Great Places to Eat? (Ames, Windsor Heights: business, art, local)

[El Rhino]

Originally Posted by JustT&Me

And ... Pizza Ranch. (Mercy! I really don't eat out this much.) They are a nice place to take a family - good, clean, family-atmosphere, and the most interesting pizza combinations you'll ever find! If they don't have it? Just ask! They'll make it for you! I like their BBQ Chicken & Taco Pizzas! Yum! I try to make it once every month or two to a Pizza Ranch. Great place to meet with friends. Sign up for their online specials!

If you want interesting pizza combinations, try Big Tomato in Des Moines. They've got a ton of toppings to choose from. Some of the more interesting ones are spam, doritos, hot dogs, cajun tuna and honey. Their bbq chicken pizza and chicken taco pizza is real good, as is the chili dog pizza. It's a place you pretty much have to call in for delivery or buy it by the slice during certain hours, as theres not really a dining area, just a counter and a lobby.

Java Joe's was mentioned in this thread and I guess it just recently became corporate owned as opposed to independent. A friend of mine that has been putting up flyers in there for concerts he puts on for years just got told that the flyers "don't fit with the image they're going for" or something like that. I guess service and quality have taken a little dive as well since the transition. That's unfortunate, that place has been a hang-out for the underage subculture kids in Des Moines for years.

[pinetar10]

i liked breadeaux pizza. the only one i've ever been to was in oskaloosa, iowa. not sure how many there are or where they are, but it was good pizza

[Stevie]

There's also a Breadeaux Pizza in Washington, Iowa but I think it was just take-out. It was still great pizza though.

[JustT&Me]

Originally Posted by metro223

Unfortunately, Culver's is based out of Wisconsin. ...

Yes, it is! But WI doesn't mind sharing the love... btw, good thing for Brett, eh? I'm glad he's going to be able to take some well-earned time w/his family, and it will be interesting to see what he does with it. Maybe he'll have some time to start visiting a few Culver's!

I like their Cookies & Cream malts... double the cookie and extra malt! Ha.
Besides great Butterburgers, they also have really great chili and soups (when they don't cook the noodles too long) - and for much less than you'd pay in a regular sit-down meal - you can even save your tip!

Took me awhile to get used to their soft-fries (I probably only eat there about 3-5x/yr), but then I found out that you can order them *extra crispy* and they'll leave them in the hopper longer! Their's is about the best for service that I've ever found in a burger joint. Thumbs up to Culver's! (Even if they *are* based out of Wisconsin).

Has Sweet Tomatoes made it up to IA? I ate in one in GA last summer - it's basically a soup & salad buffet restaurant and has a couple of small bars for carbs (pastas), breads, and ice cream sundae fixings. I'd like to see them come to the Midwest. That'd be nice in the summer! (Not sure how they'd do winters though... probably not too hot.)

[Stevie]

Originally Posted by Stevie

Latin King has been around since 1966? Wow.

I was just searching on the web and found out that Latin King has been around since 1947 (60 years ago). That sure is a long time. I hope to try that place sometime soon.

[metro223]

So - went to The Iowa Machine Shed in Urbandale today, I have to say the service wasn't very friendly ... I realize it's more of an older crowd, but jeesh, they were downright snooty. But, I'm not going to say it's like that all the time ... I'm sure I'll go back, but wow something was up today.

But the food was great!! I got a "Shed Burger" () with a cup of chili and fries, mmmm good stuff.

[Stevie]

Has anyone mentioned Mustards yet? I like to go there once in awhile. It's either in or near Windsor Heights. I always get the pork ribs, BBQ chicken, baked beans and fries. It also comes with a sugar biscuit but I never eat it.

[WoodwardGirl]

Originally Posted by metro223

So - went to The Iowa Machine Shed in Urbandale today, I have to say the service wasn't very friendly ... I realize it's more of an older crowd, but jeesh, they were downright snooty. But, I'm not going to say it's like that all the time ... I'm sure I'll go back, but wow something was up today.

But the food was great!! I got a "Shed Burger" () with a cup of chili and fries, mmmm good stuff.

Yeah, I would definitely give it another try. I've had moderately inept service there, but never snooty!

And have you ever seen such a great collection of Iowa souveniers? I wish they had more online!

[metro223]

Originally Posted by WoodwardGirl

Yeah, I would definitely give it another try. I've had moderately inept service there, but never snooty!

And have you ever seen such a great collection of Iowa souveniers? I wish they had more online!

I definitely will, they were very busy maybe that is what it was. oh well.

I love the theme, it's a good portrayal of Iowa Culture - and the store had some really fun stuff to buy, oh and did I already say the food was good?

Whenever I visit Ft. Worth, Texas ... there are so many "Texan" restaurants, bbq's, etc ... with all of their state pride. And in IA you don't see our culture as widely exposed is theirs, so The Machine Shed fills a good niche imo. (hope this makes sense)

[WoodwardGirl]

Originally Posted by metro223

Whenever I visit Ft. Worth, Texas ... there are so many "Texan" restaurants, bbq's, etc ... with all of their state pride. And in IA you don't see our culture as widely exposed is theirs, so The Machine Shed fills a good niche imo. (hope this makes sense)

I wish it wasn't so hard to come up with Iowa souveniers. Probably should start a thread about great places to get stuff like that. Times when I've been trying to hire someone from out of state, it's been hard to find kitsch to send to them to convey just how great things are here! (assuming the snow EVER melts...!)

Can this thread include good take-out? There was a time when THE de-riguer "somebody's sick" treat at our house was chicken and noodles from Dahls grocery store deli department. Big, thick homemade noodles, tender chicken, flavorful sauce. Do they still have it?

The Edgewood Road Hyvee in Cedar Rapids now features a "California Cashew Chicken Salad" that is SO rich and delicious... buy a pint and spoon it into puff pastry cups for a great light summer entree. Perfect with some vino, fruit, cheese, petits fours and iced coffee for a picnic on the lawn before a performance at Brucemore, for example!