Attention foodies: Dine around the world along Bloomington's Fourth Street

Maya Gray, The Herald-Times
·4 min read

Foodies who are new to Bloomington: Thrill your taste buds by taking a trip downtown and roaming East Fourth Street. Cuisine options include Thai, Cajun and Creole, Indian and more.

Here's a guide to the restaurants' food and what you should know before going.

Taste of India is one of two Indian restaurants on Bloomington's Fourth Street. It is located at 316 E. Fourth St.
Taste of India is one of two Indian restaurants on Bloomington's Fourth Street. It is located at 316 E. Fourth St.

Taste of India

Taste of India is a small restaurant at 316 E. Fourth St. The aromas wafting from the building are visitors' first taste of the cuisine. At 1 p.m. on a Sunday, Taste of India was abuzz with customers eating and chatting or waiting in line for the lunch buffet.

The restaurant's butter chicken — tender cubes of chicken laden with creamy, red-orange curry sauce — is one of its most popular dishes. We also tried vegetable samosa, vegetable pakora, naan, mixed pulao rice, palak paneer, aloo gobi, paneer tikka masala, goat curry and gulab jamun.

A plate from the lunch buffet at Taste of India on Sunday, Aug. 13. Options include vegetable samosas, butter chicken and palak paneer, among others.
A plate from the lunch buffet at Taste of India on Sunday, Aug. 13. Options include vegetable samosas, butter chicken and palak paneer, among others.

You can find Northern Indian food, as well as Bloomington's only Southern Indian cuisine, at Taste of India. Hours are 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. and 4:30-10 p.m. every day.

Indian Garden Restaurant at 420 E. Fourth St. also offers authentic Indian food.

Do Asian Fusion

Do Asian Fusion Restaurant is different from its neighbors because it's open late, not closing until 2 a.m. some days. The 404 E. Fourth St. restaurant serves Korean and Asian-fusion food. To see specials and limited-time deals, follow Do on Instagram. Try Do's fried rice, yaki udon, bibimbap and more.

Hours are: 5-10 p.m. Sunday, 5 p.m. to midnight Monday through Thursday, and 5 p.m.-2 a.m. Friday and Saturday.

Korea Restaurant, down the road at 409 E. Fourth St., also offers authentic Korean food.

Dats Cajun and Creole

Chili-cheese étouffée with crawfish at Dats on Sunday, Aug. 13, in Bloomington. Customers can order Cajun and Creole eats at the counter for dine-in or takeout.
Chili-cheese étouffée with crawfish at Dats on Sunday, Aug. 13, in Bloomington. Customers can order Cajun and Creole eats at the counter for dine-in or takeout.

Dats is a quick stop at 408 E. Fourth St. serving Cajun and Creole food. For about $10, you can try one of their most popular dishes: chili-cheese étouffée with crawfish, served with Cajun garlic bread. Order from a menu at the counter and dine inside or take your food with you.

Besides étouffée, guests love the gumbo, voodoo chicken and jambalaya. There are about 20 dishes on the menu, though, so you have lots of options.

Dats is open 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Friday and Saturday. Btown Gyros and 4th Street International Market are housed in the same building.

Burma Garden

Burma Garden, at 413 E. Fourth St., serves Burmese and other Asian dishes from a building tucked snugly along the street. It offers tofu, beef, chicken, seafood and pork dishes; noodles and rice; and curries. There are spicy options, and you can choose the heat level.

Or if you're looking for something a little sweet, try the coconut noodle soup with chicken. It comes steaming-hot in a big bowl with chicken, coconut milk, onion, eggs and spices. This is also one of Bloomington's best go-tos for pho, Vietnamese beef noodle soup.

Burma Garden is closed Sunday and Monday, but is open 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and 5-9 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday.

Little Tibet

Yellow curry and shogo balay at Little Tibet in Bloomington. Each entree comes with soup or salad.
Yellow curry and shogo balay at Little Tibet in Bloomington. Each entree comes with soup or salad.

Little Tibet is a cozier and quieter stop than some of the others. At 415 E. Fourth St., the otherwise nondescript building is marked by a big sign and colorful rectangles of fabric strung overhead. You can order Tibetan, Thai or Indian cuisine from the menu.

A frequently ordered dish is the yellow curry, which is sweet and mild, with green bean, carrot, zucchini and potato. The Tibetan dumplings are a favorite of patrons. One option is shogo balay, pan-fried dough patties with seasoned mashed potato and onion inside.

Daily hours are 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. and 5-9 p.m.

Thubten Anyetsang, 54, stands outside Little Tibet, the downtown Bloomington restaurant he opened with his wife, Lhamo, in 1998.
Thubten Anyetsang, 54, stands outside Little Tibet, the downtown Bloomington restaurant he opened with his wife, Lhamo, in 1998.

Siam House

Listed as the most popular item on Siam House's menu, pad bus sa ra com includes pumpkin, pineapple, corn and more, served with white rice.
Listed as the most popular item on Siam House's menu, pad bus sa ra com includes pumpkin, pineapple, corn and more, served with white rice.

If you thought Thai restaurant Siam House wouldn't be too busy at 2 p.m. on a Sunday, think again. On a sunny afternoon, the line was nearly out the door, and the patio was full of diners. The menu flags pad bus sa ra com as Siam House's most popular special. The dish contains pumpkin, pineapple, corn, carrots, bell peppers, water chesnuts and onion. Upon ordering, you can choose how spicy your meal is.

Siam House is at 430 E. Fourth St. Its hours vary through the week:

  • Sunday: Noon to 9 p.m.

  • Monday through Thursday: 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. and 4:30-9 p.m.

  • Friday: 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. and 4:30-10 p.m.

  • Saturday: Noon to 10 p.m.

There are other nearby Thai options, like My Thai Downtown, at 402 E. Fourth St. Another restaurant, BloomingThai, is relocating to 405 E. Fourth St. in a few months.

This article originally appeared on The Herald-Times: Indian, Thai, Cajun cuisine on Bloomington, Indiana's Fourth Street