Indianapolis: Chain city?

[Robin Garr]

This article from Indianapolis Monthly ought to get a little discussion going ...

Welcome to Chain City, USA

Interesting article . . .

Reading it - and going from my own opinions - it seems that chains should do well under two circumstances:

1. A homogeneous market, without the ethnic groups (or knowledge of their foods) that might drive people to independent alternatives; and

2. A sagging economy, where the desire to not have a bad experience when spending limited funds on a night out outweighs the desire to have an exceptional experience (albeit with a modicum of risk associated)


Of course, even given this a chain needs above-average food and service plus a USP (unique selling proposition) to survive (see Bennigans)

I enjoyed that article. It is fitting that it appeared in the city's number one chain celebrant.

Indianapolis has quite a few good local restaurants, but there is no doubt that there are a huge amount of chains there. It isn't just restaurants either. Overall retailing is chain dominated.

One reason that can't be overlooked is simply rapid suburban growth. Indianapolis is adding 25,000 residents a year to its metro area, almost all in the suburbs, and they need to eat somewhere. Places like Fishers have literally increased 10x in population in less than 20 years - from 7,000 to 70,000. They are projecting 120,000 by 2020. Hamilton County will have almost 300,000 people in the 2010 Census. Imagine Oldham County with 300,000 people and you can see a partial source of the dining dilemma right there.

Also, since Indianapolis was not a large city in the 19th century, it is lacking in those old traditional urban commercial spaces that independents love. This actually makes it hard to find what is there if you aren't in the know. It isn't like you can just stroll down Bardstown Rd. and see what looks interesting. The city's best restaurant (L'Explorateur) is in a house on a side street you'd have trouble finding even with Mapquest directions.

Andrew, the population of Indianapolis is more diverse than you give it credit for. There is a sizable black population, a large Latino population (probably pushing 100,000), and ethnic restaurants and groceries of various varieties abound. However, most of these serve the particular community in question and aren't well known to the city at large. As is increasingly the case across America, many of them are located in older, struggling suburban areas you'd never visit (e.g., west 38th St.) without a special reason.

And while the economy of Indianapolis is struggling along with everyone else's (they have a notable abandoned home problem in the inner city and pretty high foreclosure rates), it is one of only a handful of Midwestern cities that is actually doing pretty well, with population growth #1 in the Midwest, exceeding the national average by 50%, is one of the handful of cities with net in migration, and is adding jobs, including leading the Midwest in high tech job creation. It's no southern boomtown by any means, and there are serious problems like crime, but it is holding its own.

Robin, does that mean discussion as long as J. Gumbo's isn't mentioned (see the end of the article)? Just kidding, just kidding.

Wow, I lived in Phoenix, AZ for a couple of years and thought that town was over saturated with Fast Food and Fast Casual establishments....

Who would of thought that NapTown takes the title...

They still have Shapiro's and we don't....

http://www.shapiros.com/

Speaking of Indy...I was checking flights from SDF looking for one to Indy and apparently there are non!? Actually I was looking for a way to get to Bloomington from Louisville without driving and there are shuttles from Indy to Bloomington...for a few months we had Megabus here but due to low ridership, that went away, I will not ride Greyhound and besides it's no bargain...

Mari

This article from Indianapolis Monthly ought to get a little discussion going ...

Welcome to Chain City, USA

A few years ago, my family was returning to Louisville from my brother's graduation at the University of Illinois. Because of travel plans, flights, and space for my brother's belongings, the trip necessitated three vehicles (the horror!). I was driving one vehicle and my brother-in-law was my passenger. As he and my sister were (still are) looking for a living situation where she can return to school and he can focus on his work, he asked about the Bloomington-Indy area.

