Located in a renovated gas station surrounded by cornfields, this Texas-style barbecue is certainly worth the 30-minute drive from downtown Des Moines. Instead of “what are they smoking?” the more apt question might be “what aren’t they smoking?” Feast on a platter of brisket, double-smoked sausage, pulled pork, turkey, baby back ribs, or pork loin smoked daily in their pit. Reserve some stomach real estate for the sides (cornbread, campground beans, mac and cheese, pimento cheese pasta salad) and desserts (Nutter Butter banana pudding).

This bakery and deli is inspired by the bagel shops of New York City, where owners Toney and Sarah Chem met. The sandwiches are named for the city’s boroughs and various landmarks, served alongside espresso drinks, teas, and fresh-squeezed juices. If you’re not feeling a classic fresh-baked lox deluxe bagel, try the Bronx sandwich, a BLT with Sriracha cream cheese and banana peppers.

Bring your appetite to this Ecuadorian restaurant tucked away in a West Des Moines strip mall; every order is a feast that guarantees at least one round of leftovers. From empanadas and llapingachos (cheese-filled potato patties served over peanut sauce), to hearty carne asada and fall-apart-tender slow-roasted pork, this is comfort food for any chilly day.

Modern Australian-American spot St. Kilda Cafe and Bakery kicked off a daytime restaurant renaissance on the south edge of downtown in 2017. In summer 2020, this outpost opened in Valley Junction — an area of West Des Moines once known mainly as an antiquing destination — joining the new cocktail bars and cat cafes that have recently taken over the area. St. Kilda Collective fits right in with a falafel-topped rendition of the original cafe’s signature avocado toast, uber-creamy hummus, vibrant grain bowls, and entrees like mustard-marinated pork tenderloin with kombucha glaze, sweet potato polenta, and chow-chow.

While it has changed names and ownership a few times since originally opening in 1952, this cozy neighborhood Italian restaurant has a remarkably loyal following. Lines begin to form, especially on weekends, well before 5 p.m., when owner Simon Goheen opens the doors. All night long you can eat your fill of entrees like cheese-stuffed chicken over a bed of spaghetti topped with both alfredo and marinara, but diners try to beat the rush for slices of red velvet cake, delivered to each table — on the house — while supplies last.

Even the most carnivorous of diners will find something to adore at Lyssa Wade’s roaming vegan destination. One-upping food trucks, Wade operates out of a converted school bus, serving items like buffalo chick’n nachos and lentil tacos. She hops from farmers markets to hardware store parking lots to (come winter) commercial kitchen pop-ups to feed the metro area’s growing appetite for all things plant-based. You can find Veggie Thumper through Street Food Finder and Instagram.

About 20 minutes south of downtown, on Main Street in charming small-town Norwalk, this wood-fired pizza spot is worth the trip. Since late 2018, the family-run operation — under owner Steve Taylor and wife Deb, whose daughter is also a server — has followed the rules for a classic Neapolitan pizza, just sans certification. Each pie is made with Italian 00 flour, San Marzano tomatoes, and fresh mozzarella cheese, and cooks for 90 seconds or less in an 800-degree oven. Try the namesake recipe, the Pyra, with garlic white sauce, Romano, prosciutto, artichokes, kalamata olives, mushrooms, and fresh mozzarella. Or opt for the pie named after the Norwalk High School mascot, the Warrior, which features tomato sauce, Romano, bacon, local Graziano Brothers sausage, pepperoni, red onion, mushrooms, black olives, and fresh mozz.

Next door to the original Cheese Shop (the retail side of the Cheese Bar operation) you’ll find this bakery that supplies bread to both cheesy destinations, as well as several other local bistros. Open for dine-in breakfast and lunch, La Mie also excels at French pastries, laminated doughs, shiny fruit-adorned tarts, and rainbow-colored French macarons. The satellite location in the Skywalk downtown, La Mie Elevate, keeps office employees riding high on turkey club energy all afternoon long.

