Sabbatical

I’m not a huge fan of their food. It’s good in it’s own right, but their flavor combos aren’t my favorite. Nice ambience and good entertainment.

Horrible! I would say caters to hipsters or college crowd that want to get drunk, get gross food from a limited menu and keep it moving down the strip. It was hot as hell in there. Drinks come out in the wrong glassware for the drink. Never EVER AGAIN!

Meh. Subpar bar food. Limited selection. The «flatbread» was more like a frozen pizza. Spinach artichoke dip was OK but nothing special, and the beer options were not great. All that said, we had great service. Friendly & attentive. Brought water for our dog and fairly quick even though they were busy & short staffed.

This review will definitely be getting an update as I was only here for a gig. The sound man, first off is a great guy, thanks for all your help. A cool staff, cool bartenders, etc. really make this a laid back place.
A lot of regulars seem to make their way in and out, chatting up the workers, which is a cool friendly vibe if you can dig it.
I saw a sticker of Mpozi on the small fridge behind the bar, back from when it was locals only. It was bittersweet memory I shared with one of the bartenders who also knew him. Will update when I actually eat there lol.

This is a horrible excuse for a bar. The staff is extremely rude and inattentive. Beer selection included an ipa and pbr on draft. Would not recommend coming here to anyone.

2÷9÷2013 This is a great place to stop if you are in Broad Ripple. It is conveniently located next to Noodles and Co. so it’s easy to find.
They have great bartenders, a menu that changes with the seasons, daily drink specials, and live music every Thursday. Oh and my favorite cream stout beer Dragons Milk was on tap! It isn’t fancy, it’s but it is all that you go to a bar for.

Was walking past Sabbatical when the drink special caught my eye. The staff at Sabbatical are all very friendly and attentive! Ordered the bleu cheese sliders w/​truffle fries and my cousin order the nachos. Both were really good! The best part was when we met the owners! They are obviously passionate about their business and love their customers! I think this may be my new favorite spot in Broad Ripple!

A couple of Fridays ago, I had an urge to people watch in BRip, so my girlfriends and I hit up Chowdown Midtown at Sabbatical. We arrived at 8:30 and were promptly seated outside on the patio with perfect view of Broadripple Avenue. It was a fabulous evening, our server was amazing — quick, almost overly friendly and intriguing (boasting cheek piercings in her adorable dimples). We were enjoying some adult time away from our kiddos with drinks and shared plates. What more could we need?
The beer options were limited but good. I enjoyed a couple of craft beers (neither on tap). We decided to hit up the Chowdown menu (2 for $ 30 for four courses) so we could try everything!
We started with the bread and butter, with truffle butter. It was AWESOME. There was one piece left that my «date» and I kept staring at and eventually I ate. I really wanted to LOVE the sweet potato crisps with parmesan but they were dry and I wasn’t a fan. The Stella Blue Cheese Dip was AHMAZEING. I don’t even love blue cheese but the greek yogurt really set it off perfectly so it was a great balance. I would drown myself in that dip. YUMMMMMO!
For the main course, we tried the goat cheese burger sliders and they were phenom! And more truffle butter. Who doesn’t love cheese and butter. Um… no one with taste buds should pass these up! The pulled pork sliders were good but OH SO HOT. I am not a spice (hot) fan though (wuss, I know) so I didn’t go for these.
We ended our meal with the chocolate crème brûlée and it was just NOT good. I have no idea what happened here, but it was actually pretty disgusting and not edible.
Overall the experience was fantastic, the views of the new 20 somethings wearing tight red dresses and hooker heals was perfect, service was stellar and the food was good. We also got to hear the band which was folk/​blue grass playing which was nice, even though we were outside. They seemed to really keep the interior of the place jumping. Love this location and would definitely go back!

There was a sticker on our apple and the grilled chicken was cold. Would not recommend!

Great food and super friendly service. Also if you want to see a Bears game in Indy this is the place to go!!!

I LOVE tapas. I love tapas the way a fat kid loves cake (and cookies and ice cream and candy and a sugar IV thinking its caramel straight to the veins — mm the rush). It was fun sampling the variety of tapas they had on their menu, sadly none gave me the rush I was looking for. Some were trying too hard and others not hard enough. Overall I love their patio, their live music every night it seems, and their cocktails but I’ll leave the tapas to someone else.
Food: ²⁄₅
Service: ³⁄₅
Location/​Ambiance: ⁴⁄₅

It was a nice sunny day in BR and my lady person friend homey wanted to sit and people watch.
We sat out on the Patio in the sun and watched people walk up and down Broad Ripple Ave.
We each had rather tart Mimosas. We shared the Chicken Satay and the Cheddar stuffed Turkey Meatballs. Hey… not too shabby.
The Satay was a rather decent portion too.
I’d go back to Sabbatical. Word.

