Meridian, Indianapolis

It’s probably safe to say that Indianapolis is not going to be near the top of the list of places to go when planning a culinary tour of the United States. On a more personal note, I’ve eaten there many times and never had a good meal but then I’m a fussy git. The dining scene is dominated by restaurant chains so it’s good to have a chance to search out different places. Meridian is about 7 miles north of downtown Indianapolis on North Meridian Street.  The restaurant is in a very prosperous neighbourhood and some of the surrounding houses are very impressive.

Entering the restaurant, the choice of sitting near the bar or in the main restaurant but it was pretty obvious the hostess wanted people to sit near the bar. As a result the tables in the narrow bar are were full while the main room sat nearly empty. The restaurant was a weird amalgam. The main dining room was very starchy with white tablecloths on every table while the adjoining bar had the TV on and was tuned to ESPN.

The ordered starter was shrimp & grits. Grilled gulf shrimp were served on cheddar grits with asparagus, prosciutto, fried egg and leek pan sauce. Unfortunately the dish had too many components for it to work really well. Biggest problem was the prosciutto that was much too strident in comparison to the other subtle flavours on show. Its saltiness was not good here either.  The cheesy grits were wonderful and although the leek pan sauce had a good flavour it had the effect of making much of the grits too watery. The shrimp were not particularly outstanding but the fried egg with its fully liquid yolk and asparagus were great compliment to the grits. The dish was good but could have been better with more restraint.

Main course was duck breast with polenta, greens and red wine cherry sauce. The duck itself was cooked nicely and was a good focal point for the dish. The supporting cast, though, had a few issues. The greens were Swiss chard and alone they were too harsh for the duck. However, the chard was blended with onion that provided a much needed sweeter counterpoint to the chard. Also mixed in were small cubes of polenta and for me that was a great way to involve the starch in the dish without overwhelming it. However, the part of the dish that was most intriguing was the cherries. The sauce was fine but the cherries had a spicy edge that was quite unpleasant. Every cherry slice meant rolling round in my mouth to try and figure out what had been done to them. Final conclusion was that they were glacé cherries that we’ve found do not compare well to glacé cherries from the UK. It was difficult to understand why they were used instead of fresh cherries in early July, particularly as they tasted pretty grim.

I’m not sure it’s a good sign when dessert is the best course of a meal. Although this verdict is tempered by the observation that it was nowhere near perfect either. The vanilla bean pannacotta was really lovely. Wonderfully creamy & smooth it was a real pleasure to eat. However, the kitchen felt the need to add a fresh orange syrup that tasted marmaladey rather than sweet so it was too sharp for the pannacotta. The dish also included a berry purée drizzled into the orange syrup but it could not have been any more anonymous.

Overall verdict.
The overwhelming feel was of a restaurant that was almost there. Each course was okay but with a bit more critical approach they could have been so much better. Although the meal was decent I’d have to say I still haven’t had a good meal in Indianapolis.

Would I revisit Meridian?
I’d like to.  Indianapolis is incredibly poorly served and Meridian is at least head and shoulders above other places I’ve eaten at in Indianapolis.


Overall Rating - 3/5