Fire on The Monon
Rooster and I traveled to Broad Ripple where he believes he found the best tenderloin in the state of Indiana at Fire on The Monon. This is no minor accomplishment. #Broad Ripple #Fire on The Monon #Ferguson Street #Coil Street #GPS #Tenderloin #Hoosier
Rooster believes he’s found the best tenderloin in the state of Indiana. That is a big accomplishment. I think he might be right. Fire by the Monon is a trendy restaurant in Broad Ripple, Indiana. The tenderloin they serve up might not be the biggest one we’ve come across, but it does taste wonderful. This is an example when quality wins out over quantity. It’s a good principle to follow every time.
This is the restaurant we stumbled on one Sunday afternoon and lost its location when we attempted to find it again. Our goal was simple. We decided to discover a unique eating establishment in Broad Ripple where we’d never enjoyed a meal in the past.
Rooster and I cruised the trendy Indianapolis neighborhood for twenty minutes before we came across a red house with Fire by the Monon in big letters affixed to the building. We couldn’t resist going inside to see what all the promised heat was about. I’m not sure what Rooster ordered on our first trip, but I sampled the tenderloin. I talked up the Hoosier delicacy so much,
We couldn’t find Fire on The Monon.
Rooster wanted to go back and try one himself. Big problem. We couldn’t find the place. There are so many restaurants and businesses open in what used to be residential dwellings it’s hard to tell one apart from the other as you cruise down the narrow Broad Ripple streets. To complicate matters, we couldn’t remember the exact name of the restaurant. We knew it had Monon in the title, but a lot of the businesses in the area include the famous trail in the name of their establishments.
How the restaurant got its name
The Monon was a famous railroad line, which connected Chicago with Indianapolis. The tracks run right down the middle of Broad Ripple. The train tracks have been converted to a walking trail. It’s not uncommon to see people riding their bikes, running, walking their dogs, or pushing babies in strollers on this trail. I persuaded Rooster to take a stroll with me one Saturday morning while we were on one of our adventures.
How we located Fire on The Monon.
In our attempt to find the lost restaurant, Rooster put Monon in the GPS. It came up with a lot of suggestions, but none of them proved to be what we were looking for. I’d almost given up hope we’d ever discover the eatery again when we got lucky. We cruised down Ferguson Street and noticed the large red house on the corner until we made the turn and spotted the name on the front of the building. Fire by the Monon proved to be as amazing on our second visit as it was on the first.
If you enjoy teasingly snarky waiters as part of your dining experience, Fire by the Monon is definitely the place for you. I came to the conclusion everyone who works at the restaurant missed their calling. They should be doing standup comedy instead of waiting tables. I love the way these guys joke with the customers. The give and take they have with the patrons make the dining experience interesting.
The casual dining experience at Fire on The Monon.
There is a definite casual feel to the restaurant while at the same time you are served on nice china with real silverware. It’s not uncommon for a burn barrel to be lit out in front of the restaurant in the fall, sending the aroma of wood smoke through the entire neighborhood. If it’s warm enough, you can dine outside under bright red umbrellas. The inside is a house converted into an eating establishment. Colorful paintings adorn the walls adding an artistic touch to the establishment.
Rooster ordered the tenderloin and red cabbage slaw. I decided to live dangerously and go with the Greuben, which is a Grouper Reuben served on marbled rye bread with Swiss cheese and red cabbage slaw. I had the beer-breaded onion rings as my side. Neither of us was disappointed.
If you want to find Fire on The Monon
By the end of the meal, rooster declared he’d found the best tenderloin in the state of Indiana as if he were Ponce de Leon discovering the Fountain of Youth. I didn’t mention the little detail about it taking us three months to relocate this tiny but wonderful restaurant in the Broad Ripple neighborhood. Don’t be like us. Fire by the Monon is easy to find if you have the address.
You will find this jewel of an eatery located at 6523 Ferguson Street, Indianapolis. Plug it into your GPS and drive if you’re hungry for a good tenderloin. You will know you’ve come to the right place when you spot the big red house on the corner of Coil and Ferguson.
It’s worth the trip to meet Dave and Amelia
As a continuation of the story, we made a second trip to Fire by the Monon. We had to make certain Rooster’s evaluation of the quality of the tenderloin served at this establishment was correct. Our favorite waiter Dave wasn’t working, but we were honored to be served by Amelia. She wasn’t teasingly snarky, but she was a breath of fresh air. She not only is a server at Fire by the Monon, but she is a barista at Starbucks. How cool is that? She gave us several recommendations for trendy coffee shops in the Indianapolis area when we told her about our adventure blog.
She also gave us the low down on David. It appears before he started working at Fire on the Monon he was a baker who specialized in making cakes for bachelorette parties. She said next time we stop by we need to ask to see his book. Rooster’s evaluation of the tenderloin proved to be correct. Our return trip to Fire by the Monon was an excellent adventure. Rooster suggested I point out the onion rings are also the best he has ever eaten. His normally not an onion ring fan, so this is a big compliment.
Who is Molly Shea?
Molly Shea is an accomplished fictional short story writer from Indiana, who writes short stories and novels about a fictional town called Tecumseh. To read more of her short stories and adventures click here.
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