Monday, December 22, 2025

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Posted January 02, 2019in Lunch With...

Dick Grangaard at Manhattan Deli

Brokering, fishing, skiing and gambling Dick Grangaard is a retired stockbroker. Active stockbrokers cannot talk to the media without jumping through hoops, so I recently asked Grangaard to lunch to discuss a lifetime [...]

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Posted December 05, 2018in Lunch With...

The dogs of sexism, racism and Syd Klise

Enjoying a Vincent van Gogh at the Greenwood Lounge The word enthusiasm deserves more respect than it usually gets. Literally it means “god within thee.” Sydney Klise is a precocious [...]

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Posted October 31, 2018in Lunch With...

Steve White at Jesse’s Embers

Turning lemons into lemonade. Steve White is probably Iowa’s greatest impresario, though he prefers the less descriptive word promoter. He brought world-famous shows to Iowa and the rest of the [...]

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Posted October 03, 2018in Lunch With...

Chris Diebel at Skip’s

Chris Diebel is a Des Moines restaurateur and marketer who owns Bubba Southern Kitchen and Whiskey Bar and represents the Orchestrate Group that includes Centro, Django, Malo, Zombie Burger and [...]

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Posted September 05, 2018in Lunch With...

Brad Burt at Maid-Rite

Brad Burt is CEO of Maid-Rite. We asked him to meet us for lunch, and he suggested the company’s store in the food court of Merle Hay Mall. That is [...]

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Posted August 01, 2018in Lunch With...

Heath Alan at Amaravati

Local musician, special education teacher, husband and father of two. Heath Alan is one of the most talented and best known of local musicians. He’s played with Harry Connick, Jr. [...]

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Posted July 04, 2018in Lunch With...

Bob Derryberry at Pho All Seasons

Retired bookie shares his insight and opinions on the gambling scene Bob Derryberry is a retired bookie and professional gambler who was the target of a very strange raid in [...]

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Posted June 06, 2018in Lunch With...

Andy Fales at Akebono

Andy Fales is WHO TV’s morning anchor and a longtime media presence in the sports scene. His features “Andy Answers,” “Iowa Icons,” and “What’s Bugging Andy?” reveal sharp senses for [...]

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Posted May 02, 2018in Lunch With...

Kim O’Connor

A discussion on the state of the local real estate market at Paula’s in Valley Junction. Kim O’Connor is a Realtor who brands herself KO Realty and works under the [...]

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Posted April 04, 2018in Lunch With...

TJ Moberg and Ryan Mullin

An interview over broasted chicken from High Life Lounge TJ Moberg and Ryan Mullin have been close friends most of their lives. Both went to East High School and developed [...]

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