Indy does it damn fine.)

I am pleased to report that Gypsy Indy sits on the low end of the Food Truck Price Scale In My Head. Most dishes are $6 or less, which in my case meant I could spend an extra dollar on a brownie that was so moist and chocolatey that I had to eat it all in one go, and chose whole-heartedly not to regret such a decision. And if you were to add a drink, it would easily be a price equivalent to other trucks. A great meal at a great price, all in all.

Let's give a few pointers from the peanut gallery:

   Recycling is good, and you're doing an excellent job of it. The plastic container which my sandwich came in went in the recycling, and though it's not my favorite recyclable, I will choose not to discriminate.
   I love the magnetic menu option, but it makes it tough to keep up on exactly what you'll be having on the truck any given day. Sometimes your twitter shows this, and your website offers some options too... Is there a way to sync these up? Also, the website could use a wee shape up, if someone knows any coding (cough, cough, I know a bit myself).
   You knew this was coming, but credit/debit card options, por favor? Just bump your prices 50¢ if you must...

But really, all comments aside, thanks for a great three meals (that Cuban was obviously a two-meal dish).

Café Ventana has the kind of attitude you wish all places did. Unfortunately, they have the kind of latency of service you wish no places did. It was really the excessive hunger I felt while waiting for my bagel that backed them down from a four- or five-star review.

I met up with some St. Louis friends for a Sunday morning breakfast/brunch/morning meal, and we were able to order quickly (the ordering is cafeteria style). When all of our food came to us piecemeal and my food didn't arrive for half an hour, it was unfortunate, because all I wanted was a bagel! Their food was good though: fresh and rich flavors, with tons of options for a smallish place. It was hoppin' the entire time we were there, too. I can understand why it took so long, but then again, if you know Saturday and Sunday mornings are the busiest, you simply man the kitchen a little better to keep things rolling out.

They offered me some beignet coins for my hunger-time-delay, and I had some. I was very pleased with them--they have the New Orleans style done well! I would probably not be back only because of the variety of other tasty places to try when I visit St. Louis, but I imagine if it hadn't been quite so crazy inside, or on a weekday, it would be a lovely place to have a cuppa, do some homework (not far from SLU) or just catch up with old friends.

I had a hard time picking my stars for this rating, because to be honest I have a really hard time making decisions, and especially when the choices are between "A-OK" and "Yay! I'm a fan."... Really, I'm a fan, but the experience was A-Ok. So, three and a half stars?

I loved the atmosphere walking into FARMbloomington. It was the kind of restaurant I picture one of my best friends opening, featuring amazing dishes and pies (though I don't know if FARM has pies, because I didn't have dessert). They have a bunch of really interesting things to look at and a farmhouse feeling, while still maintaining a cleanliness and freshness necessary for a restaurant to remain above 'diner' status.

I tried FARMbloomington with a few friends, one of whom is a grad student in Bloomington and another from outside the state. We didn't order any entrees, being on the just-barely-not-college budget, and picked small plates instead. My salad was flavorful and fresh, the sweet potato fries were great and the food came quickly. Our server was attentive without being intrusive. All pluses.

Unfortunately, as previous reviews have pointed out, the prices are generally high for A) Indiana and B) Bloomington. I get that a high end restaurant with unique and gourmet dishes is going to be more expensive, but if the cost of ingredients is that high, it cuts out a major portion of the market. I guess it's nice to have a restaurant that parents take their IU children to when visiting for family weekend, but it doesn't quite fit that fancy-level... it's close quarters and a laid back, high end hipster attitude that leaves it hard for me to pick a target market for, at least a target market who can afford to eat there often enough to keep them in business.

Overall though, I enjoyed my meal quite a lot. It was enjoyable and tasty, and left me full without feeling that I'd eaten too much or too heavily. If you're looking for a nice place to eat in Bloomington, FARMbloomington in the best I can think of. Just be prepared for the price.

I've tried to think of some great taglines to give you an intro of my review. I ended up with a review made of them!

There was nothing on the outside of Pastries of Denmark that might suggest the variety of options inside for adventuresome or conservative eaters alike.

We came for the cupcakes, we stayed for the gyros!

I demolished my plate, and was pleased to find that in as-far-from-Greece-as-I'd-ever-imagined-eating-Gre ek, I was pleasantly full and satisfied that I'd had a solidly ethnic plate of food. Their lamb was well cooked, the ingredients were fresh, and the serving was generous.

They were friendly and helpful, and also patient was we deliberated among the wide menu. The food was quickly served and made to order.

The only leftovers I had was part of my cupcake, which only happened because the food was so good I couldn't bear to not finish it!

This is a place that perfectly personifies the phrase: 'There's more than meets the eye.' Let your taste buds prove it to you.

I had the pleasure of enjoying The Rookwood on my last evening in Cincinnati before leaving town after my first trip to the city. It was an excellent 'night cap' on my visit! The only 'complaint' I have is something completely out of the control of the proprietors.

Perched high on the hills above downtown Cincinnati in the Mount Adams neighborhood, The Rookwood inhabits an old pottery manufacturer, and is beautifully proportioned and built, and a real adventure to get to. Unfortunately, it faces *away* from the gorgeous view, so there's no breathtaking atop-a-ledge dining to be had. Like I said, completely uncontrollable, but a regret to discover when you get inside.

Our food was spectacular--flavorful and fresh. Charmingly, dinner is not offered, it is supper, and I had the Barndale Burger. Other patrons and myself agree: this is a fantastic burger. Properly cooked and garnished with dynamic flavors, it is a treat to eat!

The server we had was incredibly knowledgeable about menu options, was friendly and engaging, and regularly checked on us, even when our mouths weren't full so we could adequately compliment our experience to him.

In sum, The Rookwood was absolutely worth the time and money I spent, and calories I gained. The food is great, the atmosphere is engaging, and the service is right on par.

The Rathskeller hits all the right points when it comes to a truly emersive experience.

Animals on the walls, banners from the rafters, subterranean seating with high windows... All seems rathskellerish to me!

Jam packed, serving Spaten beer, elbow to elbow, and occasional singing... A beer tent/beer garden truly reminiscent to the Oktoberfest grounds of München.

Pretzels, sausage and various other meats with spicy mustard... Properly German diet, with vegetables as an afterthought.

Really, I consider The Rathskeller to be an idea place to take out-of-town guests for a reasonably priced ethnic meal in the Indianapolis area. They can get a little loud with the band playing, but otherwise it's an enjoyable place to tuck in. My mom was able to get a gluten-free meal here, and I got a free sinus clearing with their hot mustard. What a perk!