Bill Humphries knew that more often than not women choose the place to eat when a couple dines out. So he wanted a lighter, airier atmosphere for his restaurant, an ambiance that would appeal to men and women alike. He felt that too many steakhouses are heavy with dark wood. The result is elegant richness in Eddie Merlot’s restaurant decor, much like the food they serve. Read more
When I first heard the name, I thought the Fort Wayne Children’s Zoo might be a small petting zoo. But a petting zoo couldn’t be 40 acres in size with over 1,000 animals, including lions, tigers, zebras, and giraffes. It wouldn’t attract more than half a million people each year, and it certainly wouldn’t be rated “Indiana’s #1 Gotta-Do Summer Attraction.” I quickly discovered the zoo isn’t just for kids. It’s as fun for adults as for children. Read more
Fifteen miles north of Fort Wayne, in the unincorporated town of LaOtto, Country Heritage Winery & Vineyard has become so popular in the three years of its existence that it’s already in its second expansion. What makes it popular? Besides good wine, with live entertainment and special events, the winery has become a gathering place rather than just a winery with a tasting bar.
Jeremy and Jennifer Lutter opened the winery in April 2011. Head winemaker Kevin said they produced 3,910 gallons of wine that year. In May 2013 they expanded production to 20,000 gallons per year and added the Black Bear Event Center, in which they host events like Wine and Canvas, Cooking with Wine, and live music. They often bring in local food vendors so you can enjoy a meal with your wine. The event center is also available for rental.
Of course, wine is central to the winery’s success. The Lutters grow eight varieties of grapes in their vineyard and make thirty different wines. Their Traminette was chosen Indiana’s Traminette of the year in the 2013 Indy International Wine Competition, the nation’s largest scientifically organized and independent wine competition.
All of Country Heritage Winery’s wines are made on the premises in LaOtto. Since not all the grapes they use can grow in the northern Indiana climate, they import juice (never concentrate) from the grapes they can’t grow, mainly from the west coast. Fruits other than grapes (blueberries, raspberries, strawberries, cranberries) that are used in the wines are sourced from family farms, many local. Honey comes from their own bees.
Winery tours are offered on Saturdays, on the hour, from noon until 6 p.m. On the tour, you’ll go into the production room and see the 1,531 gallon fermenting tanks and the oak barrels that the red wines are transferred into following initial fermentation. The new bottling machine bottles 1400 to 1500 bottles per hour. Previously, the bottling was done by hand. A new barrel room will be part of the newest expansion, with room for 64 barrels.
Wine tasting at Country Heritage Winery & Vineyards is free. You can taste up to five wines of your own selection plus the wine of the month. One of the wines I tasted was an ice wine, a wine I’d never had before. Ice wine is produced from grapes that are left on the vine to freeze and then pressed while still frozen to get the maximum sugar content. I tried a wine slushie, too, popular in hot summer months.
Besides the wine tasting bar, you can taste fudge made at the winery or browse other locally made items for sale in the showroom, from pickles and cheese to soaps and lotions, and of course, bottles of all of the Country Heritage Winery & Vineyards wines.
The winery isn’t just expanding their operation, adding a larger production area, a barrel room, a private tasting room for groups, and a wrap-around porch. They’re expanding their outside reach, too. You’ll be able to enjoy the wine at the Fort Wayne TinCaps, the minor league baseball team, and you can purchase the wine in local stores, restaurants and some bars.
Want to do a winery tour? Pick up a Northeast Indiana Wine Tour card and have it stamped at each of the seven wineries on the tour. After you get all seven stamps, you’ll receive a collector wine trail glass.
Country Heritage Winery & Vineyard is located on St Rd 3, ten minutes north of Fort Wayne. Check the web site for hours and event schedule.
Disclosure: My visit to Country Heritage Winery & Vineyard was hosted by Visit Fort Wayne and the winery, but any opinions expressed in this post are strictly mine.
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Last fall I had breakfast at Frank’s Diner in Kenosha, Wisconsin, and dined on Garbage. Recently I ate Garbage again, this time at Cindy’s Diner in Fort Wayne, Indiana. It’s hard to resist ordering a dish with such an unappetizing but fun name, especially when it’s the diner specialty.
The exact Garbage ingredients differ between the two diners, but the concept is the same. At Cindy’s Diner, Garbage is a combination of hash browns, eggs, cheese, onions and ham, all combined on the grill and cooked until golden brown.
