What can I say, Jessica is always on top of our drinks. She never disappoints and I'm more than happy to be her customer everytime she's here. Her attention to detail and overall service is impeccable. I highly recommend coming in to see her! read more

I don't write a ton of reviews, but I had to do so after experiencing Checkered Flag Tavern's chicken wings for the first time. These are the best wings I've ever tasted! They're first smoked with apple or cherry wood and then fried crispy. The sauces I tried were fantastic and I highly recommend the honey bourbon flavor. They routinely compete with Ale Emporioum for best wings and I can see why. For me, Checkered Flag's wings win (and I love Ale Emporium's wings). They're also more affordable at $10.79 for 10 wings. I only wish they were located closer to home! read more

Went here twice over the summer during a 5 day stay for a conference. The first visit was good, sat at the bar and had wings and beers. Wings were very good and flavorful. Not overpowering at all and very juicy. Second time sat in the dining area and felt like we weren't even there. Server took a LONG time to come take our drink order. And even longer to order food. Once ordered we waited at least 30 minutes for it to come out. And we only ordered a burger, boneless wings, and a shrimp appetizer. Shrimps were way over cooked. The burger was dry and the bun was falling apart. Next time sit at the bar. read more

I travel to the Indianapolis area a lot. I always plan to stay at a hotel near Checkered Flag Tavern. Hands down they have the best barbecue I ever had. Trust me I am very picky on my barbecue. If I could give them 10 stars I will! I highly recommend the smoked wings and the pulled pork quesadilla! read more

Ok, well we are from greenwood. Got the feeling we were not part of the "crowd", service was SLOW! Felt like we weren't welcome

Checkered Flag has changed so much from the first time I ever went (it was cash only and fairly dingy interior). This is really just such a great dive bar with AMAZING food, good service and cold beer. My husband is obsessed with their smoked wings and literally wants to come every Monday. I am happy to see it so revamped and popular and we will frequent this place for years to come! read more

Some of the best wings ever! Service is good, tap list is short but inclusive. We stop here every time we are in Indy.

Came to Checkered Flag on a suggested place to go from our hotel front manager. OMG it's the best and the food is amazing. Come see Amber our bartender, she is amazing. We had the Taco salad and wow. There is a reason they were voted best things winner and best wings bar food in Indy. read more

I travel a lot for work and always try to find a local spot. The Yelp reviews were good so I headed here and I was not disappointed. The atmosphere has small town written all over it yet they are right outside Indianapolis. Very eclectic crowd, good music, darts seem to be a big hit. Although they shouldn't put them so close to the door. LOL! I highly recommend the fried bologna and egg sandwich. I never had before so I decided to try and it was awesome! If I'm ever back in the area I will be back. read more

We've been here twice when passing through Indy. It's a dive bar with excellent food. I had the blackened mahi sandwich this time, mu husband the buffalo chicken salad. Both are excellent. The first time through we had their bbq. They smoke their own. It was amazing. It will be a regular stop every time we come through town. read more

This much I know is true about Checkered Flag Tavern: the can and bottle beer is the coldest you'll find in the northern hemisphere, the locals that sit at the bar belch loudly, proudly and often, the women's room has a pair of toilets side by side with no dividing door or wall, and the food is so good you'll swear Paula freaking Deen and Bobby flipping Flay are 'working it' in the kitchen. Delicious fried frog legs? The best smoked hot wings that this hot wing diva has ever had? A burger that rivals my favorite Indy bar hamburger? Smoked ribs and pulled pork nachos that are WAY MORE BETTER-ER than places that specialize in BBQ fare? Yes, yes and yes. This place kills it. read more

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Food was not great and they were out of a bunch of options. Went on a Monday for lunch and half of our party bailed before turning in the parking lot. Thought we had stumbled into the bar from Talladega Nights...there's even a stuffed cougar on the wall by the door to keep the giant stuffed marlin company. It wasn't completely tragic, but it wasn't the best. read more

