The old hardware store is now a pub

/ Roadtirementvintage / 32 Comments

The building is a 3 story brick with a full basement, built in 1890 and home to the J.G. DePrez Co. a family owned hardware store for years. Like many small town stores, it fell prey to shopping malls and interstate highways allowing easy access to those big city malls. The hardware store closed decades ago.

Pudders is in the white building on the left. Note the DePrez name on the brick in the upper right

Now a portion of the first floor houses a delightful restaurant and, in the back a separate bar room. Named Pudders, this business is located on the Public Square of Shelbyville, a small town in central Indiana. It has been in business since 2019, and has enjoyed a strong local following.

Full bar serving restaurant

Fresh made chips smothered with good stuff

Vegetable Wrap and fries. Wrap is loaded!

Fresh cod “Fish and Chips” with cole slaw

 

 

 

 

 

 

Now that the pandemic is slowing down, Pudders has live music each weekend and periodic trivia nights. Their menu offers an assortment of burgers, wraps, salads, wings and tons of appetizers. We had a small group of family members together for a late afternoon meal. Every meal was delicious and portion sizes were very generous. It is always nice to see older buildings in small towns occupied with locally owned businesses.

Public art is everywhere in Carmel Indiana

/ Roadtirementvintage / 21 Comments

Carmel, Indiana is a suburban city immediately north of Indianapolis. Known as the roundabout capital of the U.S. with 140 of those wild traffic routes, the city is also known for its many pieces of public art.  Fifteen of these works of art are by Seward Johnson,  an American artist known for trompe-l’œil painted bronze statues. Other artists also have public art displayed.

“Ambassador of the Street” by Seward Johnson, placed 2012, cost $78,000

“Spring Eternal” by Jerry Joslin, placed 2010, cost $49,975

“Things To Do” by Seward Johnson, placed 2008, cost $80,000

“Who’s In Charge” by Seward Johnson, placed 2008, cost $88,000

Even bike racks have become “art” in Carmel

The day we were in Carmel the weather was not conducive to enjoying street art. We’ll return on a day without cold rain and see more of the many other public art displays. There is some controversy about the people street statues, as not all taxpayers feel that they are worth the price.

Brunch at RIZE Carmel

/ Roadtirementvintage / 11 Comments

Brunch is such a good meal, you can’t beat a lunch and breakfast combo. The other day we got a family group together and made candles. We had a two hour wait for our just made custom candles to cool, perfect for a leisurely brunch.

The “Moss Wall” at the entrance

 

 

 

 

 

RIZE in Carmel, Indiana was mere minutes away, so off we went. There were few people out, as it was quite rainy and somewhat cool, thus seating for our group was immediate.

Too good for words

Generous portions

Avocado Toast with Salad

 

 

 

 

 

 

Miller Farm Chicken Hash with duck egg

 

 

 

 

 

 

RIZE is known for the decadently delicious cinnamon rolls, smothered in icing. Other dishes are most tempting as well. I had the biscuits and gravy, covered with a huge duck egg, over easy. The Avocado toast on levain bread with salad really fits the bill, as does the Miller Farm Chicken Hash, also topped with a large duck egg. And to start, or finish, your delightful brunch, go ahead and treat yourself to one of several Mimosas. Choose from either strawberry, orange, pomegranate, citrus-lavender, honey, or blueberry. RIZE is perfect for a relaxing and satisfying brunch.

 

 

A candle making experience

/ Roadtirementvintage / 21 Comments

It is always fun to try a new experience. We had never been to a DIY candle store. This candle making sounded like a good thing.

The Penn & Beech Candle Company in Carmel, Indiana has a lovely store with everything you need to make your own custom scented candle. When you first walk in you are greeted with a marvelously clean scent in the air. Once you register your first task is to figure out what fragrances you want your candle to have. There are shelves of candles with single scents for you to unscrew the lid and take a whiff.

The staff recommends that you pick four scents that you want to start experimenting with. Once you have that, four squeeze bottles are brought to your workspace. Holding the bottles under your chin, squeeeeeze and smell. Two at a time will give you the future candle fragrance. Mix and match, determine of the scents which may require more than another. You are guided through the process.

 

Once your fragrance choices are made, the fun really begins! You have already decided which glass you will make your candle in. There are shot jiggers on a tray and a stirring spoon. In my case, I had decided on a ratio of 2 parts Hops scent and 1 part Earth scent. You fill the jigger up with that ratio, and fill it to overflowing. No worry, you’ll dump the overflow from the tray to candle wax.

Next step, a pouring cup of hot molten soy wax is brought to your table. This is where you pour in the fragrance oils you have measured out then stir the wax and fragrances together.   This is then poured into the candle glass the you have picked out.  It takes two hours for the candle to set up, so we went for brunch and then returned to pick up our creations.

Fruits of our labors

Our entire party truly enjoyed this fun experience. Every aspect of the candle making process was an adventure. So many fragrances to try, lots of different candle glasses and containers to pick from, and most of all a wonderful experience we could enjoy with family.

 

2-22-2022 was a busy busy day

/ Roadtirementvintage / 23 Comments

Tuesday 2-22-2022 was quite the day. It was my first full day as a 71 year old Baby Boomer. Not sure how I feel about passing the seventy milestone. With other family gathered together we had a full day of activities  planned.

Sher picked her oils

I liked these two scents

We started off by going to the “make your own” Penn and Beech Candle Company in Carmel, Indiana. They had hundreds of scents to use in the candle of your choice. We had a ball sampling scents, narrowing down to the perfect blend. The scent liquids were then mixed in the hot wax, and left to cool for a couple of hours.

Too good for words

Generous portions

 

 

 

 

 

 

We then went to one of our favorite places for brunch: RIZE. The Carmel location was just minutes from the Candle Company, and of course you have to start with their decadent cinnamon rolls smothered in icing. I got brave and ordered a first time for me duck egg on my biscuits and gravy. Delicious. We then picked up our candles.

Dollar Tuesday Tacos

National Margarita Day

Tuesday the 22nd was notable for several reasons. In the background the Ukraine v Russia crisis loomed. However, in the interest of celebration, we had our dinner at the Cholula Mexican Restaurant and recognized National Margarita Day with some frozen strawberry margaritas. Taco Tuesday, well of course! Cholula’s had tacos for $1 each.

Here are some of the candles we created

What a fun day! Making candles  was quite the experience. Sher and I decided that this was a very enjoyable activity that we have done together. Of course it was most special having our daughter and grandson and our youngest son with us.  I guess being 71 years old is not that bad after all.