Courses At Ivy Tech

Reviews & Tips

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  I had this review all written ahead of time.  The location, the legacy -- Stouffers restaurant, where my parents took me for my birthday dinner back in '78, age 14, in my green denim leisure suit.  It was one of the 'nice' restaurants in town and had that showy view!  
  
  And oh to learn the Lilly Endowment would pull this facility back into existence.  And Indy would have one of those fun culinary institutes with a restaurant 'lab'.  And all within four miles of my house.  Well -- I couldn't wait.  Then I promptly forgot.
  
  THEN I was on Yelp at 3:00 am a couple weeks ago, cruising around and realized this place had come to life.  It was Courses!  
  
  It was downhill from there...  The website was three weeks out of date as of 1/1/13.  The reservation person listed on the site didn't return my emails.  The Ivy Tech hospitality department chair did!
  
  Reservations were made, and the magic moment arrived, I dined there with a friend last night.  That Lilly money bought a damn sweet interior re-do.  That was apparent right off the elevator.   We were met by a mumbling albeit friendly host who seated us.  Several of the student waiters buzzed about.  We were well, if goofily, attended.  It was funny to think that this was probably the first restaurant job for these kids.  Like, the only place to get restaurant experience is doing practicals at Courses.  Makes ya appreciate the working staff at real restaurants all the more.
  
  The food was average to terrible.  The salads were okay.  The escargot completely uninspired.  The braised beef short rib on whatever mashed potatoes contained about (literally) 2 oz. of meat and was a joke.  The crepes suzette were decent.  The whatever french pot of chocolate was some weird, highly rich pound of brown goo.  Pardon my french.
  
  At the beginning of the meal, I saw someone getting soup and I hadn't seen soup on the menu so I asked our server.  She said yes, chef sometimes created dishes that weren't on the menu and proceeded to read them to us.  Though she spoke no french so that was sorta odd as she made no attempt to read her notes if it was in french.  My dining partner asked if those might be called "specials" in the non-academic dining world.
  
  All food was served within 18 minutes of being seated.  Waitress didn't know what beers they had other than something by Sun King.  Bread (which sucked) was taken away (??) as we were discovering the braised short rib was mostly nothing.  
  
  Well, you get the idea.   Total bill with two beers:  $43.  Add tip to $50.  Highly amusing but not very inspired.  
  
  And yes, unparallelled views.
  
  No one from the teacher/professional side of the venture ever made contact to ask how things went.  I had the whole thing lined out -- I was writing the yelp review the entire meal.  (Dog ate first, good version)
  
  Would I go back?  Hell yes.  Was it good?  Sadly, no.

  Review Source:

  Posted on 01.25.13 Curt C.

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• 0

  A little slow, but good food! Try the breakfast burritos.

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  Posted on 12.20.12 Chelsea R.

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  Who knew such a gem existed in the city?!
  
  Ivy Tech recently rehabbed an old hotel, creating a sharp, modern, professional culinary school, topped off by "Courses," the student-run restaurant.  The restaurant still retains the original woodwork, including intricate archways and beautiful fireplaces.  Low lighting and  comfortable seating arrangements make for an intimate setting.  The room is surrounded by windows, revealing the beautiful Indianapolis skyline below.  The food, prepared by the talent of the students, was incredible.
  
  While I was only visiting during a special event, I very much look forward to seeing this place in action!

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  Posted on 12.15.12 Christie M.

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  Thanks to Yelp, I had a rare opportunity for a behind-the scenes tour of the new Ivy Tech Culinary School's "Courses" venue, a 13-floor, 196,000 square foot state of the art culinary institute that formerly housed the Stouffer's Hotel and, before that, the Stokley-Van Camp mansion. I hear Elvis stayed at the hotel in 1977 when he performed his final concert at Market Square Arena.
  
  The first floor houses a pastry shop that will soon be open for students and morning commuters to stop by for a freshly baked breakfast made by the students of the culinary school (with reserved parking spaces out front for to go orders.) Behind the shop are state of the art classrooms where students gain firsthand knowledge in a kitchen environment on all types of cooking techniques from basics to sushi and even foods involving liquid nitrogen.
  
  As the tour wound upstairs towards the Penthouse restaurant, it became very apparent that Ivy Tech can accommodate almost any size meeting in their various conference rooms, each one with an impressive list of technology available for crowds big and small.
  
  Our tour ended in the Penthouse, a sit down restaurant on the 13th floor with impressive views of the downtown skyline and even better desserts and finger foods created by the talented student chefs at Ivy Tech. We might have had one or two cocktails throughout the evening, maybe some great wine from Butler and Huber Wineries, but one thing is certain: we all had a great time decked out in our tackiest Christmas attire and I for one will certainly be back to Courses in the very near future.

  Review Source:

  Posted on 12.07.12 Jon C.

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