2022 Week 26 – AMPed Up

I checked out a couple of new lunch spots while working in Downtown Indy these past few weeks. The AMP at 16 Tech was our spot for lunch while conducting a site tour in the area for an upcoming Board Meeting (we typically rotate these around the city). The AMP is a food hall with stalls made from converted shipping containers. It’s unique to the city, and the various shops add a lot of variety to the location. I ordered a cheesesteak from Mambo’s, and while not the same as Hoagies and Hops, it was a nice sandwich that hit the spot. When looking at Mombo’s website, I found out they have a location in City Market, so I’m going to have to check that location out too.

The AMP at 16 Tech

My other “new” lunch spot was Turchetti’s Delicatessen in Fountain Square. I’m calling it “new” because I visited pre-covid when it was a carry-out spot with very limited seating. During this visit, I sat in the new Bistro area that had seats for about 2-dozen and a decent-sized bar. They bill themselves as a Soccer Bar, so I’ll need to re-visit when the Soccer season starts back up, and check it out for myself.

Pastrami and side salad at Turchetti’s Delicatessen

My new job allows me to work from home on Monday and Friday so I’ve been trying to spend some of my lunch money locally (as well as eating at home). One of those local spots has been Wild Ginger on 116th St. It’s a nice family-run sushi shop with fresh food and great service. I’m finding myself there at least once a week lately.

Sushi at Wild Giger in Fishers

That’s it for this week. I’ll be curious to see what’s happening in Downtown Indianapolis in the upcoming days after the SCOTUS decision to overturn Roe vs Wade. There have been several (peaceful) protests this weekend & the politicians return in early July for a 30-day Special Session. I can imagine there will be a lot of things going on around the State House during that time!

2021 Week 40 – Upland Brewing FSQ

Low-carb eating at lunch leaves you with a few options. Of course, salad and some kind of protein are the easiest to locate, and it’s nice to visit different places to see what they can come up with. Upland Brewery in Fountain Square has been a destination for a couple of lunches over the past few weeks, and I think it’s time I share it with the readers of IndyScan.com.

The brewery is nice and open, with a covered patio on the west side of the building. Unfortunately, their parking lot, shared with Grey Goat Cycles, only has about five spaces available, but there’s plenty of street parking in the immediate area.

The staff has always been super friendly, and the menu has a nice variety of sharable appetizers and burgers, salads, and tacos. After 5 pm they serve larger entrees like steak and pasta.

On my first visit, I ordered the Chicharrón appetizer. This was a HUGE pile that I ended boxing up and taking back to the office to share. The crispy pork skins we’re made fresh and were delicious but be warned, the rub they sprinkle on top is spicy! I need to remember to ask them to lighten up on the spice next time I order these.

The Side Salad I ordered was very fresh, and the buttermilk dressing was delicious and made in-house. For my protein, I chose the char-griller burger with Jalapeno Blue Cheese sauce on the side. The burger was cooked perfectly, and the sauce was delicious; if I had some french fries, it would be an excellent dipping sauce.

If you’re looking for a place to have a group lunch and maybe a beer on a Friday afternoon, this is a great place to check out. They have a lot of available seating, and the atmosphere is very comfortable. Also, for a brewery, I think their food is pretty excellent.


I have a few more reviews in the works, including a few new purchases from Apple and an application that’s really opened my eyes to how I communicate. Stay tuned!

Wildwood Market – Fountain Square, Indianapolis

I’m always looking for something different for lunch when working downtown. One of the many things I love about Indy are all the dining options.  It seems like a new one comes online every week so it’s fun scoping them out and adding to them to the rotation.  I had lunch with a foodie friend in Fountain Square a couple of months ago. While driving up Virginia Ave, on our way back downtown, we spotted Wildwood Market and had to stop.

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If you’re familiar with Locally Grown Gardens in SoBro you should have an idea what to expect at Wildwood. It’s a similar concept where an old Service Station type building has been repurposed as a neighborhood mini-market. What makes these places different from the chain stores (7-11 or Village Pantry) is they specialize in locally sourced items and products with ingredients you can pronounce.

From a sheer number of items, and variety, this place is amazing.  Dry goods, meats, cheeses, frozen items, and fresh bread, this place is a MUST VISIT to get all the goodies for your next picnic.  Also a good place to pickup holiday treats for the foodies in your life.

A short while back Wildwood started offering a rotating sandwich and salad of the day for lunch. Priced at around $8.00 each and full of all kinds of interesting flavor combinations it was an immediate hit for me! In fact I’m going out there at least once a week to grab a sandwich and eat it on site (several seating options) or back at the office when things are hectic.  Wildwood Market posts today’s specials on their Facebook Page every day around 11am so you have something to think about for the next hour.

Today’s Lunch Sandwich: Pastrami, Peppered Smoking Goose Bacon, Cabot Extra Sharp White Cheddar, Roasted Poblano, Creamy Red Pepper Vinaigrette, Mixed Greens On Rye Bread.

Photo from the Wildwood Market Facebook Page
Photo from the Wildwood Market Facebook Page

Pair that with a bag of McClure’s Spicy Pickle potato chips and an Oatmeal Pecan Carmel Cookie for dessert you have a great meal for around $12.50 (enough to split with a friend if you’re a light eater).

A word of warning.  The sandwiches and salads are first-come first-served and when they’re gone they’re gone.  I always try to get there by 12:30pm and have yet to walk out empty handed.  I really need to start trying the salads as they have some great combinations as well but I can’t quote get over how good those sandwiches are!

Wildwood is open Mon – Sat  10AM – 8PM.  They do a special breakfast dish as well as lunch on Saturday.

Have you been here?  What did you think?  Post your feedback below.

Wildwood Market
1015 Virginia Avenue
Indianapolis, IN 46203

Indianapolis – Siam Square

Last Sunday my daughter and I went to Fountain Square to shoot some photos.  I asked her what she wanted for lunch & without hesitation she said “Siam Square“.  Having never been to this restaurant I was happy to go based on the glowing feedback from friends.

Note, all images in this review are from the Internet because we actually left the cameras in the car while we ate & the lighting did not work for phone pictures.  Rookie mistake for sure.

The menu at Siam Square is pretty typical of any Thai restaurant including lunch specials during the week.  I’ve wanted to try a Curry dish for a while now.  I’m usually a Pad Thai (chicken/pork) guy but I was feeling a little adventitious today.

My daughter ordered the Chicken Pad Thai and, after a brief discussion with our server, I went for the Red Curry.  I was not sure what to expect but sometimes you just have to throw caution to the wind.

I’m glad I took a chance because I was VERY impressed with the Red Curry.  It was spicy (medium), sweet and had a lot of interesting flavors.  The bamboo shoots and green beans were plentiful as was the thinly sliced chicken.  Several Thai Basil leaves were mixed through the dish and they added a wonderful herbal flavor.

We’ve visited many Thai places this last year and the Pad Thai almost always is a little sweet (sometimes too sweet).  The Pad Thai at Siam square had a nice “char/caramelization” mixed in and the noodles had a great texture.  The Pad Thai has to be one of the best I’ve had to date.

Service was very attentive and the prices were on par with other Thai places in the Indy area.  We spent some time exploring the Fountain Square District and identified several places to try next time we’re in the area.  I think Duck Pin Bowling is on the agenda for the next visit!

Siam Square on Urbanspoon