I've never been a big fan of Indy. I recently remember how Peter King(SI.com) wrote about how great it will be as a Super Bowl city because of the walking-nature of the downtown area. What he forgot to mention is just how chain/corporate that town is (as this article highlights). I don't remember my whole rant, but I do know I mentioned how the corporate and sprawling nature of the city really created a cookie-cutter, not-worth-much type of city. As the brother-in-law and sister currently live in the D.C. area, I focused specifically on the lack of ethnic, worthwhile eating establishments.

I don't remember being that harsh toward Indy, but that's not how my sister tells the story. Turns out that my brother-in-law relayed the info to my sister. Turns out he really bought my pitch. Turns out they had been really interested in the area and that's why he asked. Turns out the sister is still not that happy with me. I did say good things about Bloomington.

I think of Indy in the following ways:
1. A truckstop on the way to Chicago
2. A very corporate town with the expected pitfalls
3. The place where the blacklash against the Dixie Chicks started (see point #2)

Speaking of Indy...I was checking flights from SDF looking for one to Indy and apparently there are non!? Actually I was looking for a way to get to Bloomington from Louisville without driving and there are shuttles from Indy to Bloomington...for a few months we had Megabus here but due to low ridership, that went away, I will not ride Greyhound and besides it's no bargain...

Mari

There has been n/s air service between SDF and IND in the past, but discontinued several years ago....

Like any large city, Indy has its share of chain restaurants -- some very good, others mediocre -- like anywhere else.....but Indy also has some excellent locally-owned and operated restaurants -- two that come to mind are St. Elmo's Steak House and Shapiro's Deli.....both are long-time establishments located near central downtown....don't leave Indy without visiting at least one of these places.....

John, I don't share your enthusiasm for St. Elmo's. By all means stop by the bar for a drink and the justly famous shrimp cocktail. The atmosphere is great. But the steak is not up to par with the top places and the non-steak entries on the menu don't impress. I look at Elmo's similarly to Gene and Georgetti in Chicago, another less than top notch place with sky high prices that is coasting on longevity. On the other hand, if you like looking for celebrities in restaurants, St. Elmo's is the place. I almost always see someone I recognize in there.

If you are visiting another city and looking for places to eat, I don't know why you would pick steak anyway, which is pretty much a commodity type establishment no matter where you go.

John, I don't share your enthusiasm for St. Elmo's. By all means stop by the bar for a drink and the justly famous shrimp cocktail. The atmosphere is great. But the steak is not up to par with the top places and the non-steak entries on the menu don't impress. I look at Elmo's similarly to Gene and Georgetti in Chicago, another less than top notch place with sky high prices that is coasting on longevity. On the other hand, if you like looking for celebrities in restaurants, St. Elmo's is the place. I almost always see someone I recognize in there.

If you are visiting another city and looking for places to eat, I don't know why you would pick steak anyway, which is pretty much a commodity type establishment no matter where you go.

Aaron...I've always been partial to the "traditional" steak restaurant, and while St Elmo's can be pricey, I've never had a bad meal there....and I pick steak places because I like steak, and that's typically where the best prepared cuts will be found...

Maybe the question will shortly end up being "Fallujah: Chain city?" It's nice that Iraq can build up a 79 billion dollar surplus, since we're paying to rebuild their country...and what else says democracy like a new KFC in Fallujah!

Maybe the question will shortly end up being "Fallujah: Chain city?" It's nice that Iraq can build up a 79 billion dollar surplus, since we're paying to rebuild their country...and what else says democracy like a new KFC in Fallujah!

A McDonald's in Khandahar.....

Maybe the question will shortly end up being "Fallujah: Chain city?" It's nice that Iraq can build up a 79 billion dollar surplus, since we're paying to rebuild their country...and what else says democracy like a new KFC in Fallujah!

A McDonald's in Khandahar.....

Here in Oklahoma-Stan City (where we have been serving out a year long "residency sentence") there are over 180 "restaurants" with the word "Taco" somewhere in their name...and we can't forget the 86 "Sonic" drive-thru's. Top that Indy.