Newest Carmel location debuts visual style for all future cafés.

Writer / Jon Shoulders
Photos provided by Patachou, Inc.

Patachou, Inc., the company responsible for Indianapolis restaurants Cafe Patachou, Petite Chou Bistro and Champagne Bar and Napolese Pizzeria, officially relocated its 126th Street and Gray Road café on February 13. Founder and CEO Martha Hoover says the new spot, at the corner of East Main Street and Hazel Dell Parkway, represents a stylistic move forward for the company.

“It is the first location that debuts a new visual look for Cafe Patachou, which will reflect the interiors of all cafés moving forward, whether a new location or renovation,” she says. 

The new 2,800-square-foot café is about twice the size of the previous location, and includes an outdoor dining area. According to Hoover, the larger space, which was previously a Key Bank branch, better suits the company’s brand, and Patachou staff members have endeavored to retain a warm, welcoming aesthetic for new and existing Carmel patrons.

“It was important to us to make sure our Gray Road staff and regulars were well-prepped for the move,” Hoover says. “We wanted to make sure everyone was comfortable with the new location and still felt like we could be their go-to neighborhood spot.”

The menu currently includes items Patachou has become known for through the years like specialty omelets, broken yolk sandwiches, frites and flavored coffees. Hoover says a few new frozen drinks have become customer favorites at the Carmel location, including Frosé (frozen rosé) and the Diane (frozen red grapefruit juice with vodka, prosecco and citrus-scented simple syrup).

“We also serve pour-over Stumptown Coffee using the innovative Poursteady, a pour-over coffee machine combining precision motion control with unprecedented speed and reliability,” says Hoover, who opened her first Café Patachou at 49th and Pennsylvania streets in 1989.

The Carmel restaurant is one of six Cafe Patachou locations under the Patachou, Inc. umbrella, in addition to three Napolese locations and Petite Chou in Broad Ripple Village. In December of 2014, Hoover opened Public Greens, a cafeteria-style eatery on 64th Street near the Monon Trail with a weekly chalkboard menu. A micro farm next to Public Greens provides the restaurant with a selection of fresh produce including arugula, radishes, turnips and spicy mix lettuces.

One year before Public Greens opened its doors, Hoover launched the Patachou Foundation, a non-profit initiative devoted to delivering healthy meals to children in the Indianapolis area experiencing food insecurity and homelessness. Meals are delivered via the company’s Patatruck mobile kitchen, and all Public Greens profits go directly toward the program. Patachou Foundation representatives and volunteers occasionally use the micro farm for educational programming including farm tours and cooking classes.

Hoover’s next culinary venture is Crispy Bird, set to open later this year at 49th and Pennsylvania streets with a focus on fried chicken, sides, desserts, wine and beer.

For additional information on Cafe Patachou including menus and catering details, call (317) 569-0965 or visit cafepatachou.com.