The servers at Sabbatical were very friendly and even played with our dog. The patio seating was also nice and provided a good view of Broad Ripple Avenue.
The food was okay, there wasn’t anything that really jumped out at me and said, «I need you to eat me again», however, I did like the Cuban Espresso Crème Brulee a lot!
We ordered the roasted garlic which was tender and could easily be taken out of the bulbs, our waitress also brought us extra bread at no charge after we had finished our first plate. We also ordered the S’mocha pepper brisket (slow-​cooked pulled beef) and portabello mushrooms served in 4 wontons. The pulled/​brisket beef was a bit dry and tough, more like a jerky, and less like a brisket or even pulled pork. The portabello sauce was good, but a smidgen too sweet.
We also had the grilled vegetable skewers, which was good, and the Dinosaur Wings with ponzu sauce (aka chicken wings). I thought the wings would be bigger than regular chicken wings, like, maybe instead of chicken wings — it is stated in the menu — maybe like turkey wings or something? But turkey wings have a lot of splinters so that would be annoying. I really liked the chicken wings, I think because I am partial to ponzu sauce. However, I wish they could serve it in some way that would make it easier to eat. I’m handy with a knife, but it was still hard to cut through the wing joints without just trying to tear the wing apart.

First the disclaimer, this is my opinion and I am making it freely on my own without being asked. My relationship w/​those involved in this establishment have nothing to do with my comments here. As you know I tell it like it is regardless of who you are.
My first visit was this past Friday, I was in town to present at a conference. My husband and I invited 2 other friends who were also visiting from out of town for the conference. We ordered a TON of items. The stuffed roasted red pepper, the sweet potato things, the pub nachos, a mixed plate of cheese/​meats/​olives, 2 different flat breads, and the stuffed turkey meat balls. Oh, and then I got the truffle butter & bread to go (which I ate last night). I loved all of it. The turkey meatballs had a wonder blend of spices/​herbs and the cheese was nice and creamy. Those are by far my favorite and I would replace turkey at thanksgiving for those in a heart beat. My friends and I loved everything. The drinks were also well appreciated. My out of town friends were insistent we go back after the conference but I just couldn’t make that happen with that many stray cats to herd.
My second visit was for Sunday brunch with the family. Of course my family all went for the breakfast items, I however don’t care much for breakfast and did repeats of items I liked on Friday. This time I ordered my flat bread «light on the salad». Everyone loved the items, there were 2 scrambles, the traditional breakfast, biscuits and gravy and the waffles with fried chicken. It all looked tasty!
I got the bread and truffle butter to go, I was thinking I would eat it in my hotel room but instead brought it all the way to Nashville. We had it last night with dinner and we were sad when the bread ran out.
Over all I recommend giving this place a try, sit out side with a group of friends and try a hand full of things.

Waiting, waiting… ‘be right with you’… waiting… this should have been clue one to the poor service, but enjoying the nice weather on the deck and people watching had us preoccupied… Finally the server comes to take our order… and says «well, I’ll just take your drink order», she isn’t ready for more than that right now… um, ok. but I do mention to her that we have not dinner/​silver ware.
Ok, what to drink… No local brew on tap? What? Hmmm, should we leave now? Ok, fine, we will have wine with our dinner… I order a Malbec he orders a Merlot… and when the server delivers them, she admits that doesn’t know which one is which… what!?! This should be clue 2, or are we at 3 that this service is NOT so good! (I over hear another table asking for Their silver ware and napkins)
Finally get to order… have been here about 20mins.
Ap = Mediterranean Olive Medley — some fine olives, I did enjoy these. Also the complementary bread and butter was delivered. But we didn’t have small plates nor silverware for to eat it… and when our server was no where to be seen, we started eating with our fingers… not what we would have wanted to do… but I wasn’t going to let the bread get cold nor wait until our dinner was delivered (which wouldn’t have all fit on our tiny table) to ask again for plates and silverware.
ANYWAY… here is what we had for dinner… Not sure what I think about the ‘small plate’ concept. I like getting to try a couple different items, but it’s just so al la carte and seems a bit unbalanced. Maybe this is a better option for a snack type meal and not for a nice dinner for two!?!
Brie Stuffed Turkey Meatballs served with mixed greens and topped with mildly spiced cranberry chutney — these were pretty good! be careful, they are hot when they first come out!
S’Mocha Pepper Brisket — slow cooked pulled U.S. Raised beef brisket, rubbed with coffee, Mexican chocolate, crushed black peppercorn, and spices — topped with sweet and smokey portabella cream sauce 2 sliders — this was good… but wasn’t as impressive as the description alludes to.
Stuffed Portabella with diced vegetables, cajun remoulade, melted cheese and fresh herbs — also good but nothing too rave about.
Dessert was a expresso crème brûlée — this was yummy… left me wanting more, so much more! :)
Overall the food was good, concept is different, and the service was lacking to poor. (Oh yeah, we finally got silverware after I asked again after receiving our dinner)

