Things to Do in Fountain Square
Fountain Square, Indianapolis: Laid-back and slightly offbeat, with the feel of a creative district that grew organically rather than being curated by a developer, where the smell of wood-fired ovens and the low thrum of live music leak out of storefronts along Virginia Avenue on any given evening.
Fountain Square sits about two miles southeast of downtown Indianapolis, anchored by the diagonal cut of Virginia Avenue, a street that dates to the 1821 Ralston Plan for the city. The neighborhood's commercial spine runs along Virginia Avenue and Prospect Street, where old storefronts house tattoo parlors, vintage clothing shops, record stores, and galleries that smell faintly of incense and fresh screen-printing ink.
The sidewalks here feel narrower than downtown. The signage is hand-painted rather than corporate. On warm evenings the clatter of duckpin bowling pins drifts out of the Fountain Square Theatre Building, a 1928 landmark that anchors the whole district. Indianapolis designated Fountain Square one of its six Cultural Districts, and that label fits without feeling forced.
The creative energy here is real, built by artists and small-business owners who moved in when rents were low and stuck around as the neighborhood found its footing.
What keeps Fountain Square from tipping into self-conscious coolness is that it still works as a neighborhood. You will pass a laundromat on the way to a craft cocktail bar. You will catch the scent of charcoal grills behind residential fences. You will hear somebody practicing drums in a second-floor apartment above a comic shop.
Couples come for date-night dinners and end up at a burlesque show they did not plan on. Families roll duckpin balls on weekend afternoons. The Indianapolis Cultural Trail, an eight-mile urban pathway, threads through the district on a separated bike lane, linking Fountain Square to Mass Ave and the canal without ever touching a car lane.
For travelers who want Indianapolis beyond the convention center and the speedway, this is the neighborhood that earns its reputation without trying too hard to sell it.
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Top Attractions in Fountain Square
Fountain Square Theatre Building
This 1928 building anchors the neighborhood and packs more character per floor than most cities manage in a block. The fourth floor holds Action Bowl, an eight-lane duckpin bowling alley furnished with equipment from the 1930s, where the crack of smaller balls hitting squat pins echoes off original plaster walls. Down in the basement, Atomic Bowl leans into a 1950s aesthetic with neon lighting and vintage bowling shirts pinned to the walls. Linton Calvert acquired the badly neglected building in 1993, when most of the windows were broken out, and revived it into what it is now. Indianapolis is one of the few places west of the Appalachian Mountains where you can find duckpin lanes. The novelty alone is worth the visit.
Indianapolis Cultural Trail (Fountain Square Spur)
The southeastern spur of this eight-mile urban trail runs along Virginia Avenue and terminates at Prospect and Shelby streets in the middle of Fountain Square, connecting the neighborhood to downtown, Mass Ave, and the canal district without a single stretch of unprotected road cycling. Near the square, the path links up with the Pleasant Run Greenway, opening a longer ride along the creek. The section heading north toward Prospect Street runs as an on-road separated bike route, marked by colorful barriers and neighborhood murals that make the overpass between Fountain Square and Fletcher Place feel less like infrastructure and more like a gallery corridor.
The Inferno Room
This tiki bar at 902 Virginia Avenue occupies a former Marion County courthouse and houses what is thought to be one of the largest collections of Papua New Guinea native art outside of a museum, sourced from a private collector who spent years in the region. Created by longtime tiki devotee Ed Rudisell, the space includes a themed Luau Room that pays homage to Indiana-native Steve Crane, a B-movie actor who opened several tiki lounges including The Luau in Beverly Hills. The air inside is thick with the sweet, citrusy bite of fresh-pressed tropical juices. The dim lighting makes the carved masks on the walls look appropriately ominous.
Virginia Avenue Shopping Corridor
The stretch of Virginia Avenue running through Fountain Square is lined with the kind of small shops that reward slow browsing. Vintage stores stack mid-century furniture alongside racks of broken-in denim. Comic book shops smell of old paper and fresh ink. Local galleries rotate work by Indianapolis artists who live in the neighborhood. The hand-lettered signs and mismatched awnings give the strip a texture that chain retail cannot replicate.
White Rabbit Cabaret
Sitting at 1116 East Prospect Street, this intimate venue books an unpredictable rotation of live music, stand-up comedy, and burlesque that keeps regulars coming back to see what lands on any given night. The room is small enough that you feel the bass in your chest from the middle rows. The crowd skews toward locals who know the performers by name. The bar pours decent cocktails. The sight lines are good from nearly every seat.
Where to Eat in Fountain Square
Bluebeard
Seasonal New American
Milktooth
Brunch and lunch
Kuma's Corner
Metal-themed burger bar
Upland Brewing Co. Fountain Square
Brewpub
Revolucion
Latin American
Fountain Square After Dark
The Inferno Room
This is a serious tiki bar. Museum-quality Polynesian and Papua New Guinea artifacts line the walls. The rum cocktails are strong. The food draws from South Pacific traditions. Skip the plastic leis. Cocktail enthusiasts and curious couples tend to stay longer than planned.
Radio Radio
The neighborhood's primary live music venue sits at 1119 East Prospect Street. It books indie bands, touring acts, and occasional burlesque nights. The room is raw. The sound is loud. That is the point. Weekends pull a younger crowd. Midweek shows draw a more mixed audience.
White Rabbit Cabaret
This compact Prospect Street venue hosts live music, stand-up, and a recurring burlesque bingo night that has become a neighborhood institution. The programming rotates enough that repeat visits rarely feel redundant. Check the calendar.
Fountain Square Theatre Rooftop
The Theatre Building's rooftop bar has a different speed than Prospect Street's louder spots. Retro dance nights on the lower floors give way to quieter drinks up top. Look out over the neighborhood rooftops. Catch the cool breeze that Indianapolis summer evenings sometimes deliver.
Getting Around Fountain Square
Fountain Square is one of the more walkable neighborhoods in an otherwise car-dependent city. The commercial core along Virginia Avenue and Prospect Street is compact enough to cover on foot in an evening. The Indianapolis Cultural Trail provides a separated bike and pedestrian path connecting the district to downtown, Mass Ave, and the canal area without sharing a lane with traffic.
Pacers Bikeshare docks are scattered along the trail. The bikes are a cheap and practical way to reach downtown attractions a couple of miles northwest. For getting to Fountain Square from elsewhere in Indianapolis, you will likely need a car or rideshare. IndyGo bus routes serve the area. But headways can be long outside of rush hours.
The city's transit system is built around the downtown hub rather than crosstown connections. If you are driving, street parking along Virginia Avenue fills up on weekend evenings but is generally manageable on weekdays. The neighborhood's relatively flat terrain and short blocks make it comfortable for walking even in the humid summer months.
The stretch between Fletcher Place and Fountain Square proper crosses an overpass that can feel exposed in poor weather. Bring a jacket.
Where to Stay in Fountain Square
Fountain Square Theatre Building Hotel
Boutique, Mid-range for Indianapolis
Omni Severin Hotel
Mid-range, Mid-range for Indianapolis
Hampton Inn Indianapolis Downtown
Budget, Budget-friendly
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