Why Doesn't Fort Wayne Have Many Restaurants and Stores??? (Evansville: credit, job transfer)
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By whom? That is a bold statement to make if you can't back it up.
I'm afraid I'll have to eat my words on this because I can't find anything, but I remember hearing some pretty loud hype from several people about Ft. Wayne being named the rudest city in America. Don't ask me who compiled the ratings...it was a while ago.
Anyway, consider my foot in my mouth. Sorry, Ft. Wayne.
Move to Indy, hands down. The fastest growing cities in Indiana are all suburbs of Indy. The economy here isn't great (is it anywhere right now?) but at least its stable. Plus, Indy is 3 times the size of Ft. Wayne, 8 times the size if you include the 'burbs.
Indy has food, culture, entertainment, sports, and places to live in nearly any setting you'd desire that isn't limited by geography (meaning we don't have oceanside beach houses...sorry). Fort Wayne is a rust belt disaster...
Come on now, show some tact will ya? You like Indy and that's fine, but your presentation of what Fort Wayne has to offer (or doesn't) is way off the mark and uncalled for (especially in light of a real lack of evidence to back anything up).
dave.dawsn's representation of Fort Wayne seems pretty slanted, and outdated. Perhaps that was true in the late 80s and 90s, but I sincerely doubt that is the case. Look at some of the companies that employ the most people, Fort Wayne Community Schools in the educational field, as well as IPFW, Parkview in medical, and the Library in public service. Fort Wayne is not a rust belt disaster, and it is not failing, if anything this past summer and preceding year has shown is that it is at the event horizon of proving itself as a good central location for entertainment, sports, and the arts. The people who don't see that are the ones who don't get up and leave their homes.
dave.dawsn's representation of Fort Wayne seems pretty slanted, and outdated. Perhaps that was true in the late 80s and 90s, but I sincerely doubt that is the case. Look at some of the companies that employ the most people, Fort Wayne Community Schools in the educational field, as well as IPFW, Parkview in medical, and the Library in public service. Fort Wayne is not a rust belt disaster, and it is not failing, if anything this past summer and preceding year has shown is that it is at the event horizon of proving itself as a good central location for entertainment, sports, and the arts. The people who don't see that are the ones who don't get up and leave their homes.
If Fort Wayne had at least ONE pro sports team, then you can say that.
Hi, I lived in Fort Wayne for many years and have been reading the "rag" about restaurants there. It was once referred to as the City of restaurants and churches. Speaking of Roanoke, I know that someone with plenty of money actually had the town remodeled years ago, and it is such a quaint area with, yes, the area's only 4* restaurant. But after reading the above blogs I got to thinking of some good restaurants in the downtown area. I didn't see them mentioned. Definitely check out 'Henry's' on W. Main St. It is well known for it's good food, as well as bar atmosphere. Everyone fits in there - young, old, middle-aged, gay, straight, artists, neo-hippies, musicians, business people; it is just a really happening place; during special holidays the two, candlelit rooms, and bar areas, are decorated so beautifully.
The 'Dash-In' on S. Calhoun St. is quite popular at lunchtime with the business crowd, attorneys, etc. It is a fairly small space, but the food is good ( and healthy too ); the atmosphere is appealing ( brick walls displaying local art, and shiny wood floors ). They present themselves as Fort Wayne's premier coffee house. They used to have live entertainment, certain evenings of the week, but unless it was started up again, I don't believe they do now. But when I was living in Fort Wayne it was always a "trendy" place to go and meet with friends.
Around the corner, on Harrison St., there is a top-notch Irish restaurant that opened in August 2007...J.K O'Donnell's. A couple of businessmen, CEO's in the area, had been to Ireland and decided to finance and collaborate on the opening of a restaurant that reminded them of a place in "Castlebar". They have over 60 imported beers, I believe, and a variety of wines, and of course, your popular Irish stew, etc. on their menu. The restaurant is furnished with the finest of everything, and was still very popular when I left Fort Wayne in April 2008. Though for those who wish to save a little money on a good meal, of course it is not the cheapest; a fine dining experience.
The 'Double Dragon' Chinese restaurant is next door and very affordable. They do a large carry-out business 'til 9 pm. I used to go there on a cold winter's eve and order a quart of egg-drop or sweet 'n sour soup, or some fried rice, to enjoy at home. And across the street from them is a small, very attractive, Italian restaurant: 'Toscani's Pizzeria'...with good food reasonably priced. I do not know if any of these establishments have changed or gone out of business since I left Fort Wayne. But they all brought in the people. You know, Fort Wayne DOES love to eat out. But it was great to see the Harrison St. area becoming more ethnic with their eatery's. ( I don't believe that any of them are franchises ).
Hope this little review helps whomever wants to know.
West Central neighborhood is loved for it's historical buildings; in the 1990's there was an extensive renovation going on - many places to rent among the homeowners. But aside from the downtown district, undergoing a lot of change, Fort Wayne is far more developed on the outskirts. Coliseum Blvd. ( and north of there ) has a fair amount going on, Georgetown area has many shopping centers and restaurants; if you head west from downtown, on US 24, you'll come to Jefferson Pointe, then to Covington Plaza, and further west, The Village at Coventry. All of these areas are quite populated...whether you are looking for someplace to dine, shop, or for example, go bowling. Also where many have their homes. I suppose that is one of the reasons why city developers wanted to revive the downtown area; everything to do is pretty much on the outskirts...except for the public library which is exceptional; some consider it the best in the midwest. In January 2007, after a $65 million renovation, they re-opened their doors on Webster St. The Genealogy Dept. is the second or third best in the country, with people who visit from all over the world to study their roots; Arts and Media, Business, Science,and Technology Depts., Reader's Services, to name a few are all comprehensive for your educational needs, and the building is very spacious,with a Great Hall that runs from one end to another. The Children's Dept. is very colorful and creatively decorated, with lots of books and play spaces. And across from there, at the west entrance to the building, is an Art Gallery. Before I forget, on the opposite end ( there are two floors ) is a Cafe with glass windows looking out on a large patio; in the summers the library offers a variety of live concerts there, free of cost. But there is also a wonderful bookstore, sharing space with the Cafe, called 'Twice Sold Tales'. You can find wonderful books, to own, sometimes for only a few dollars. Here I am telling you this, perhaps you have already been to the downtown library, but it doesn't hurt to pass the word along. As well, all of the branch libraries were modernized in the past 3-5 years.
So, if you ask me, the library is a great place to meet your friends, have a bite to eat, and access one of their many computers! There is almost always something "going on".
To the people who consider Fort Wayne a "rust belt disaster." I must say that Fort Wayne actually is looking fairly good compared to other cities in the midwest? Consider this, would you rather live in Evansville, Detroit, Anderson, South Bend, Elkhart, Gary, Terre Haute, Cleveland, Toledo, Muncie? Honestly I wouldn't, and while the economy is not the greatest, it certainly is doing a lot better than other similar sized cities. Granted, Fort Wayne is bigger than most of the above mentioned, but it still expounds on the fact that a lot of the cities in the midwest are struggling a lot more than Fort Wayne. Of course, Indianapolis has more to offer than Fort Wayne. And it should, it is the state capital, it has pro sports team, more five stars restaurants, etc.
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