Union 50

Last month we had a friend visiting, so we took him out to eat with some Indy friends.  None of us had been to Union 50 yet, so we decided to give it a go.

Union 50 is another fancy-pants new place owned by the guy who also owns Mesh on Mass and Bru Burger.  It's got a revolving menu and attempts a tapas thing (which Tim hates, and when it's this expensive, so do I).  There are "Petit," "Bistro," and "Grand" sized dishes, plus fancy fries and charcuterie boards.

T and I opted to start with some of the fries ($5)--a small order of Manchego & Bacon fries, with our choice of dipping sauces (we opted for beer cheese for me, and spicy grain mustard for him).  They were pretty good!  The bacon and cheese were mostly on the top fries, but some of those toppings did make their way down to the rest.

For my main, I got a Grand item--"Tasso Ham and Shrimp" with crispy polenta and Tasso Ham gravy.  It's been awhile, so I'm afraid I can't remember what else was in there.  Those brown cubes in the picture are the polenta, which were indeed crispy on the outside, and firmly creamy on the inside.  This exact version of this dish doesn't appear to be available anymore, but they have something similar for $20.  It was an okay portion--several large shrimp in there, and good flavor--but pretty pricey for the amount in my opinion.

It has been awhile since we were there, so Tim and I are struggling to remember all the components of his dish...pretty sure it was slow roasted, shredded duck over some waffles (pic to the left).  He enjoyed it but didn't feel it was enough food for him.  No price for this one since it's no longer available and it has just been too long!  Shame on me for taking so long to post.

My overall impression of the places lasts, though--to me, it feels like it's trying too hard to be hip.  Kind of feels like it doesn't know what it wants to be...it's a higher-end restaurant, but it also considers itself a bar, AND it has live music events...how about some focus?  Additionally, if you want to do tapas-style, make them a bit more affordable.  Ugh.  I doubt we'll return, unless it's at a friend's request.

Website:  Union 50