It’s January and it’s cold. Can a food / travel blog be done in the frozen tundra of Indiana winter? Maybe no Frisbee golfing, no hiking, no far away travels, no outdoor river tours. There must be something to do in this state rather than stay at home waiting for the snow days and hoping they get in the basketball game on TV. It’s high time we went to Angola!
The Tenderloin
North of the roundabout sits a small diner with a pink sign that prominently states “Mama’s Place”. Below that title it also proclaims, “Home of the good gravy!” Well… gravy is good, but tenderloin is better and we came to find out if it is also the “Home of the good tenderloin!” The server hands you the menu breakfast-side-up. As you turn it over to the lunch side, the choices are laid out in black and white except for one that is highlighted in hot pink – Mama’s Famous Breaded Tenderloin! Mama seems to know what Indiana wants to eat and leads others in the tri-state area that happen to wander across the border to sample what is to become the official state sandwich. When the tenderloins arrived, we could see right away why they are famous; they have 3-D patties. A sure sign that the pork is cut fresh and fried to order is when the meat curves from top to bottom forming some sort of parabolic solid found in computer 3-D renderings of hilly terrain. The meat is on the thin side, but it remains juicy and supplements the crunch from the breading. The toasted bun only adds to the flavors and texture of every bite. Mama done good! If they happened to add “… and tenderloins too” to the bottom of their tag on the sign, I’d be in total agreement.
The Town
On these tenderloin travels, I have been to many renovated old movie palaces in the downtown strip. Franklin had the Artcraft, Spencer the Tivoli, and Anderson the Paramount. Now we can add Angola’s Brokaw to that list. Angola has one of the most unique downtowns in Indiana. Like Indianapolis, a roundabout sits at the crossroads with a war monument at the center. But unlike Indy’s curved building facades that curb the street, Angola squares the circle by placing the courthouse at one corner and placing three different perpendicular storefronts at the other three. Tucked in the northwest section is The Brokaw Theatre. It’s been around since the 30’s and extensively renovated in 2015 to give one of the better modern cinema experiences. The grand screen has been split into two theaters giving viewers a more intimate experience. Nice leather loungers that rival your lazy boy at home are spread throughout the viewing area, with some rows getting tables to place your food you can order at the concession stand. We were able to sit in the back where a couple couches awaited us. The old lobby still sits in the corner behind the screens, but they have taken over the next door store for their new and updated entryway. We were able to watch “A Man Called Otto” and it was pretty special as they even mentioned cooking pork tenderloin a couple times. This could possibly be the most comfortable movie theaters I’ve ever been to.
I was a big fan of collecting baseball cards growing up. Walking into the 7/11 and finding that box with wax packs of superstars of the MLB was one of the best feelings. As you open the pack you get that smell of bubble gum and cardboard that to this day I can still imagine in my nose. You then pop in the gum, it is stale, but sweet and powdery. Thumbing through the cards you get excited on the commons you don’t have yet and the stars that you do. The Vintage Sports Shack on Maumee St just west of the roundabout can bring back a small bit of those feelings. Instead of walking into another collectible sports store, it’s got the feeling of more of a museum. Open and unopened cards from all sports dating back to the 70’s can be found there. Autographed helmets and jerseys fill the shelves and line the racks. There are more shoes here than can be found in a princess’s closet, except these aren’t fancy lady shoes, all athletic. If you are nice, the owner, Paul, may even bring out some shoe relics from yesteryears. Ever seen baseball shoes from the 60’s? Maybe your dad’s smelly old pair, but not brand new never worn cleats. This store has only been open a couple months and it is worth a gander. Maybe you can relive some of your youth collector nostalgia.
The antique shop is a dime a dozen out here in Indiana downtowns. I do like to browse through the belongings of people long gone to find some decoration for my office or a toy I had when I was a kid, but they are usually nothing to write about. Unless the store is a 3-story antique mega mall that use to be a JC Penny department store. The Then and Now Antique Mall is in a giant building built sometime in the late 1800’s. Apart from the amount of old stuff you can find in there, it’s just great to walk around an old department store and see the layout. There are a few balconies to pier over to see the displays below. The basement has tons of shelves of knick knacks where you can even walk through the old employee break rooms and storage areas. The irony in this is the building is an antique itself that holds a whole lot of antiques. It is surly something to see, if not just to get a glimpse of the past.
There is just something magical about watching a hockey game. I’m not exactly certain if it’s the sound of the skates cutting along the ice and the puck hitting the sticks, the smoothness and speed of the players competing around the rink, the frigid temperature inside the arena numbing your senses which makes you crave any excitement to get the blood pumping, or the brightness of it all from the bluish white ice to the flashing lights of the scoreboard. TV just does not do the sport justice; to truly appreciate it you need to go to a live game. Knowledge of the rules and the teams are not required either. Anywhere they play ice hockey you can bring the whole family along and a good time will be had. Although Hockey is not known as an Indiana sport, there are large followings in Fort Wayne, Indianapolis, and Evansville where minor league teams play. The only D1 team in Indiana is at Notre Dame and they sell out most games. Trine not only has the only D3 team in the state, they have the only collegiate women’s team. When I found out Trine University had created college hockey teams, I made a point to wait until winter to do this trip in Angola. So it was only natural for us to wander into the Thunder Ice Arena on a Saturday afternoon to watch a women’s game. Seating is only on one side, but with 10 rows every view is courtside. The warm-ups were taken and the anthems played before the match. Three periods of action-packed hockey was played. In-between we got to watch the zamboni smooth the ice and even the synchronized ice-skating team performed for us. Trine dominated as they had more goals than the other team had shots. I would recommend everyone to check out a live hockey game whether college, pro, men, or especially women. These ladies come from all around the country to compete at a high level and it was wonderful to watch them play.
Well, it looks like there are things to do in Indiana in the winter. Heck, I didn’t even make it to the toboggan ride. (I’m saving the northern part of Steuben County for another day) The city of Angola is not just a roundabout on route 20. Whether in the wintertime or on a hot sunny day, one can find a lot of enjoyment in the city, and even a great breaded tenderloin.
by Michael Tomko
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