Serving it up right in Indiana

(Globe staff)

INDIANAPOLIS -- Let's take a break from the horse race for a moment to appreciate the culinary benefits of the never-ending Democratic primary contest.

The deeper into the spring the campaign has gone, the more opportunities the national political and media class have had to sample food and beverage establishments that, unlike, say, Centro in downtown Des Moines, are not regular stops on the expense-account tour.

With Indiana now front and center, native son Evan Bayh, the state's junior senator, led us to a local joint that we're glad is now on our radar: Shapiro's, a big, old-fashioned deli just to the south of downtown Indianapolis.

Shapiro's, in business since 1905, makes a mean beef brisket sandwich (spicy mustard, Swiss cheese) and a delightful matzo ball soup (with noodles or just broth). Their corned beef is also the stuff of legend. Food is served cafeteria-style, and everyone in line is greeted with a "young man!" or a "young lady!" (This salutation applies to young-ish journalists as well as older men with tufts of white hair ordering a bowl of soup and Saltines.)

Bayh swears that Shapiro's beats anything he's found in Washington. We'll know next Tuesday whether Bayh -- who has endorsed Hillary Clinton -- can pick a presidential candidate. But we can attest that he knows how to pick a deli.