Des Moines’ international renaissance

Vegan platter on injera at Habesha

The local food scene is rifting. Two different sports bars, Blue Shark and Perfect Ten, both failed in just a few months at the same address on Ingersoll. Two Mexican restaurants, Blue Agave and Mojito’s, both closed within weeks of each other half a block apart in Windsor Heights. 

All that happened in the last half year, finally demonstrating that there is a limit to the number of sports bars and Mexican restaurants the city will support. However, restaurants abhor vacuums, and the metro is still growing its number of mouths to feed. So, what’s the next new thing here? 

Des Moines is having an international renaissance. The Merle Hay Road neighborhood north of Urbandale makes the best case in point. Just a few years ago, that hood was a fast food alley with just a couple of outliers like Trostel’s Greenbriar, the Chinese gem Wong’s Chopsticks, the original Wasabi Chi and India Star. 

Then came cosmopolitan lightening. Gloria Henriquez’s Tulpa brought the chaufa, chifa and Spanish influences of Peru’s coastal and mountain cuisines, plus dancing. La Tapatia opened a second grocery store. Smokin’ Goat Pub brought a soul food night and a barbecue night. The Merle Hay Mall food court solidified with Vietnam Café and Tamales Industry starring. Copa Burse brought her soul food gem Good Eatin’s to the Wasabi Chi venue, when Wasabi outgrew the hood. 

Mezes plate at Istanbul Cafe

Most recently, Bashatu Gutama and her husband, Abdissa Tumie, opened Habesha Ethio and Eritrean restaurant in a mini mall space previously occupied by 3 B Grill, whose sign still confused us in July. Bashatu is Ethiopian and Abdissa is Eritrean, and they met in Des Moines. The fare is Ethio with lentils, cabbages, collard greens, plus beef and chicken curries showing off the Indian influences on East African cuisine. All are served on rice or the marvelous teff flour sponge bread injera. An Ethiopian coffee ceremony on weekends after noon is featured. 

Ahmet Kaya left a career in international hotel and restaurants management to open Istanbul Café and Bakery (ICB) in February on 100th in Urbandale. ICB occupies the space best known as Stella’s Blue Sky Diner and marvelously represents Turkish food, particularly baked treats like pistachio rolls. 

We were told on a tour of the kitchens of Topkapi Palace that Turkish cuisine was highly sophisticated when the French still subsided on acorn gruels. That same guide said that “Greek cuisine was Turkish food for poor people.” Istanbul Café is evidence. The grilled meats (lamb and chicken in five forms) platter and the mezes platter (humus, falafel, baba ganoush, grape leaves stuffed with currants and pine nuts, ezme and cheese balls) were a great introduction to the cuisine of the sultans. The bakery delivered dessert and breakfast charms.

The Palms jerk chicken, plantains, rice and peas

Amar Sama left his job with the Des Moines school system to open The Palms on Ingersoll in June. The place was brilliant from day one, introducing West African/Jamaican cuisine with flair and devotion. Trappings are marvelous, including wall paper from Nigerian artist Uzo Njoku. 

Cocktail service specializes in tropical delights and dedication to scratch cooking. Mixes such as hibiscus simple syrup and even coconut cream are home made from scratch. Sama actually renders his own coconut cream and reduces fresh hibiscus.  

The food menu is delightfully simple. It stars jerk chicken, a two-days-plus process, shrimp in suya pepper sauce and oxtail stew. Side dishes included superb yams, plantains, rice pilaf, rice and peas, plus mac and cheese. Applications included tacos and fettucine for the chicken and pizza for the oxtails. Sliders, three kinds of wings, donut balls and banana bread complete the menu. ♦

Jim Duncan is a food writer who has been covering the central Iowa scene for more than five decades.