If you haven't been here for a couple weeks the NEW parking lot behind bar is paved, fenced and nicely landscaped. It looks wonderful and provides desperately needed additional parking! MAJOR improvements for the area since abandon houses are never attractive and help no one's property value. Sad Mark wasn't allowed to doze down both abandon and trashed houses to clean up both lots. Maybe the city will jump on that. Talk of more renovations coming in near future. Patio seating is available inside fenced area for those who prefer . A Dive bar with a 4-5 star review means something is being done well here. Not just bar fly's crawling to the closest watering hole as I've heard said. The reviews speak for themselves. The food brings us back and affordable beverages are always a big plus. Daily food and drink specials. Nothing pretentious here and I enjoy the freedom of "wear whatever" dining. Another best of is Juke Box always played LOUD with a nice selection of music. Johnny Cash to Metal could be playing at any time so play on! Hot Wings are EXCELLENT and my personal favorites here while the BBQ (close 2nd), The Big Pig, and Rajun Cajun Chicken Sandwiches always delish. Perfectly cooked burgers, including the Bison Burger, are popular as well with men in my family. Fish on Fridays is a given! French Fries are skin on and cooked perfectly with the exception of past trip. Onion Ring order served with 4 large rings and 4/5 for taste but in my opinion overpriced. I try to satisfy this craving elsewhere that's just as scrumptious but with more rings and cheaper (Pit Stop BBQ). Mark, the owner, is super cool to talk with about different smoking woods being currently used. The man knows how to smoke meats! He's mentioned exploring some new menu options for specials and I've yet to hit the right day for those. Our servers are always great and a lot of fun. The crowd is a live and let live type of crowd with majority being regulars. I've run into folks who have driven quite a distance (over hour so far) to get their Checkered Flag fix. Few topics to highlight before first visit: 1) NO beer on tap so be forewarned; 2) Women's restroom has two stalls WITH a dividing wall but NO individual stall doors. The one door covering stall area does NOT latch and close. When the restroom door is opened body parts will be exposed to sightseers if you're sitting to far forward; 3) Its Indianapolis rules for bar smoking so NO smoking indoors or within 8 feet of the door. Yes confusing since bars couple miles away can smoke indoors. It is what it is. Don't fuss! 4) Motorcycles have marked parking spaces in front of bar so try to use as last resort and 5) Paper towels located on tables so dive in cause the food is GOOD. read more

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They call this place a Five Star Dive Bar and the moniker fits it to tee. Absolutely great, uniquely prepared food imagine big ass bacon burger with seven pieces of bacon or big pig sandwich or brisket quesadilla all are massive for $10 bucks. Or how eclectic is blackened mahi sandwich in a Dive bar and it's freaking delicious. I love this place. read more

Intimidating and underwhelming from the outside given the location, area demographics and overall appearance, but happy to have found this gem. Food was on point and we'll go back for sure! Side note- I guess this used to be a dive and desperate need of renovation, which it's clearly received. Hopefully they'll get to the outside soon. Wings (naked) were insane. They easily rivaled the Hermanaki of Ale Emporium. Not sure which sauce to recommend though, we weren't crazy about the two we picked. Tenderloin was yummy and a great value! read more

So I got a thank-you for reviewing this place, which prompted me to look at the business again. They have gone through some major renovations & looks like they have invested a bit of money to overhaul the place. That being said, my poor review may not apply to the pub that is today. So if you believe in second chances, maybe give them a look. After all, isn't that what online reviews are for??? read more

Best food ever! Great service, always, and great variety. Specials are awesome! Love this place!!

Bar has been remodeled and 100% different than a year ago! Fried mushrooms are the best ever. Tenderloin was good too! read more

Checkered Flag Tavern - Pubs Near Me - Indianapolis, Indiana

We were in town for the races and found this little gem on a Yelp! The food was AMAZING! I have the brisket cheese steak sandwich & my husband had the shrimp po-boy, both were amazing!! The brisket was dynamite! Also had the mushrooms as an app and you can't go wrong with them! read more

Jennifer was great! She was very sweet, made sick drinks, and even gave us a phone charger!! We hung out with some locals while there- they gave some great recommendations on what to order. The WINGS were to die for. Get them tossed Cajun style + your sauce. Yum yum. Great vibe and company read more

I had the peanut butter and jealousy burger. It was really tasty and huge. My buddy had the bacon cheeseburger and he said it was delicious. Definitely going back. read more

Brisket Manhattan! Was the bomb. Food definitely speaks for itself. Server doesn't go out of there way to acknowledge you so speak up and you won't regret the quality of the food. All American dive bar. read more

Traveling through the area and saw the reviews. Ordered dry rub wings. Smoked wings were good. Could taste the smoke and dry rub was about what I'd expect. Atmosphere is more of a biker bar type atmosphere. Friendly people and good food. Music was very loud for a non active time. Understand loud when many people here. But not during non busy times. Bartender was very sweet...But inexperienced. Didn't know how to make a Manhattan and said bar doesn't have bitters. Lack of training I'm sure. 4 stars because of food...Atmosphere is a 2. read more

We definitely will go back. Definitely a dive bar feel. Fresh pork rinds were still popping at the table. Also had the chips and wings. Everything was delicious. Very friendly staff. We stopped by after a return flight home and their kitchen had already closed (1030 on a Monday night), but they offered to make us anything in the fryer and everything we ordered was delicious. Between the four of us, we tried the bourbon glaze, honey chipotle, ranch garlic and hot buffalo - all delicious. They also have 10 wings for $5 on Mondays which is insane. read more

We went here for dinner and drinks 2-8-20 and found everything pretty dang good for a dive bar. we would highly recommend this! Bob H. read more

