Rene’s is officially back in the game. After a few weeks of cash-only test outings and recipe refinements, Rene’s Bakery—purchased last month by Isaac Roman and Thomas Hays—has officially reopened with many of the favorites you know and love. Hours for the shop at 6524 N. Cornell Ave. are Friday from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. and
Sat–Sun from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Orders can also be phoned in at 317-251-2253. And if you want Rene’s goods for the holidays, get on the ball: Christmas orders must be in by Sunday, December 22, its owners say.
A little bit of France is coming to Carmel’s Sophia Square. The Ambrosia Hospitality Group (Ambrosia, Bocca, Nowhere Special, The Commodore) is plotting a restaurant called Josephine at 110 W. Main St. in Carmel, in the ground floor retail space of one of the area’s dense apartment buildings. Current reports that the restaurant group’s co-owner Dan Cage “lived in Paris for three months after graduating college” and was therefore drawn to the building and food style from the city. Via press release, Cage says the restaurant name is “a nod to namesake Josephine de Beauharnais, Napoleon Bonaparte’s cherished wife,” which is a generous way to describe a woman repeatedly cheated on and eventually dumped because she couldn’t bear children. (The “don’t wash” thing, btw, is likely a myth.) But we all have our own definitions of what makes for a good marriage, I suppose. The restaurant is expected to open with a menu of steak frites, croque monsieur, and other familiar French faves in January.
Indy’s revolving sushi trend continues in Westfield. Last month, we saw conveyor sushi spot Kura open in Fishers, but now it has some rotating competition with a new location of (h/t to IndyToday for the tip) Sushi Station, which has other outposts in Illinois. The business at 960 E. Tournament Trl. (317-804-2023) follows the same baggage-return-adjacent strategy of dishes that pass you by via belt, but unlike the airport, some other items come to you on a cute little train. Westfield’s menu isn’t online yet, but other addresses seem to offer a fairly standard list of apps, rolls, and nigiri.
The (Star)buck has stopped in Broad Ripple. After 25 years at 854 Broad Ripple Ave., the Broad Ripple Starbucks shut its doors this week. The IBJ reports that most of its employees will be transferred to a new shop at 6171 N. Keystone Ave., which is set to open this coming Monday. That arguably leaves a void in the neighborhood’s caffeine vendor space, so all y’all who have gabbed about bringing back Cafe Espresso … it’s time to put your money where your mouth is.
Jim Dandy is closing after 60 years. The Noblesville restaurant at 2301 E. Conner St. was founded by Harry Reasner in 1964, WISH reports, with carhop service that continued until 1980. Harry’s sons, Dave and Brent, took the business over in more recent years, but say “their kids were not interested in taking over the business.” So they sold it to a buyer with unknown intentions and will be auctioning off the restaurant’s equipment following the closure. Its last day of service is December 31.
Is the era of gritty sports bars over? A quote from the co-founder of chain restaurant Tom’s Watch Bar jumped out at me in the deluge of coverage of its latest outpost at 140 S. Illinois St. “Think about the sports bar you were in last. They’re a little dingy, they’re a little sticky … and they’re a little bit old. And the next generation is looking for something very, very different,” Axios quotes Tom’s exec Tom Ryan as saying. I bristled at this, not because I thought he was wrong about local dives—but because, in my opinion, that sells Indy’s young folks short.
The millennials and drinking age Zs I know have appreciation—and a bit of reverence—for spots like The Living Room, The Whistle Stop, and so many others; they also seem to have a great appreciation for locally owned businesses that are part of a community. I am sure the 135 screens at Tom’s offer a stunning and immersive viewing experience, and I am stoked as heck to see a bustling business on that slightly stagnant stretch of street. Tom Ryan is an undeniable big dog in the big box and templatized food business (enough of a success that reporters who write about him note his fancy car), but there’s something very small dog about trashing a city’s beloved joints. Bless his heart!
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