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• R Bistro

Buttermilk panna cotta is a delicate dessert with pomegranate. (Michelle Pemberton / Indy.com)

R Bistro's Roasted Organic gold beets, edamame and walnut-crusted goat cheese salad. (Michelle Pemberton / Indy.com)

Pork tenderloin, with white beans and escarole stew on the side, finds favor with R Bistro diners. (Michelle Pemberton / Indy.com)

R Bistro chef/owner Regina Mehallick's cozy culinary landmark on Massachusetts Avenue has received its share of kudos from the press and foodies alike.

Known for a creative menu that changes weekly, incorporating seasonal products from Indiana purveyors, the restaurant has developed a loyal list of regulars. Gaze around the dining room on any given night and you'll likely see servers greeting guests by name and reciting drink orders from memory.

That's not to say that the first-time or occasional visitor isn't warmly received. My husband, Pete, and I met our friends Jon and Tammy for a Friday dinner and were seated promptly at our reserved table. (The dining room is rather small here, so reservations are always a good idea; you can make them online via OpenTable.com.)

Our server quickly dropped by to offer us tap or bottled water and menus. For the uninitiated, R Bistro always lists a choice of five starters, five entrees and five desserts, all of which tempt with Mehallick's signature style of combining simple ingredients in inventive ways.

This was evident from my choice of starters, a salad featuring greens combined with tasty squares of roasted, organic gold beets and crisply fresh edamame ($8.95). Drizzled with a light, oil-based dressing, the salad was crowned with a generous dollop of warm, walnut-crusted goat cheese. The ingredients played off each other well for a salad that took a fresh approach to the traditional opening gambit.

Soup without guilt

Pete opted for the soup of the day ($6.95), a pureed cauliflower version flavored with caraway and a touch of cream. The mild, thick soup offset the cold weather outside, comfort food that carried with it no need to feel guilty for the indulgence.

Jon and Tammy both ordered the mixed leaf salad ($6.95), Jon as a precursor to dinner and the ever-health-minded Tammy as part of her main meal, along with another appetizer, the mascarpone and bacon tart ($7.25). The salads were dressed with a mustard-balsamic blend, while the quichelike tart paired the creamy cheese filling (almost a custard texture) with bits of crunchy bacon for a savory, rich treat.

For the rest of us, our entrees were next up. I decided on the evening's vegetarian offering, a pizza ($15.95) that depended on bold flavors rather than piles of ingredients to make its mark on the palate. A crisp golden crust -- somewhere between a thin and thick consistency -- was coated with a light glaze of blue cheese and topped with hunks of soft-but-not-mushy butternut squash and a few strategically placed fried sage leaves.

Pete went with the pork tenderloin ($20.08), lightly spiced slices of White Marble Farms meat served with a side of white bean and escarole stew. I sampled the pork and found it moist and flavorful, tasting as if it had just come off a backyard grill in the midst of a summer weekend.

Jon ordered the shepherd's pie ($16.50), a savory take on the meat-and-potatoes classic, served with veggies. He liked the seasoning and the hearty vegetable chunks.

Perfect finale

For dessert, Pete and I shared a toffeed apple and pecan tart ($5.95), a fine ending indeed with its crumbly crust and sweet/crunchy filling and topped with frothy, freshly whipped cream. Tammy and Jon split the buttermilk panna cotta ($6), a delicate dessert topped with mixed berries (raspberries, blueberries) that Mehallick chopped and combined with pomegranate seeds.

Tammy raved about this tasty little creation, calling it "melt-in-your-mouth creamy," with a slight lemon tang that played well off the sweet/tart flavor of the berries. Her only regret: "sharing" the dessert with Jon, who managed to eat more than she did.

Taste Test

Appetizers:

• Cauliflower/caraway soup, $6.95.

• Salad with roasted organic gold beets, edamame and walnut-crusted goat cheese, $8.95.

• Mascarpone and bacon tart, $7.25.

• Mixed leaf salad with mustard balsamic dressing, $6.95.

Entrees:

• Grilled and spiced White Marble Farms pork tenderloin with white bean and escarole stew, $20.08.

• Pizza with butternut squash, blue cheese and fried sage leaves, $15.95.

• Shepherd's pie with winter vegetables, $16.50.

Desserts:

• Buttermilk panna cotta, $6.

• Toffeed apple and pecan tart, $5.95.

-- By Julie Cope Saetre / Indy.com correspondent