Eating & Drinking

Philly is Falling in Love! New Restaurant Indigo 52 offers flavor with a twist

Indigo 52 is a Nazareth restaurant gaining big buzz both in the Lehigh Valley and throughout the East Coast. 

It’s not your average restaurant.  There’s a twist.

The menu, the owner, the ingredients.  Everything is special and there’s a reason why. 

Lehigh Valley is falling in love with the flavors of Nazareth restaurant Indigo 52

It’s special enough to inspire families to drive hours just to enjoy a meal there.  More about that in a minute, let’s get to the food.

Nazareth restaurant Indigo 52 Menu

Restaurant Owner Felicia Rocchino has a “Food Vision” for the items they serve and if you’re a foodie, you’re gonna love this:

All their dishes are:

1. Unique –  things you can’t find everywhere
2. Better than what someone can cook at home
3. Plated amazingly – be instagrammable!

Here’s what I sampled on my visit:

Indigo 52’s Cauliflower wings

Cauliflower wings

Grain-free battered cauliflower with maple garlic (you could also choose hot buffalo or mild sauce).

These were delicious and better than what I expected. The flavor, the breading; and each piece held together well, even after dipping.

Indigo 52’s Vegan “Crab” Cake Bites

Vegan “Crab” Cake Bites

Mini heart of palm bites, seasoned, and served with a house made cocktail dipping sauce 

Great flavor, very moist.  The same tender and moist notes (like most vegan “crab” cakes) also made them fall apart easily.  Delicious, but delicate.

Indigo 52’s Hand-cut Sweet Potato Fries

Hand-cut Sweet Potato Fries

Served with house-made maple garlic dipping sauce

I wanted these to be great and they were.  Big flavor, excellent snacky side dish and the maple garlic is a winner.  

Indigo 52’s Chicken Marsala Rotini

Chicken Marsala Rotini

Anti-biotic free chicken breast, over pasta with julienne onions, mushrooms, organic spinach, fresh herbs, with marsala sauce. 

This was the highlight.  A very well-balanced dish.  On different bites, the onion stood out, then the mushroom, then the marsala.  There’s a lot of nuance here and the sauce pulls it together.   Also, it’s a big portion.  Take the remainder home and give yourself a present for lunch tomorrow.

Indigo 52’s Apple Pie stuffed French Toast

Apple Pie stuffed French Toast

3 slices topped with a house-made fresh apple cinnamon “filling”, house-made cashew cream, and 100% pure grade A maple syrup. 

The brunch favorite brings a big bold flavor. And, again,  a lot of food. Each bite makes you smile.  If you’re into boozy brunches, this plate deserves a glass of bubbly.

Felicia’s Passion for Nazareth restaurant Indigo 52

Felicia is a triple-threat.  She has a creative eye, a global expertise in restaurants and retail and she has a personal passion creating this concept to help others.

Creative in the way the restaurant looks and feels.  It’s funky.  It’s whimsical.  It’s playful.  As you walk in, the decor gives your eyes flavors to enjoy, while the menu handles your taste buds. 

Indigo 52’s Felicia Rocchino and Chef Kadel Woody

Expertise from years at her previous corporate work helping successful restaurants launch and grow into hugely popular brands.

And personal passion.  Yes, it’s very personal.

Recently, Felicia was living the life of a big city retail and hospitality professional based out of Philadelphia, helping restaurants grow and fulfill their professional dreams.

Indigo 52’s funky, whimsical, playful decor gives your eyes flavors to enjoy

Problem is, she was always feeling sick; and in and out of dozens of doctors offices trying to understand why. Year after year, test after test, with no answers. 

One day, she met the right doctor who decided to give her a different test and there she learned the truth – Felicia has Celiac Disease.

Celiac Disease is sensitivity to gluten, which is a protein found in wheat, barley and rye, which is in… a lot of food. 

Indigo 52 is gluten free and dairy free

Truthfully, many of us suffer from different nutrition allergies, with different levels of sensitivity in reaction.  The statistic is 1-10 people. 

A strong majority of people are un-diagnosed.  Some people react with a stomach ache, others are rushed to the hospital for a few days of care.

Those who end up with stronger reactions (like needing a hospital visit) tend to never eat out or get take-out, because the risk isn’t worth it. 

Even “gluten-friendly” food tends to not be so friendly.  The restaurant and its kitchen needs to enforce incredibly disciplined action and even then, it’s still a risk.

But Felicia Rocchino’s Indigo 52 practices incredibly disciplined kitchen practices to make it safe for immune-compromised people. 

And around the country, people are taking notice.

“That’s Just The Way Life Is.”  Nah, it doesn’t have to be.

A local family always stops by the Nazareth eatery when they’re picking up their college-aged daughter because their family is immune sensitive and Indigo 52  is one of the only restaurants on the East Coast that truly offers safe food.  So they’re willing to drive hours for a meal there.

Indigo 52’s seating and decor

Same thing for a Lehigh Valley couple who became used to not eating out because of the risk.  Then they tried Indigo 52 and to their relief, it was perfect.  As a result, they even had their anniversary dinner there and Chef Kadel catered the menu toward romance.

Because of the growing unique demand, Indigo 52 has become reservation-only with diners driving from hours away to have a very specific and risk-free meal.

This Lehigh Valley restaurant has become one of the very few healthy (and delicious) stops on the East Coast to offer a consistently safe (risk-free) experience to immune-compromised diner.  And word is spreading quickly.

Chef Kadel’s work is Art, Magic and Flavor

Chef Kadel Woody has been working in Lehigh Valley restaurants since he was in high school.  Learning his kitchen secrets from time at Widow’s Tavern and Grille, Two Rivers Brewing, Anthony’s Coal Fired Pizza.

Felicia and Kadel connected when she knew she needed someone magical to create these unique and challenging dishes and her first several chefs couldn’t give her the results she envisioned.

Chef Kadel’s plating is art.

Chef Kadel’s ingredients are magic.

And the flavor is in every bite.

The kitchen is open so that diners can watch him create magic from their seat or even step over and get a closer glimpse. 

Local Food Brings Big Flavor

Most of Indigo 52’s ingredients are local.  Some come from Nazareth farms literally down the street from the restaurant and their delivery is walked over.  That’s very local.  That’s fresh.  

Felicia and Kadel are big supporters of the local community handing out snacks at nearby businesses and contributing delicious bites at neighborhood events.

Indigo 52 Review

Cuisine: Very strong. From their locally sourced ingredients and an inventive menu, to Chef Kadel who’s able to create custom experiences for even the most sensitive diners.

Ambience: Fun, playful.  Small town quaint with ambitious creativity

Service: Now that they’ve switched to reservation only, once you’ve been seated you get plenty of friendly and knowledgeable support.  The kitchen proudly goes out of their way to service your specific needs.

Hospitality: Because Indigo 52 is such a unique experience, if you visit knowing how special your experience can be, the kitchen and staff go out of their way to surprise and delight you

Indigo 52 is located at:

52 S Main St
Nazareth, PA 18064

Indigo 52 is open Thursday – Saturday, 10a- 8pm, reservation only

Make a reservation here.

To browse their menu.