When Kayla told me we were going to see one of the largest domes in the world, I thought OK - we're going to drive past a cool building. Wrong.



The West Baden Dome is the 11th largest dome in the world. It's a luxury hotel with a restaurant, lots of little shops and a beautiful garden area.


Their restaurant is called Sinclair's, but for lunch - it's just Cafe at Sinclair's. We went for lunch to avoid the costly dinner options. And really, we only wanted dessert anyway. So they sat us to the right and brought out this adorable mini banana nut bread loaf with those fancy little butters. Tasty.

While a few of the desserts look really interesting, I went for their signature chocolate dome. It had a hard dark chocolate coating with a layer of chocolate cake inside with ganache.

It was OK. I am not crazy about dark chocolate, so that's my bad. The ganache inside was pretty tasty. I was a little envious of all the fresh fruit Kayla had on her creme brulee.

Grade: B

Larry Bird is from French Lick, Ind., and a local sportsbar is dedicated to him, showcasing trophies and other memorabilia of his around the restaurant.



 So, we went to 33 Brick Street. It was time I tried the famous pork tenderloin sandwich



This is Indiana's "thing," and I couldn't leave before trying it.

First, Kayla got some fried pickles. Not my favorite thing, so I won't judge.

My sandwich, though, I was quite pleased with. The pork tenderloin spills out beyond the kaiser roll.

It had pickles, I think, and was tasty. Huge and hot and breaded and pan-fried. Comfort with a side of creamy mac & cheese. Yes.


Grade: A

This local brewery had me pretty excited - if there's one thing that makes me more excited than new restaurants, it's a new brewery. Point Blank Brewery didn't quite make the point.

I went for a calzone with mushroom, garlic, artichoke, and spinach. The actual flavor was pretty good, and there was a good bit of cheese. BUT it tasted as though it was literally dropped in the fire - ashy at points. Not just smokey and woodburnt - like I legitimately inspected it to see if I could see char on it. There were black marks - as long as I kept away from those, it was good.

Grade: B

My visit to Kayla was centered around the Kentucky Derby. Once in a lifetime, no? We crafted our giant hats, headed down to Louisville and got our bet on.

I keep this blog as not only a chronicle of my adventures - mainly in West Virginia - but also to note fun places I go with friends, all the while centering it around food, which is a common gathering place in our culture. Really, I like to be able to document places I go with fun people and having fun times. The restaurants are just a portion of that and usually are just representative of a larger conversation or experience.

So, my only review I can accompany with this trip is the mint julep. As soon as I got in, I bought one. It's bourbon, mint, sugar and water. And it's terrible.

But the races were just one giant party in the infield. A fun one.

Mmm BBQ. Indiana isn't really known for its BBQ - not like the Carolinas or Texas or Kansas. But Harley's, I think, gave 'em a run for their money.

First off, it's super easy to win me over with super sweet service. The owner, I'm assuming, recognized my friend Kayla (though she hadn't been there in months) as the girl from WV. I told him I was also from WV, and he went on about WVU. Winner. Super cool guy who genuinely cared about how we liked our food.

I ordered a half and half pulled pork and brisket platter, which came with two sides. I chose potato salad and macaroni & cheese.

Totes good. They have a spicy and a sweet sauce, and I mixed the two for the meat. Smokey and delicious.

The sides were good, too. I like a good mustard potato salad, the mac and cheese wasn't decent, too.

He also brought out a couple chicken drumsticks for us to try - amazing. By the end, I was totally stuffed and had to roll out the door, but it was worth it.

Grade: A