30 Over 30: St. Elmo Steak House marks 124 years
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St. Elmo Steak House in October 2011. Photo: Robin Marchant/Getty Images
Welcome back to Axios Indianapolis' "30 Over 30," a series celebrating the icons that have shaped our city for 30 years or more.
Few things say "welcome to Indianapolis" quite like watching a first-timer's eyes water in St. Elmo Steak House from a little too much cocktail sauce.
The big picture: The 124-year-old dining experience is more than a classy place for Hoosiers to eat steak and clear their sinuses. It's shorthand for hospitality in a city that stakes its national reputation on being a top-tier host town.
Flashback: Founder Joe Stahr opened it as a neighborhood saloon called Joe Stahr's Tavern, featuring the St. Elmo Buffet, in 1902.
- The buffet was eventually taken off the menu, but the name "St. Elmo" was popular with the locals, so Stahr made the switch.
- Carrying the name of the patron saint of sailors and nodding to Stahr's history as a Navy veteran who loved sailing, the first St. Elmo menus listed the now world-famous shrimp cocktail as a delicacy of the day for 10 cents.
Catch up quick: Brothers Sam and Ike Roth purchased it in 1946 and invited their third brother, Harry Roth, to join as a partner.
- When Sam and Ike stepped away from the business in 1956, Harry Roth turned to lifelong friend and Manual High School classmate Izzy Rosen to form an iconic odd couple that ran it until 1986.
- Since then, St. Elmo has been guided by the Huse family. Noble Roman's founder Steve Huse purchased it in '86, and son Craig Huse now runs daily operations as CEO of parent company Huse Culinary.
By the numbers: Named an "America's Classic" by the James Beard Foundation, the St. Elmo kitchen ages roughly 2,000 pounds of meat on-site daily and serves more than 160,000 pounds of steak annually.
- They go through 4 tons of horseradish and 48,600 pounds of shrimp a year for more than 100,000 servings of the only appetizer on the menu.
- Surviving it became a spectator sport when St. Elmo began hosting shrimp cocktail eating contests. They've been dominated by Westfield's Joey Chestnut in footage sure to make you lose your appetite.
- The restaurant now bottles and sells the fiery sauce nationally.
Zoom in: St. Elmo has become an easy pick for out-of-towners seeking an upscale steakhouse experience and a key gathering hub whenever Indy invites the world downtown.
- When Indy hosted the Super Bowl in 2012, it was the see-and-be-seen spot for seven straight days, hosting Shaquille O'Neal, Jimmy Fallon, John Travolta and Steven Tyler while ringing up more than $1 million in sales and moving 4,000 pounds of shrimp cocktail.
- Peyton Manning shouted it out during his retirement speech, and it's a fixture in Indy 500 lore as a spot to rub elbows with drivers each May.
- "Parks and Recreation" sent its cast there for a season five episode, cementing its status as Indy's default answer whenever pop culture needs an only-in-Indianapolis landmark.
Yes, but: St. Elmo shines brightest during laid-back happy hours or random weekday outings, like the one the Axios Indianapolis team recently shared as Justin and Arika showed their new editor, Larry, around town.
- In return, he convinced them that dessert before dinner was the proper way to dine, and cracked into some gorgeous St. Elmo crème brûlée before the shrimp and steak arrived.
If you go: 127 S. Illinois St.
- 4-10pm Monday-Thursday, 4-11pm Friday, 3-11pm Saturday and 4-9pm Sunday.