Mickey Finn’s
Urbandale bar opens early, closes late. Since 1983, Urbandale folks have kissed — or at least touched — the worn blarney stone located at the entrance just outside Mickey Finn’s. [...]
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Posted October 02, 2019in Belly Up To...
Posted September 04, 2019in Belly Up To...
The Operating Room
It’s just what the doctor ordered. In a typical hospital operating room, doctors commonly ask for scalpels, gauze or a hemostat. In the Operating Room at West Glen Town Center, [...]
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Posted July 31, 2019in Belly Up To...
Tiki bar vacation
Bellhop Tiki bar opens in East Village. Imagine a tiki bar. What comes to mind? Usually it’s in a tropical place — a hut with a thatched roof, where patrons [...]
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Posted July 03, 2019in Belly Up To...
Confluence Brewing Company
Striving to keep things local When Confluence Brewing Company opened up in 2012, the staff created a handful of beers inside the brewery in an industrial district close to Gray’s [...]
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Posted June 05, 2019in Belly Up To...
Mistress Brewing
Giant taproom breathes life into former Dahl’s grocery store. Two Ankeny businessmen, Shawn McNeeley and Jeff Heng, have taken on a mistress, which Shawn’s wife is OK with. But this [...]
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Posted May 01, 2019in Belly Up To...
Lynn’s on Merle Hay
“Once you’re here, you’re family.” Take a drive north on Merle Hay Road through Johnston, and you’ll find old buildings mixed with new. A new Fareway and a Casey’s sit [...]
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Posted April 03, 2019in Belly Up To...
Captain Roy’s Riverside Hangout
A vibe that doesn’t exist anywhere else in Des Moines Since the flood of 1993, Birdland Marina’s concession stand building along the Des Moines River sat empty. Jack Daugherty lived [...]
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Posted March 06, 2019in Belly Up To...
Kelly’s Little Nipper
Dive bar since 1940 As I sat chatting with the bar patrons at Kelly’s Little Nipper, we pondered the bar’s appeal. Austin said it’s like the “Cheers” bar, where everyone [...]
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Posted February 06, 2019in Belly Up To...
Hawkeye heaven
Front Row bar is a shrine to the Hawks. Open up the door to the Front Row in Clive, stroll inside and you’re instantly greeted by Herky the Hawk. Walk [...]
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Posted January 02, 2019in Belly Up To...
Discover the ‘secret’ of The Flying Moose
Happy hour, basement party atmosphere are a big draw. On a Monday night, the Flying Moose in Clive bustled with the after-work crowd looking to start the week off right [...]
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