AZ and I spent some time today compiling a list of foods special to our memory in Bloomington IN.

• The Arafat Chicken from Michael's Uptown Cafe. Roasted chicken with sauce in a wrap is nothing special in itself, but this is always very tasty indeed.
• Biscuits and Gravy - from the Uptown, Ladyman's or Gib 'n Denzils (which, according to a Horrible-Terrible article shrouded behind the paywall, closed in Feb 2005!). It's like a southern thing, but in Indiana.
• The Hoosier Scramble from the Village Deli. It's like an advanced B&G: English muffin, cheese, scrambled eggs, sausage gravy. Delicious, but eat in moderation.
• The little breads one gets at le Petit Cafe. Small loafs of bread, or rolls, or something in between. Add some creamy butter and you're all set for the rest of your meal.
• Brie wrapped in phyllo dough, also from le Petit Cafe. This is an appetizer's appetizer. Creamy warm brie in crispy phyllo.
• The Stromboli (from Nick's English Hut or Cafe Pizzeria). This isn't the classic ham and cheese calzone from the Stromboli area in Italy. Instead this is a submarine roll with ground italian sausage and cheese, toasted, with pizza or barbecue sauce to your liking. I've encountered this nowhere else, and I get a jonesing for it on a regular basis. Perfect with crispy and salty fries.
• A hamburger from Hinkle's. Ed (is it Ed?) Hinkle has been cooking these west side favorites for decades. Fresh ground beef, a hot grill, crowded tables. Delicious.
• The Blarney Puffball from the Irish Lion. Fried and fluffy potatoes. Is this a diasporic food?
• The funky hands-on wraps from Siam House. Take a spinach leaf, add a preserved shrimp, a bit of lime, some toasted coconut, some ginger, some pepper, and some sauce. Wrap it up and pop it in your mouth. Each bite becomes a new flavor sense.

This doesn't really pay proper tribute to the panoply of ethnic restaurants Bloomington has to offer, just the foods that stick in our mind as things we miss. Thankfully, we're in town this weekend, so we can cut a swath across some of these favorites.

Posted by esinclai at March 03, 2006 05:31 PM |