Changing perceptions
In the food world, perceptions are formed by rumors as often as by experience. I still hear that French places are haughty and expensive years after Bistro Montage, Django, Baru [...]
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Posted May 27, 2015in Food Dude
Posted May 20, 2015in Food Dude
Breakfast comes to church
The name is a lot to chew — Drake Bakery, Café and Bar. That’s just part of its intentions. It also has a stage and a dance floor, and it’s [...]
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Posted May 13, 2015in Food Dude
Hy-Vee launches super charcuteire
Having vanquished its main rival, Hy-Vee is preparing to take on all comers. A preview of its next phase is taking shape at Hy-Vee on Mills Civic Parkway. Called the [...]
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Posted May 06, 2015in Food Dude
The Keg Stand accommodates
The American tavern has been evolving since its earliest days. As Cliff Claven said on “Cheers”: “Little known fact. The United States Postal Service originated in taverns.” An iconic photograph [...]
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Posted April 29, 2015in Food Dude
W China thinks big
Thanks to Lost Des Moines’ Facebook page, the city’s restaurant history is becoming better known. I recently was reminded of Davey’s Supper Club and Curly’s Dinner Club. Both were Highland [...]
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Posted April 22, 2015in Food Dude
La Peña’s still one of a kind
Chefs complain that Des Moines diners are resistant to change. If a restaurant replaces a dish or alters a recipe, someone will complain. In this environment, any change of ownership [...]
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Posted April 15, 2015in Food Dude
This Gateway Market Café is far from a horror story
Knowing that George Formaro’s love of horror stories inspired Zombie Burger + Drink Lab, I assumed that Gateway Market and Café were named after a bloody piece of American cultural [...]
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Posted April 08, 2015in Food Dude
Culinary Loft debuts
The first time I interviewed Zach Mannheimer, I was impressed by his talent at piecing together multiple sources of funding. Similar coalitions of generosity had been assembled to save the [...]
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Posted March 31, 2015in Food Dude
Bacon lust bottoms out
It’s been almost four years since American economics lost its biggest food star. In July of 2011, pork bellies were removed from listed commodities traded on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange. [...]
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Posted March 25, 2015in Food Dude
Family-style Mexican in Valley Junction
One definition asserts that romance is whatever transports one to another time or place. That helps explain why people enjoy restaurants set in offbeat venues that have been repurposed. Diners [...]
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