Bluebeard - Revisit

It was hubby’s birthday, and it was a Monday, so we couldn’t figure out where to go. Then we remembered Bluebeard was open on Mondays (and Sundays too!) and our choice was made.

We walked in around 6:30 and I was surprised at how crowded the place was—we got one of the last 2 tops and people just continued to pour in all night. It was several people deep at the bar waititng for tables at one point. It was good to see—and I guess other Indy folks had the same idea about getting a good meal on a Monday.

We started with the bone marrow toast ($12). I was expecting the classic pieces of bone brought out to spread on bread, but this was not that. And it was amazing. They had taken slices of grilled Amelia’s bread and spread it with a spread that contained the bone marrow. The menu also mentioned saba, which apparently is a reduced grape syrup (we had no idea) and I believe is the dark sauce on the bottom of the plate. There was thinly sliced radishes and shallots and chunks of these wonderful roasted tomatoes and then some fresh chervil. This dish was perfect.  The rich, creamy, earthy bone marrow with the freshness of the other ingredients and the light sweetness of the sauce was exactly right. Yum. Hubby declared we could be sitting at any restaurant in the world and this dish was just flat out great. We were off to a great start.

Next we shared a small Brussels sprout salad ($9). The first two bites of this were really, really great for me. There were thinly shaved sprouts with slices of apples, pieces of blue cheese, spiced nuts, and lots of shredded duck confit. The dressing was a duck jelly vinaigrette. In the first two bites, I got a little bit of every ingredient and it was great. It was perfectly balanced. Unfortunately, as you got further down into the salad, it was mainly sprouts and duck and didn’t have the flavor profile from the beginning. It was still good, just not as spectacular as the first couple of bites.

Our last course was skate wing ($28)(no way we weren’t ordering that) and a side of one of our perennial favorites, the spaghetti with lemon and cheese ($9). The skate was lightly dusted in rice flour (gluten free for those of you who follow such a diet) and very lightly pan-fried. It was served with sunchoke puree and diced celery root and sauteed arugula was very good. It was a lighter flavor. If you haven’t had skate, it’s actually the wing of a ray, that has a fairly delicate texture similar to a thin white fish.  The spaghetti with lemon sauce was as good as it could be—love a creamy, cheesy dish with a hint of lemon. I have only had it once there where it was a little off (not enough lemon) but this one was perfect. It was great that Bluebeard was thoughtful enough to be serving a couple of hubby’s favorite things (bone marrow and skate) and it was a lovely meal.

Bluebeard

653 Virginia Avenue

Indy, 46203

317/686-1580

www.bluebeardindy.com