Spicy food has been on my mind lately. I’m not sure what is happening, because I’ve always enjoyed it, but now it’s on another level. During a rainy and gloomy afternoon, I decided to a take a break from work and visit Ember Urban Eatery located on Virginia Avenue. I had previously heard of the place while having lunch with a friend who recommended it as a “must visit.”
Exploring a place I’d never been before is always exciting, because I love to see how restaurants, especially small businesses, recreate traditional favorites.
While looking over the menu, I noticed they had a vegan/vegetarian section, which I found very appealing. This section included Grilled Cheese, Gourmet Grilled Cheese and a Black Bean Burger with black beans, onion, corn and oats with a special seasoning blend.
On the appetizers or Starters menu, they offered traditional favorites such as chicken wings, but they also had a few unique items listed such as Baked Goat Cheese, Hummus and Roasted Caprese with fresh mozzarella, roasted tomatoes, braised garlic and basil served with a half loaf of warm French Batard bread. In addition to the previously mentioned, the appetizer menu also had Potato Croquettes and Brisket Nachos with house-smoked brisket on a bed of tortilla chips with jalapenos black beans, corn, salsa, cheese, tomato and Sriracha sour cream. And that was just for starters!
I also noticed they had an Express Lunch Menu composed of five quick-cook items: Wings & Fries, a Sloppy Joe sandwich, Pork BBQ, a Cheeseburger and a Meatball sub. Each item came with a side and a drink for $8.95.
Although I didn’t want to spend longer than an hour at lunch, I wanted to try a full course entrée. I decided to order the Pasta Arrabbiata with Rigatoni pasta and spicy red sauce, topped with fresh Parmesan and shrimp, which I added.
As soon as I saw the word spicy, I knew this was the meal for me.
My dish also came with a side salad, which appeared before the main entree, but before I knew it, a pile of spicy, red pasta with freshly grated mozzarella cheese was placed in front of me. The pasta itself was huge, something I didn’t expect.
I have to say, the pasta wasn’t as spicy as I’d imagined, but it did have a good amount of heat behind it, good enough to satisfy. I was quite surprised to see as much shrimp in my bowl as I expected, which was a good thing. Usually when ordering protein in a dish, some restaurants only give customers about less than a hand full, but Ember was certainly generous!
Overall, my total came up to about $16 and my experience was one I will recommend to you, my Indianapolis Recorder readers. Note: I went back to order takeout for dinner the next day and ordered the Urban Wings, which I had my eye on my first visit. First they were marinated and then smoked in house and served with white barbecue sauce. I was a little skeptical when I read “white barbecue sauce,” but to my surprise, it complemented the wings well. Long story short, they were great and a must try for wing lovers.
Whether you are looking for a quick lunch or dinner for the night, check out Ember Urban Eatery on Virginia Avenue.
Ember Urban Eatery
435 Virginia Ave.
Indianapolis, Ind. 46203
(317) 340-1868