Cindy’s Diner is a nostalgic trip back to the 1950s when these ready-made diners were all the rage. The diner cost in 1952 was $6,000. Over the years it was sold and moved a few times. The current owners purchased it in 1990, moved it to its downtown Fort Wayne location, restored it to its original condition, and renamed it. Owner John quipped, “I was working construction and bought it for my wife. Now she’s at home, and I’m here.”
The small diner seats only 15, on stools around the counter, so plan your timing accordingly. We went on a weekday for a late breakfast. Whether it was good timing or luck that our group of eight was able to be seated together, I’m not sure.
Cindy’s Diner is open Monday through Saturday from 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. and on Sunday from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m., serving breakfast and lunch. I suggest saving room for a donut, made on the premises.
Cindy’s Diner is due to be picked up off the foundation and moved once again, making way for a 15-story office building on the current site. So if you visit Fort Wayne and the diner no longer at 830 South Harrison, go one block north and one block west to Webster and Berry Streets. Be ready for a dose of nostalgia and a satisfying meal of Garbage.
Disclosure: My visit to Cindy’s Diner was hosted by Visit Fort Wayne, but any opinions expressed in this post are strictly those of the author.
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What’s more intriguing than watching a glassblower? Trying glassblowing out for yourself, like I did at The Glass Park in Fort Wayne, Indiana.
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What to do when there are more restaurants to try than there are meal times? A progressive dinner is what we did one evening in Fort Wayne, with appetizers and cocktails at an Irish pub, salads and entrees at a local iconic steak house, and dessert at a chocolate shop.
We were greeted at our first stop, J K O’Donnell’s in downtown Fort Wayne, with Guinness and an Irish cocktail. I’m not much of a beer drinker, so one sip of the Guinness is all I had, but I drank every drop of the cocktail that combined Irish whiskey and Baileys.
J K O’Donnell’s prepares 98% of their food in-house, including the breadsticks, little fingers of golden crispness on the outside and tender on the inside. Fried pickles, becoming ubiquitous in pubs, were on the evening’s menu, as were Scotch eggs, something I’ve always wanted to try, hard boiled eggs coated in pork sausage, then breaded and deep-fried. A cholesterol feast but tasty.
Families are more than welcome at J K O’Donnell’s, but since Indiana law doesn’t allow children in a bar area, a separate room is available for families
Don Hall opened his first restaurant in 1946. Today the family owns a dozen restaurants in and near Fort Wayne, all unique, ranging from a drive-in to fine dining. The Old Gas House, in business since 1958, is exactly as the name implies—it’s in a 19th century gas plant. At this steak house we started with warm bread with a choice butters, one savory and one sweetened with honey, and salads. My favorite salad was the Spring Greens with strawberries, dried cherries, walnuts, and goat cheese, served with black currant vinaigrette.
Next came the entrees, including Herb Crusted Pork Tenderloin served with Dijon-caper cream, sautéed mushroom, and caramelized shallots, and Dan-O’s Ribeye Steak, blackened and served with mashed potatoes, fried onions, and Andouille hash.
In the summer you can dine outdoors, if you wish, on the banks of the St. Mary’s River.
Dessert was a chocolate tasting splurge at DeBrand Fine Chocolates, Fort Wayne’s own gourmet chocolate company, where they make all their own creative centers and pair them with fine dark, milk and white chocolate.
The dark chocolate truffle was delicious, but my favorites were the dark chocolates in the Connoisseur Collection, like the Mayan Gold, intense dark chocolate ganache encased in dark chocolate with a bit of edible gold leaf on top. Talk about rich! Another of my favorites was Rosemary, dark chocolate filled with a citrus blend and rosemary. The Espresso was decadent, too, dark chocolate filled with intense dark chocolate-espresso ganache. Do you see a pattern here? Yes, I love dark chocolate, and being spoiled with rich gourmet chocolates like DeBrand, I am becoming quite a chocolate snob.
Our chocolate tasting was at one of the DeBrand stores, but you can also see how the chocolates are made on a tour of the kitchens at the Auburn Park Drive location.
The progressive dinner was sponsored by Visit Fort Wayne, but it’s an idea that I may borrow. What a great way to spend an evening—sampling foods from several great places, creating your own “taste of” a city.
Disclosure: My visit to Fort Wayne was hosted by the Visit Fort Wayne, but any opinions expressed in this post are strictly those of the author.
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