What I'm Eating: Edward's Drive-in

After a rather long day/night out with friends, I woke up on Saturday morning desperately needing greasy, good food perfect for soaking up any remaining alcohol swashing about in my stomach.  Earlier in the week, I purchased two $5 (valued at $10 each) Groupons for Edwards Drive-In.  I had heard great things, seen it featured on Man vs. Food and visited their website.  D and I are huge fans of breaded tenderloins (a signature sandwich of Indiana) after years attending the State Fair, the Indy 500 and visiting various restaurants in the area that serve them. 

With a bit of a headache, major dehydration and lack of sleep, their location on the SE side of Indianapolis wasn't ideal but really wasn't too bad of a drive from downtown once we got on I-65.  You can't really miss it off of Raymond St. or the massive grain silos across the street.  (Not the most aesthetically pleasing side of town).  It was pouring down rain that day which deflated the idea of the "drive-in" experience of eating in our car; definitely sad about that.  But we were surprised to find a fairly large indoor seating area.  It is styled like a classic, 1950s diner (it originally opened in 1957 as a Dog N'Suds) and the decor and jukebox with its authentic era music is fitting. 

Edwards serves fast food so we approached the counter to order.  They have a fairly extensive menu (tenderloin, burger, chili dogs, grilled cheese, etc); however, our Groupon limited us to just the tenderloin.  I didn't care because that's what I wanted and what they boast as being one of the best in Indy.  I ordered the tenderloin fully loaded (lettuce, tomato, pickle, onion, mayo), made it a basket (fries and coleslaw) as well as ordered their [house-made draft] root beer float.  I also noticed fried pickles on the feature board but decided I'd try those the next time (I only used one of my Groupons).  D went with a breaded tenderloin, too, an order of the handmade onion rings and a frosted mug of their root beer.  We found a booth to sit down at and our order number was quickly called.  Both my eyes and stomach were amazed by the sight and smell of our rather large order of food.  The tenderloin was massive and stuck out of both sides of the bun.  D's onion ring order was huge making it easier to ask him to share.  After adding additional condiments (ketchup and mustard), we began to tackle the mammoth meal.  I immediately tossed an accordion-style french fry in my mouth.  They were cooked perfectly but lacked a bit of salt.  On to a sip of my root beer float.  Now that's what I'm talking about.  Sharp, rich, dark root beer with a scoop of smooth, vanilla ice cream.  I could've eaten 5 of them but remembered I'm about to eat a large fried meal.  Before tackling the tenderloin, I snuck one of D's onion rings.  YUM!! They were one of the best I've ever had: gigantic, lightly battered, airy, DELISH!  The breading reminded me of the batter on a great fish n'chips.  They were cooked to perfection and the onion was tender enough that when you took a bite, the whole strip didn't pull out, leaving you with crumbled breading.  (I don't have sharp teeth so that happens all the time).  My coleslaw was mediocre.  It had a nice balance of sweet from the mayo and tangy from the vinegar but was served at a weirdly, room temperature like it had been just sitting out somewhere.  Definitely not memorable. 

Definitely not part of my healthy living but a girl's gotta splurge sometimes :)

But on to the main event: The Breaded (and fried) Tenderloin.  This is what lured Adam Richman and his Man vs. Food crew to Edwards so that he could experience true Indiana cooking....sadly, D and I were pretty let down.  Besides its size, there was not much else to report.  It is served very thin with an equal amount of breading and tasted very dry.  D described it as though it had been breaded and fried a week earlier, frozen and then refried when ordered, and I have to agree.  (He went as far as to say it was probably the 2nd worst ever.) It's no wonder that the order comes up so fast.  It even had a bit of a freezer-burn taste to it.  We did consider the fact that they had just ran a major Groupon deal (when I checked, they had sold over 2700 in a few days) and might have previously prepared a bulk amount to accommodate the anticipated, large crowds, but they definitely did their customers (especially first-timers) an injustice because you only get one chance for a first-impression.  If it wasn't for the fact that I have another Groupon in my possession, I would easily pass over Edwards in the future.  I still look forward to the fried pickles and another root beer float.

D and I ate about half of the food we had ordered and were certainly full by the time we left.  We did ask for doggie bags and that's exactly what our leftovers were used for.  Miss B certainly didn't complain about the tenderloins as she chowed down.  I hope that when we go back to Edwards, the Groupon-craziness will have died down and that they will focus on quality tenderloins instead of quantity.  Edward's also does catering and they are doing The Bride's wedding in August.  They were recommended by a mutual acquaintance and offer a lot of great-sounding options.  I really hope that my experience on Saturday isn't an indication of what will be served then.

The Verdict: Out of 5 stars
Location/Atmosphere: *** (Not an ideal location for but love drive-ins; very nostalgic and tidy)
Service: **** (staff was friendly and food came quickly)
Food:*** (disappointing tenderloin but awesome onion rings and root beer)
Will I eat there again: Probably not (except to use my other Groupon)

Edward's Drive-In
2126 South Sherman Drive Indianapolis, IN 46203
317-786-1638