Posted January 30, 2013in Belly Up To...
I got an education on how to drink beer upon my first visit to Sambetti’s on Second Avenue in Des Moines. My uncle — a veteran drinker even then — introduced me to the cozy booths, the warm Italian food and the term “big boy” in reference to beer. I
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Posted January 23, 2013in Belly Up To...
A guy I knew in college barely tried in class and thus barely passed with diploma in hand. Instead of books, he usually clutched a can of Budweiser, as if it were a natural appendage that grew from his palm. You know the type — the guy who trips over
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Posted January 16, 2013in Belly Up To...
If Maddy’s Again was the weird stoner who got shoved into lockers in high school, Mavericks is the star football quarterback who did it. Maddy’s Again might have been the only somewhat dive bar of the western suburbs. It was dark and dingy, and the only real, “high-energy” nights came
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Posted January 09, 2013in Belly Up To...
Walking into Liberty’s, the first thing you’ll notice about the extraordinary hotel lounge is bartender Rodney Lewis’ warm, animated smile that automatically makes you feel comfortable in the upscale atmosphere. Then you’ll notice the marble bar, flat screen TVs and a very modern décor that will trick you into thinking
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Posted January 02, 2013in Belly Up To...
For those of you who weren’t alive in 1989, the first Batman movie epitomized — before Christian Bale’s throaty rendition of the hero and the late Heath Ledger’s demonically demented version of the Joker — a comparably more jovial depiction of the classic battle of good vs. evil. Back then,
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Posted December 26, 2012in Belly Up To...
The easy-to-drink flavors of Schlitz have been a staple on the menus of crappy beer night since the beginning of time, and it’s long been wondered if that’s what the Mayans were drinking when they failed to finish their calendar centuries ago. OK, maybe the Wisconsin concoction isn’t that ancient,
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Posted December 19, 2012in Belly Up To...
Taverns are great places to hear a good story — especially tales of the tall variety, stories about the biggest catch, the bloodiest brawls and the rarest white-tail bucks bagged. The Whiskey Barrel Saloon, the Waukee triangle’s newest addition to the three-bar crawl down Sixth Street, is no exception to
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Posted December 12, 2012in Belly Up To..., Uncategorized
Most night-lifers are familiar with Cabaret in the West Glen Town Center well enough to have an opinion on whether it’s their kind of night club or not. The West Des Moines club is buzzing with youthful energy, contemporary music, pool on the patio and shots all around on any
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Posted December 05, 2012in Belly Up To...
Sazz is most commonly known for its vintage clothing line from the 1970s; there’s also Caffe Sazz, an authentic Turkish restaurant in the U.K.; a Sazz Coincatcher is a character in the role-playing game “World of Warcraft” — those who already knew that might also be aware of Jak Sazz,
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Posted November 28, 2012in Belly Up To...
Nevermind that the bar is named after his dog, a miniature schnauzer named A.J. — a “ladies’ dog.” And the fact that the owner of A.J.’s on East Court, David Moravek, knows how to grill a mean steak (Monday is steak night) is almost irrelevant. The dueling pool tables in
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