Indianapolis is the racing capital of the world — home to the Indianapolis 500, the most-attended single-day sporting event on the planet. Beyond Motor Speedway, it’s a surprisingly accessible mid-size city with the best children’s museum in the US, a renovated canal walk, and the bulk of its tourist attractions within walking distance of the convention hotel strip.

Indianapolis: The Midwest Crossroads That Finally Gets Its Due

Indianapolis has spent decades being overshadowed by flashier Midwest cities, and honestly, the city used to deserve its reputation as a drive-through destination. Not anymore. Over the past fifteen years, Indy has undergone a genuine transformation. The downtown is walkable and alive. The food scene has exploded. The arts districts have real energy. And yes, the racing heritage is still a massive draw — but there is so much more here than the Indy 500.

The Speedway: An American Cathedral

Even if you have zero interest in auto racing, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway is worth your time. The facility is staggering in scale — the entire grounds of the Vatican, Yankee Stadium, the Rose Bowl, and Churchill Downs could all fit inside the 2.5-mile oval. The IMS Museum ($15) houses a fascinating collection spanning over a century of racing.

If you can time your visit for the Indianapolis 500 (late May), do it once in your life. General admission starts around $40, and the atmosphere — 300,000+ people, the pre-race traditions, the roar of the engines — is unlike anything else in American sports. Race day in Indianapolis is the city’s biggest holiday, and the energy across the entire metro is electric.

For a smaller-scale thrill, the Brickyard Crossing golf course actually has four holes inside the speedway oval. And you can often arrange ride-along experiences at the track on non-race days.

Mass Ave: The Heartbeat

Massachusetts Avenue (Mass Ave) is a diagonal street cutting through downtown that has become Indy’s cultural core. Art galleries, independent theaters, cocktail bars, and restaurants line the avenue in converted historic buildings.

Tinker Street (small plates $12-20) is a consistently excellent restaurant with a rotating seasonal menu that actually changes, not just rearranges. Mesh (entrees $22-36) does upscale comfort food with cocktails that are worth the trip alone. The Rathskeller ($12-20 entrees) occupies the beautiful Athenaeum building and serves German-influenced food in a biergarten setting that feels like it has been there forever — because it basically has, since 1894.

For drinks, Hotel Tango is Indiana’s first veteran-owned artisan distillery, and the cocktails ($10-14) are crafted with their house-made spirits. Libertine Liquor Bar ($12-16) does some of the most creative cocktail work in the state in a cozy, dimly-lit space.

What Should I Eat in Indianapolis?

Indianapolis has a food identity that revolves around a few iconic items and an increasingly sophisticated dining scene.

The breaded pork tenderloin sandwich is Indiana’s signature dish, and Indy has the best versions. Workingman’s Friend ($8-12) on the near west side has been serving a flattened, hand-breaded tenderloin that hangs well over the edges of the bun since 1918. It is a no-frills bar with genuinely outstanding food. Hollyhock Hill ($18-28 for family-style dinners) does fried chicken dinners in a way that makes you feel like you are eating at someone’s grandmother’s house — if their grandmother was an exceptional cook.

St. Elmo Steak House (steaks $45-75) is a downtown legend since 1902. The famous shrimp cocktail ($16) will clear your sinuses — the horseradish cocktail sauce is legendarily intense. The steaks are excellent, but the shrimp cocktail is the reason people talk about this place.

Milktooth (dishes $12-22) in Fletcher Place has redefined brunch in Indianapolis. Dutch baby pancakes, creative egg dishes, and pastries that are worth the wait. This is not your typical eggs-and-bacon spot — it earned James Beard semifinalist nods for a reason. Weekends require patience; weekday mornings are calmer.

Pizzology (pizzas $14-20) does Neapolitan-style pies in a city that needed them. Coat Check Coffee ($4-7) in Mass Ave is my favorite morning stop. King Dough (pizzas $16-22) in Fountain Square bakes exceptional sourdough crust pizza in a casual setting with great local beer.

Neighborhoods Beyond Mass Ave

Fountain Square is Indy’s indie-culture hub, centered around the vintage Fountain Square Theatre Building that houses a duckpin bowling alley (yes, duckpin — the miniature pins, $5/game), a rooftop bar, and event spaces. The neighborhood has a creative, slightly offbeat energy. Siam Square (entrees $12-18) does excellent Thai food. Pioneer ($10-14) is a great casual lunch spot.

Broad Ripple is the city’s legacy entertainment district, a few miles north of downtown along the Monon Trail. It skews younger (college bars mixed with independent shops) but has mellowed into something more interesting in recent years. The Vogue (tickets $15-35) hosts excellent live music. Broad Ripple Brewpub (pints $5-7) was Indiana’s first modern brewpub and still holds up.

The Canal Walk downtown is a 3-mile loop along the Central Canal that connects to White River State Park, the Indiana State Museum ($17), and the NCAA Hall of Champions ($10). On summer evenings, you can rent a pedal boat ($12/half hour) and paddle through downtown. It is a surprisingly pleasant way to see the city.

Culture and Museums

The Kurt Vonnegut Museum and Library ($8) is small but deeply personal, dedicated to Indianapolis’s most famous literary son. If you have read Slaughterhouse-Five or Cat’s Cradle, walking through the exhibit connecting Vonnegut’s work to his Indy upbringing adds a new dimension to his writing.

Newfields (the Indianapolis Museum of Art, $20) is set on a 152-acre campus that includes a historic estate, gardens, and a beer garden. The Lilly Collection of European and American art is the highlight. During summer, they host outdoor film screenings and concerts on the grounds. Winter brings the Winterlights display — a spectacular outdoor light installation.

The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis ($32.50) is technically for kids, but it is the largest children’s museum in the world and even adults find it impressive. The dinosaur exhibit is genuinely museum-quality.

Indy’s Beer and Spirits Scene

The craft beer scene has quietly gotten very good. Sun King Brewing (pints $5-7) is the local giant, and their Sunlight Cream Ale is everywhere for good reason. Bier Brewery (pints $6-8) does German-style lagers that are clean and precise. Metazoa Brewing ($6-8) has an on-site dog park, which is either genius or chaos depending on your perspective (it is both).