It was our first time and it was delicious! It is clean, very attentive, and food came out prompt and warm. Very good service from Bobbie and Jen! read more

I have been to the Checkered Flag a handful of times and each time it gets better and better! The food is delicious! Wings, burgers, tenderloins, Mac & Cheese....all excellent! They have dinner and drink specials too! Live entertainment! Pool! Darts! Just a great place to grab and great meal, hang out with friends, and have a good time! read more

Every time I go the blonde bartender, Jennifer is wasted. I can't believe the owner allows their employees to be drunk on the job. In the hour I was there, I saw her take 4 shots. I came in.. wasn't greeted for ten minutes. It wasn't busy at all. I stood at bar, in multiple places... she walked by me. I finally called her over and asked for two appetizers for the table. She came back and said they only had one. I said ok. We waited forever for drinks. In that time, she took shots, danced multiple times on dance floor, took the KJs mic and was singing drunk and off tune on peoples songs during karaoke (wow!!!!!). I finally asked where my one appetizer was after 20 mins or so and she said the cook was leaving and forgot to tell her they didn't have that app either. Wow. Smh. Both bartenders were out smoking at same time when we needed our tabs.. leaving bar unattended. And when the drunk bartender was singing and dancing and not working, the other bartender was filming her and laughing about it. I couldn't believe women at their age were acting that way in the job. I have given this place a try three times and I'm not sure when Jennifer isn't drunk.. let me know.. and maybe I'll try to get good service then. Unbelievable. read more

Great place good bartenders and the wings are amazing! I don't know what they are using to smoke the wings but ooooooo BABY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

You might be surprised to read this, but honestly the Checkered Flag serves THE BEST food in Indianapolis. I've eaten here several times- for slower weeknight dinners and super busy weekend nights when they have live music- and the food is always consistently A plus quality. The burgers are AMAZING, not frozen & cooked perfectly. Seriously these are the burgers you would order if you were on death row and it was your last meal. If you order bacon, you get substantial, thick slices from their grill/smoker. I've also had their spicy barbecue shrimp appetizer which is a huge (and pretty messy) portion of deliciously seasoned, saucy peel n eat shrimp. The portions are extremely generous, and the prices are insanely low. The food always comes out hot and exactly the way you wanted it. On top of the fabulous food, the service is great. The bartenders are so sweet & always treat you like you're the only person in the bar even if they're extremely busy. They have a decent draft beer selection - local craft beers, domestics, and Blue Moon-ish type stuff. Also they recently renovated, but kept their awesome V-shaped sign outside (!) so the atmosphere is pretty cozy and very clean-feeling at the same time. Most of the restaurants on the west side are overpriced and underwhelming. But this is one of the best restaurants I've ever been to anywhere. read more

What a dive bar should be; chicken wings are the best! When it gets busy, it can be a little slow (order drinks in multiples).

A great place to grab dinner and drinks. We had the pork tenderloin sandwich and a burger. The tenderloin was fried perfectly and came with some great fries. The burger was well cooked, and huge. Service was good, portions were large, prices were low. read more

Stumbled across Checkered flag by accident. Very laid back tavern with friendly atmosphere. We had the Jammin burger, one of the best cheeseburgers I have ever had, juicy and flavorful. Had a pretty good beer selection also. Craft beers along with domestics. The staff was friendly and service prompt. read more

Best wings in the world. They are smoked and the best is Cajun dry rub with Bourbon BBQ glaze. They will change your life. Excellent people and great prices. read more

Have been here a couple of times now and the second occasion was a great time. Our food came out quick, and it was delicious. My boyfriend had the wings and said they were awesome. We talked with the cook and the bartender throughout our visit and received amazing service. The atmosphere is great, as well - it's a great bar for a weeknight dinner. This bar is definitely more than meets the eye & well worth a visit! read more

We had take out tonight and it was Delicious!! I had the Loaded Nachos with ground beef. It was so big, there was enough for 3 meals. It had plain chips, red chips, black chips, sour cream, green onions, red onions melted cheese, salsa, jalapeños, lettuce, black olives and it looks like a well cooked cheeseburger they chopped up into it. I LOVED it!! Definitely will be ordering that again. Yum :) read more

Went there and got the chicken sandwiches. They were pretty good and it was a fun time, until a biker gang rolled up and it sucked.

This place is awesome. Perfect spot to wait for a delayed flight. Cold beer, great wings, clean and nice. Gotta stop here.

Visiting Indy and was looking for a place for lunch. The service was excellent and the food was delicious! Our only complaint was that we couldn't finish everything we ordered. Home made chips are fantastic. The brisket was outstanding. Hope to eat here on future visits. read more

Decided to eat here rather than buy a mediocre burger at or hotel down the road. Food was fantastic; my husband said it was probably the best porter tenderloin sandwich he has ever had. It also has a great atmosphere, loud and boisterous. Great place! read more