Finch’s Brasserie is located on Kirkwood Avenue in Bloomington, Indiana in the block between two staples of Indiana University; the Sample Gates and Nick’s English Hut. This family-owned restaurant is known for their farm-to-table fresh ingredients and for supporting other local businesses like Smoking Goose Meatery. They are so focused on fresh ingredients that their menu actually changes seasonally, although they do try to always keep favorites such as the Greek and Roman pizzas on it. I greatly enjoyed the Roman, pictured above, which consisted of sausage, pepperoni, bacon, tomato sauce, mozzarella, and parmesan. I also liked the taste I got of my wife’s margherita pizza, pictured below, and it included tomatoes, mozzarella, basil, and parmesan. Ordinally those two pizzas would have been it for us, but one of the friendly owners then sent us her favorite pizza; the Dordogne. The Dordogne is the second pizza pictured below, and it is made up of four cheeses, truffle honey, and prosciutto di parma. I was very glad to have tried the Dordogne as the cheeses were incredibly rich, and the honey added a great flavor I have never before had on a pizza. Overall, all of the pizzas had delicous toppings and thin, light crusts that were cooked to perfection. Finch’s Brasserie also boasts a large menu beyond pizza as well as a nice beer and wine list. While I have still never found a pizza I have enjoyed more than the ones at Mother Bear’s in Bloomington, this restaurant offers delicious lighter pizzas that can provide a nice change of pace. I recommend Finch’s Brasserie as a great place for pizza and as a good date or formal dinner spot since it is more upscale than a lot of restaurants in Bloomington. It is also worth noting that they have a large room upstairs that can be booked for private parties.
What I Ate: The Roman
Rating: 8.0/10.0
Finch’s Brasserie
514 East Kirkwood Avenue
Bloomington, IN 47408
(812)333-2700
FinchsBrasserie.com
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Hey Ryan, you did a great job on the Halli Casser-Jayne today! Curious how many of “my” top-10 favorite pizza places you’ve been to? http://www.mikesroadtrip.com/best-gourmet-pizza
BTW, I think I need to add 10 more to my “favorites list” so I can include “Finch’s.” Great place!
Mike – Sadly, I have only had one on your list (Pizzeria Bianco), so I definitely have some work to do. I also certainly feel your pain in regards to creating a Top Ten list as I often want to expand my list as well. It his hard to exclude so many great restaurants.
Oh, that’s not such a bad thing…now you have some additional places to check out from a fellow pizza connoisseur.
I hear ya! What I’m thinking about doing is a top-10 list for each year. Huh…what do ya think of that idea?
Cheers!
I think that is a great idea!
Six of us ate there graduation night and we ALL were EXTREMELY disappointed. The prime rib wasn’t prime rib. Three of us ordered it Medium Rare, they came Medium Well with lots of gristle. Two ordered shrimp and both said tasteless. One of us is a chef at a prestigious restaurant in Louisville, when he saw the minimal options menu, he said he could do it in his sleep. The side items were very good but the entrees were very bad…way over priced for what we received. With prices like that, the owner or manager should come to each table and show their appreciation. I don’t know if this was a first for graduation but for Finch’s sake, I would expect it to be their last. No bread on the table, salads EXTREMELY pitiful, lettuce and two piece of carrot. Our ages ranged from 21 to 86…five of us I.U. Bloomington graduates and one Miami of Ohio. Graduation is such a joyous time and everyone looking for an exceptional dinner experience…what a let down! My bill came to $265.00 and I left our waitress $320.00 We did our part but disappointingly, Finch’s didn’t!