Comfort food restaurant serving up fried bologna and pulled pork coming to east side
A while after its departure from the Fishers Test Kitchen, Natural State Provisions is making a comeback, this time on the east side of Indianapolis.
The Southern comfort food concept from Adam and Alicia Sweet, co-owners of the popular King Dough pizza restaurant, will open at 414 Dorman St. by spring or early summer.
The spot had housed Rad Brewing Co., which closed in November.
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Natural State had served fried chicken sandwiches, root beer-glazed pulled pork and collards as part of the inaugural three-restaurant cohort at the culinary incubator at the Sun King Innovation Brewery in the Yard at Fishers District beginning in February 2020.
But the counter-service restaurant, themed for chef Adam Sweet’s native Arkansas, was booted that September, with accelerator co-founder John Wechsler failing to publicly elaborate on the action. It was replaced by a smash burger concept from accelerator consultant Neal Brown, who has since gone on to open a pizza restaurant from one of the stalls.
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The Sweets had always intended to grow Natural State into its own brick-and-mortar restaurant. The 11,000-square-foot space on Dorman Street allows them to do that and more.
It will be home to a commissary kitchen to serve King Dough pizzerias. They plan to open a second pizza shop.
And they’ll also be brewing beer there in small amounts. The search is on for a brewmaster.
Natural State Provisions' menu will include items similar to those guests saw at the Sun King tap room in Fishers, including gluten-free fried chicken. They're considering making all of their fried products gluten-free.
“We just realized how easy and delicious some gluten-free things could be if they're done right,” Alicia Sweet said.
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Guests also should expect to see a vegan pulled pork dish at the new restaurant.
“I’m really excited about that because I’ve never had anything like it, and it’s really good,” she said.
Sandwich choices will include a burger with bacon and pimento cheese; and a fried thick-cut bologna offering topped with house-pickled jalapenos, American cheese and house-made coleslaw.
Natural State will have a 75-seat dining room, a private event space, an outside patio with picnic tables and a dog park.
The owners plan to open the next King Dough shop about the same time or shortly after Natural State.
They haven’t chosen a place for the other King Dough but have been eyeing the Broad Ripple area since early 2020. They’d opened their current pizzeria at 452 N. Highland Ave. in the Holy Cross neighborhood in early 2019, moving the concept from Bloomington.
The wood-oven pizzeria has been experimenting over the past couple of years with ways to accommodate a variety of diets.
Gluten-free options include fried calamari ($16) with bits of banana pepper and kalamata olives.
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Meat and cheese lovers will find their favorites, and in different varieties.
There are three sizes of pizza: an 8-inch, the standard 14-inch and an 18-inch for New York-style pies.
One of the newer pizzas is the Kilmister ($19.50) with barbecue sauce, mozzarella, pepperoni, sausage, bacon, jalapeno and cilantro. It had been on the menu of the original Bloomington store and has gone through several changes.
Chef Adam Sweet is always tweaking, Alicia Sweet said.
The new King Dough location will have a similar menu to the current store, with some differences, she said.
“Broad Ripple is not too far away, so we wanted to have some different items,” she said.
Contact IndyStar reporter Cheryl V. Jackson at cheryl.jackson@indystar.com or 317-444-6264. Follow her on Twitter: @cherylvjackson.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Natural State Provisions opens with comfort food in Indianapolis