Owner and bartender Dave Murrin-von Ebers made one of the most impressive pandemic pivots at this trendy snack and cocktail hotspot. Before the pandemic, customers packed elbow-to-elbow in the bar beneath stained glass windows. So Murrin-von Ebers closed the indoor space, designating it for staff to shake up complex cocktails and spirit-free drinks, then transformed the parking lot into an apres-ski-style outdoor bar complete with fire pit. Come for the drinks, like the Karate Kick with carrot juice, vodka, chile liqueur, and ginger syrup. Stay for the hospitality and snacks like a gochujang barbecue jackfruit sandwich or cold noodles with mint pesto, chile crisp, and ground mushrooms.

A quintessential Des Moines steakhouse, Jesse’s Embers is Iowa’s answer to a Wisconsin supper club. Kick off a meal with shrimp cocktail or local favorite super-thin-sliced onion rings. The Ember Special is a 12-ounce aged prime sirloin, but you can also dive into a half-pound sirloin Ember Burger, a French dip sandwich, or even baby back ribs. The cozy dining room welcomes newcomers like regulars; you’ll feel like part of the family far before you polish off your first martini or ice cream brandy Alexander.

Finding a spot to please diners with a variety of food preferences and allergies can be stressful — until you find Eatery A. At brunch, dinner, and dessert, this Mediterranean-inspired restaurant excels at everything from wood-fired pizzas, to chickpea-cauliflower falafel platters, to San Marzano tomato-based shakshuka with sumac-spiced flatbread. Every day from 3 to 6 p.m., the pizza, draft beer, and wine are half-price.

Locally sourced and Asian-inspired, this earthy, centrally located restaurant suits its name; it’s a harbinger of brilliant things to come in the Iowa food scene. Chef-owner Joe Tripp keeps ideas fresh in the kitchen by closing for a month each year to give staff time to travel, study, experiment, and recharge. The fruits of their labor are vegetable-forward, innovative dishes, like local duck egg seasoned with dried yuzu peel and sancho pepper paired with wild chanterelles, melted leeks, and hollandaise. During the pandemic, Tripp and his team tested out a more casual Korean fried chicken operation under the name Basic Bird, which was so popular they’re now searching for a separate storefront to fly into.

This Southeast Asian fast-casual restaurant is a haven for vegans, gluten-free eaters, and anyone craving fresh herbs and punchy sauces. Six multigenerational members of the Chen family helm the restaurant, which often features products made by other local food brands, such as noodles from DSM Ramen Club and vegetables from Grade A Gardens. The After School Fried Rice is a menu mainstay and a playful delight, showcasing eggs, peas, onions, and carrots tossed in a fiery wok with your choice of Chinese sausage, shrimp, chicken, tofu, beef, or veggies.

Alex Carter started Black Cat as a tiny ice cream shop out of a walk-up window at a downtown bar and music venue. In June 2021, the brand found a permanent home in the former Woody’s Smoke Shack space in the Drake neighborhood. Many of the from-scratch flavors are inspired by local ingredients or classic Midwestern childhood desserts, such as peanut butter puppy chow, butter-flavored ice cream with chunks of fried Twinkies (a hit come state fair time), and sweet corn with raspberry.

Look for the white truck and awning in the Advance Auto Parts parking lot on University Avenue. You have arrived at the spot for tacos, sold by the plate, by the sheet pan, and even in counts of 50. Choose from fillings including asada, pastor, pollo, pescado, tripa, lengua, camarones, birria, and more; all come topped with generous handfuls of sliced radishes, chopped onions, fresh cilantro, and lime wedges. Don’t skip the salsa station, and be sure to bring cash.

Book a table on the wraparound porch or in one of the intimate dining rooms on the first floor of this 1880s Sherman Hill home for a charming date night, Italian-style. Owner Tony Lemmo pays homage to his late mother, Lou Ann, with Italian dishes like handmade cavatelli, salad dressings, crispy polenta cakes, and too-good-to-split walnut-spice cake. Come spring and summer, you can see Lou Ann’s purple petunias lining the window boxes that surround the Victorian home.

“All French. No attitude. No corkage fee.” Django’s tagline does a decent job of explaining the sculpture park-adjacent downtown bistro — but a bite of yolk-dripping croque-madame does it even better. Bring your own bottle of wine to enjoy alongside duck frites, beef tenderloin tartare, and house-made tots with smoked bottarga.

