Usually detours are annoying, take you out of your way and are just a plain ‘ol pain in the booty. That was until I visited Detour American Grille. This is a place you are definitely going to want to be rerouted to.
I try to get together with my aunts as much as I can but with jobs, committees, practices, spouses and life constantly happening, sometimes the three of us have to make a concerted effort to meet. Not having seen each other since Christmas, we decided to go to lunch one Friday afternoon. Next dilemma. Where do we go?
Aunt Helen suggested Detour. Being that the restaurant was near Aunt Wanda’s job I’m sure that’s why she agreed. I Googled the joint, saw their prices and based on that, I was sold.
My aunts were already at the restaurant when I arrived. Assuming food orders were taken at the table, I looked for an entrance into the seating area. It could have been inadequate signage or my lack of attention because I was hungry, but I walked around aimlessly trying to figure out what was going on for a while until Aunt Helen mouthed to me “order at the front.”
I finally got myself together, found a menu and stood in line to give my order. There were so many good choices, but I decided to order the Bypass, slow cooked Italian beef with spicy giardiniera, mozzarella cheese on Italian bread served with au jus. Fries or chips and salsa came along with my sandwich and I chose fries.
Now that I was calm and my food was shortly on the way, I proceeded to the back of the restaurant to get my drink. Detour has one of those modern soda machines where there are many choices and a single spout to dispense one’s beverage.
My aunts and I only got a little bit of gossip in because our food arrived at our table quickly. Aunt Wanda ordered the same sandwich as I did and Aunt Helen ordered the Turnpike Tenderloin deep-fried.
Both aunts recently moved back to Indiana after living out West for over 15 years. While many Hoosier favorites reach their Gary roots, pork tenderloin is not a fast food favorite in Northwest Indiana like it is in Southern Indiana. They think it’s hilarious that nearly every restaurant in Indianapolis serves pork tenderloin sandwiches.
Aunt Helen was amazed by the large tenderloin on her plate and had to eat her sandwich with a fork. Aunt Wanda and I had to get a serious grip on our Italian beef sandwiches in order to eat them. For some, the Italian beef may have been too spicy, but for me, it was the right amount of heat and kick. The meat was the real deal and was cut perfectly. Detour provided a significant cup of the au jus, which I appreciated.
While fries are oftentimes served as filler for meals, Detour’s fries were actually quite tasty and had the right amount of sea salt sprinkled over them. With tax and tip, I spent about $13 on lunch.
In addition to sandwiches, Detour serves salads (I almost got the Crosswalk salad with Granny Smith apples, candied walnuts, bleu cheese and shallot vinaigrette), a wide variety of burgers, soups, wraps and flats. They also have a healthy appetizer list. Nothing on Detour’s menu is over $10.
Instead of going to your same old restaurant when you want a bang for your buck, reroute yourself to Detour American Grille.