I was lucky enough to meet Kevin and David when they owned Local’s Only at 56^th and Keystone. A great pub that supported all things local. I was sad to hear that they were leaving that location and moving on, but they created something truly special with Sabbatical.
Small plates, local beers and summers on the patio are the essence of Sabbatical. The spicy tequila pulled pork sliders are so tender and juicy, but holy hell they are not for those that can’t handle their heat! Stuffed portabella mushrooms, roasted garlic with bread, smoked brisket… the list goes on and on, but lucky for you, small plates means you can try several things at once and share them amongst your party.
Now is the PERFECT time to get out to Sabbatical so you can enjoy this beautiful summer weather on the patio that overlooks Broad Ripple avenue. Enjoy!

My boyfriend and I LOVE sabbatical. And we get made fun of for it constantly. Not that anyone I know is against it but there have been weeks where I’m pretty sure we were there ⁵⁄₇ days.
GREAT patio to drink and people watch on… that’s what drew us there in the first place. Especially for «sabbtical sundays»
The food is delicious, love that they’re all small plates so you can snack and/​or just get a variety of food. Drink specials are reasonable. Some nights there can get a little «special» but it all depends on the music, which sometimes is a bit loud/​random, but sabbtical is more enjoyable then not, by far.
Diverse cliental, and the staff is GREAT, always SO nice!

We went here for a Mother’s Day dinner with my boyfriend’s family. We probably ordered about one of everything on the menu… and while everything was good, nothing was insanely impressive. All of the small plates price between $ 4-​$ 12 and the simpler dishes were actually the crowd favorites with my group.
The cocktails were pretty run of the mill, nothing unexpected. I really did enjoy the live music and the intimate venue. The bands were great and it seemed to be getting pretty crowded by the time we left (around 10pm on a Saturday).

I liked Sabbatical but visited when it had just opened so I am letting a few things slide.
The location and building is great — right on the strip with tons of outside seating makes it a great spring /​summer /​fall spot. It is pretty big compared to a lot of restaurants in Broad Ripple which is great but can also make it seem a little «empty» at times. The high-​top bar tables are a nice touch for couples, and of course there are regular tables for larger groups.
The beer selection was a bit disappointing, mainly because they didn’t have anything on draft. I was told this was «temporary» since they just opened so its not a huge deal. On the upside, they had bottles of Triton Rail Splitter which is one of my favorite local IPAs. My wife liked the Pinot Grigio which was actually relatively cheap.
On to the food… The Seafood Stuffed Chipotle Shrimp were excellent and worth the $ 11 price. The two specials (chorizo dip and something else I can’t remember right now) we’re both pretty solid as well. My only disappointment really was the Sweet Potato Truffle Fries — they aren’t actually cooked or splashed with truffle oil so it was very hard to taste. I would avoid these. The plates were small (tapas style) but hearty enough to fill you up after a couple.
Overall, I think this place is good and will get better. I hope to be back soon.

I’ve written two other reviews on two other businesses in this location. They were both one star reviews. Thank goodness a business has finally moved into this amazing location that isn’t a steaming pile of awfulness.
Sabbatical is now my Bears bar. As it was at Local’s Only, they provide specials on beer and have a Chicago menu especially for games. I really hope they bring the chili back! $ 5 Chicago dog and chips… cannot go wrong.
Great seating set up with lots of TVs and a really neat «VIP» area outside with a television on the patio.
The small plates are beautifully crafted, and they seem to always have a new rotating special. Prosciutto wrapped figs with mascarpone? Deal. Put those in my mouth.