For the first nine years of his life, Diego Rodriguez-Negrete visited a local mill in Mexico to grind masa with his grandma before whipping up homemade tortillas together. In 2007, he moved to Iowa from Mexico, received DACA status, and began stuffing burritos at Chipotle in a local mall. Quickly realizing his passion for the hospitality industry went far beyond fast casual, he trained under former Proof co-owner and head chef Sean Wilson for three years, before Rodriguez took the reins. These days he blends his Mexican roots with the local sourcing and magazine spread-worthy plating that had already earned Proof national recognition. You can taste the result in recent menu highlights like wagyu beef with sour cream potatoes, broccoli, and carrot-top chimichurri.

Shrimp and grits, fried chicken and waffles, biscuits, and pimento mac and cheese; you’d probably picture devouring these Southern delights in an elbows-on-the-table spot. At Bubba, managing partner Chris Diebel uses the dishes to pay homage to his Southern roots, but does so in a date night-worthy atmosphere beneath sparkly chandeliers. The restaurant also boasts one of the largest bourbon lists in the corn-loving state. Don’t end your meal without the bananas Foster or whiskey pecan pie — or both.

Think of this midcentury-inspired bistro as a modern twist on the bed and breakfast. Nestled in the first floor of a downtown hotel that opened November 2020, and open for brunch, pub snacks, and dinner, Mulberry Street Tavern has the feel of a restaurant in a much-larger cosmopolitan capital. Upscale comfort food is the cuisine du jour. The butcher cut for two, for instance, is a play on the Iowa classic steak de burgo (a filet swimming in garlicky sauce). At Mulberry Street, it comes as a generous portion of Iowa-raised beef crowned with horseradish cream and de burgo sauce. That’s best washed down with the Smoke + Mirrors cocktail, a tableside-smoked combo of Templeton four-year rye, Angostura bitters, and demerara sugar.

Drive about 15 minutes north of downtown and you’ll find the District at Prairie Trail. The bustling walkable area of locally owned businesses sits in sharp contrast to the residential neighborhoods and strips of chain restaurants that make up the rest of Ankeny (Des Moines’s second-largest suburb). Head for Flavory, a Mediterranean bistro run by chef Lisa Morales and her husband, Hector. The chef excels at seafood paella, gyro pitas, and platters overflowing with salads, homemade bread, sauteed vegetables, falafel, and dips.

Pull up a stool at El Bait Shop, home to 262 draft beers (the largest craft beer selection west of the Mississippi), and order a glass of your favorite brew. Then walk through the door that connects the shop to this downtown lounge, which feels like stepping back into Grandma’s basement. Start with quintessential Iowa bar food, including bacon-wrapped tots, fried cheese curds, and chicken wings, then move on to just-like-Mom-made entrees like goulash, meatloaf, or chicken pot pie.

Chefs Lisa LaValle and Rebekah Kohl and pastry chef Nik Pugmire follow the season’s best produce at this locally sourced bistro, situated inside the tropical escape of the Greater Des Moines Botanical Garden. Snag a table in the window-lined, plant-filled dining room or on the deck that overlooks the garden’s pond to enjoy an Iowa sweet corn BLT, grandma’s peach salad with Maytag blue cheese and white balsamic dressing, and blackberry-rhubarb lavender crisp.

Home to Central Iowa’s only chef’s table, this East Village new American restaurant allows you to choose your own adventure. For a casual night out, snack on spicy chorizo fries at the bar, or grab a table in the dining room to devour cloud-like gnocchi and seasonal creme brulee. For the most unique and intimate experience, book the chef’s table for two to six diners. Just name your budget, any food allergies, and your drink pairing of choice, and let the chefs and sommelier take it away.

Pork tenderloin sandwiches are a staple at many diners in Iowa, where the meat is pounded thin, typically making it far larger than the bun, and fried in breadcrumbs. (There’s even an Iowa Tenderloin Trail if you’re feeling ambitious.) Goldie’s, about 30 minutes east of the metro, is home to a terrific example, alongside burgers featuring locally sourced Iowa beef. No trip is complete without a Twister, the signature milkshake.