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RESTAURANTS
Indianapolis Star
Leah and Nathan Huelsebusch are the friends who, when they vacation and find something they adore, make sure, somehow, you get to experience it too.
That's how Bargersville got Taxman Brewing Co. The Huelsebuschs opened the brewery and restaurant in the fall of 2014.
The couple, from Ohio, had lived in Belgium and brought some of the tastes (the Liege waffle, for example) to Indiana.
They were in Brussels from 2008 to 2011 when tax specialist Nathan had an assignment with accounting firm Deloitte & Touche. They moved to Indiana to work for Cummins Inc.
Their gastropub drew folks to downtown Bargersville for dishes sourced from local ingredients and to drink Belgian-style beers like the Death and Taxes, Deduction and Evasion that riffed off of Nathan’s career in international taxes.
The accounting theme caught on.
In August 2017, they opened Taxman Fortville, with cocktails added; and in November 2019 came Taxman CityWay Gastropub and Beer Garden, a downtown Indianapolis brewery and restaurant.
The beer became distributed throughout Indiana.
And now, the Taxman team is expanding into other concepts, launching new restaurants; again, in Bargersville, the Johnson County town of 9,500.
On Tuesday, Nov. 1, it opens an Italian eatery. And in February, a European bakery and wine restaurant.
Bargersville and the Indianapolis area are the beneficiaries of the Huelsebuschs’ love of travel and global cuisine.
“We have long wanted to do a second concept here. We've wanted to continue to kind of revitalize the Main Street area,” CEO Nathan said.
Pizza made sense, as it’s one of the most popular foods in the U.S.
Italian cuisine
The Mediterranean-focused Pizza & Libations – they call it P&L, for short – opens at 75 N. Baldwin St.
This restaurant was inspired by a recent trip to southern Italy.
“We were just in Naples and the Amalfi Coast and just wanted to bring back that kind of authentic Neapolitan-style pizza to this area,” Nathan said. “To be able to fold in that style of pizza with some European-inspired cocktails and spritzes just felt like it was an opportunity for the market.”
It's a 6,000-square-foot project into which the couple invested about $2 million. With that kind of dough, the offerings extend well beyond that of a typical pizzeria. They're more in line with the pizzerias the couple visited in Naples.
“To call them pizzerias is a bit misleading because they definitely have pizza, but they have a very nice entree selection and upscale menus. Pizza is just part of the dining experience,” Leah said.
The family-friendly 200-seat Italian restaurant will feature the pies; but the menu and design say date night with authentic handmade pasta, seasonal salads, fresh baked breads and house-made gelato.
A full-service bar has craft cocktails, lots of Italian wines and beer; and installations there feature the works of local and European artists.
“It’s something that you can obviously enjoy on a weeknight, but it's also appropriate for a special occasion,” Nathan said.
Plans are to open a 72-seat outdoor patio with a large fireplace and shade trees come spring.
European bakery and wine
Next door to Pizza & Libations, in a renovated Masonic Temple, they're opening Cellar’s Market bakery and wine shop with a wine restaurant, Up Cellar’s, on the second level. The upscale restaurant will have a rooftop deck.
The excursion into fancier dining will feature more classic dishes and shared plates.
“It’s always fun to travel to a new location and try the local wine offerings and then bring them back to Bargersville and Indiana in general just to share what we found,” said Leah, the chief operating officer.
A pastry chef will turn out European-style baked goods such as croissants at Cellar’s Market.
“With Nathan and I having lived in Belgium, the European influence has not been lost on us,” Leah said.
They expect to put another $2 million in Cellar’s Market and Up Cellar’s.
They’re sticking with the financial tie-ins. P&L winks at profit and loss statements; Cellar’s Market does the same with finance.
Like the Taxman Brewing, the new eateries will be farm-to-table while ramping up the diversity of cuisine in Bargersville and helping to spur development, they said.
"It’s a great area. It's amazing. If you drive through, you can see that there's hundreds of homes that have been added to the area in the last couple of years,” Leah said. “There's so much development, great school districts. There are so many reasons I think people are drawn to the south side and we love it.”
Another project is in the works near Bargersville and yet another for farther away.
Leah said the company continues to open restaurants to retain employees. A total of about 200 people work between the existing restaurants.
“A lot of times when we create a new concept, it's because somebody internally has that interest and wants to pursue that type of beer or that type of cuisine or that style of cooking,” Leah said. “So, we're trying to create opportunities so that our team can stay with the company, but also feel like they've got a new challenge to take on."
Contact IndyStar reporter Cheryl V. Jackson at cheryl.jackson@indystar.com or 317-444-6264. Follow her on Twitter:@cherylvjackson.
