Located in a renovated gas station surrounded by cornfields, this Texas-style barbecue is certainly worth the 30-minute drive from downtown Des Moines. Instead of “What are they smoking?” the more apt question might be “What aren’t they smoking?” Feast on a platter of brisket, double-smoked sausage, pulled pork, turkey, baby back ribs, or pork loin, all smoked daily in the pit. Reserve some stomach real estate for the sides (cornbread, campground beans, mac and cheese, pimento cheese pasta salad) and desserts (Nutter Butter banana pudding).

This bakery and deli is inspired by the bagel shops of New York City, where owners Toney and Sarah Chem met. The sandwiches are named for the city’s boroughs and various landmarks, served alongside espresso drinks, teas, and fresh-squeezed juices. If you’re not feeling a classic fresh-baked lox deluxe bagel, try the Bronx sandwich, essentially a BLT with Sriracha cream cheese and banana peppers. You can also find bagels, bialys, and blended cream cheeses (try the Sriracha-bacon) at the location in Urbandale.

Beef is big in Iowa, and steakhouses pepper the metro. For one of the most modern takes on the meat-and-seafood theme, head west to executive chef Dominic Iannarelli’s new hot spot. Nearly everything on the menu — including the stellar salads and vegetable sides — includes at least one element cooked over the 15-foot wood-fire hearth. Come for snacks, like a crab cake or roasted bone marrow with brisket jam, or splurge with something from the reserve menu, which showcases surprises like A5 Kobe strip loin.

Bring your appetite to this Ecuadorian restaurant tucked away in a West Des Moines strip mall; every order is a feast that guarantees at least one round of leftovers. Empanadas, llapingachos (cheese-filled potato patties served over peanut sauce), hearty carne asada, and fall-apart-tender slow-roasted pork are among the shop’s quintessential comfort foods.

Stop in just once at this Nepalese restaurant, located in the western suburb of Windsor Heights, and you’ll be on a first-name basis with the omnipresent owner, Thakur Neupane. The samosa chaat is made to be sopped up with onion kulcha or garlic naan. If mild is your MO, the biryanis and curries will satisfy. But if spice is your style, you can’t miss the chef’s special grill platter, a sizzling skillet almost overflowing with tandoori chicken, shrimp, paneer, and chicken and lamb tikkas. Not long after its aroma wafts through the dining room, a deluge of orders for the platter hit the kitchen.

Kristen Daily and Andrea Piekarczyk initially connected over the curry-spiced pastry on a butterscotch custard pie Piekarczyk brought to the office where they both used to work. Their bond grew through baking, shared meals, marriage in 2019, and eventually a baking business at select farmers markets and pop-ups. Fans quickly started lining up to score slices and whole pies, many crowned with intricate pastry toppings, as well as galettes and hand pies. These days, you can preorder online for the wife-wife team’s weekly pickups on Fridays at Storyhouse Bookpub or Des Moines Mercantile, or score Daily’s secrets at her pie classes at Rose Farm in Norwalk.

Even the most carnivorous of diners will find something to adore at Lyssa Wade’s roaming vegan destination. One-upping food trucks, Wade operates out of a converted school bus, serving items like buffalo chick’n nachos and lentil tacos. She hops from farmers markets to hardware store parking lots to (come winter) commercial kitchen pop-ups to feed the metro area’s growing appetite for all things plant-based. You can find Veggie Thumper through Street Food Finder and Instagram.

About 20 minutes south of downtown, on Main Street in charming small-town Norwalk, this wood-fired pizza spot is worth the trip. Since late 2018, the family-run operation — under owner Steve Taylor and wife Deb, whose daughter is also a server — has followed the rules for a classic Neapolitan pizza, just sans certification. Each pie is made with Italian 00 flour, San Marzano tomatoes, and fresh mozzarella, and cooks for 90 seconds or less in an 800-degree oven. Try the namesake Pyra with garlic white sauce, Romano, prosciutto, artichokes, kalamata olives, mushrooms, and fresh mozzarella. Or opt for the pie named after the Norwalk High School mascot, the Warrior, which features local Graziano Brothers sausage

Ian and Jessica Robertson met while working in the restaurant industry in Des Moines before eventually marrying, having kids, and traveling the world to sharpen their skills at Michelin-starred restaurants. When Kathy Fehrman was setting up Oak Park in 2023, she recalled unforgettable meals and desserts crafted by Ian and Jess, respectively, and she invited the Robertsons back to Iowa. The tables inside the polished, modern American restaurant were immediately booked out for months. Alongside bottles from the 5,000-bottle wine cellar, diners can sample impeccable dishes crafted with fruits and vegetables grown in the on-site garden, like pan-roasted salmon with smoked leeks, carrots, pickled shallots, and carrot jus. They can end with a $4 chocolate-fig bar, or splurge on the $100 banana split decked out in Champagne mousse, gold leaf, and Armagnac caviar.

Every day around noon, the Hansen family’s deli overflows just like its hoagies. Some of the sandwich combos at the locally owned shop might sound strange, but put your faith in the sandwich artists behind the counter. Try the Blue Bird: slices of blueberry bread stuffed with cream cheese, deli turkey, green pepper, lettuce, Swiss cheese, mustard, coleslaw, and mayo. For warm Italian subs, New York-style stacks, and kid-pleasing burgers, this is a timeless local lunch favorite.

Finding a spot to please diners with a variety of food preferences and allergies can be stressful — until you find Eatery A. At brunch, dinner, and dessert, this Mediterranean-inspired restaurant excels at wood-fired pizzas, chickpea-cauliflower falafel platters, and San Marzano tomato-based shakshuka with sumac-spiced flatbread. Every day from 3 to 6 p.m., the pizza, draft beer, and wine are half price.

Chef and owner Joe Tripp keeps ideas fresh in the Harbinger kitchen by closing for a month each year to give staff — including ultra-creative executive chef Ryan Skinner — time to travel, study, experiment, and recharge. The fruits of their labor are vegetable-forward, innovative dishes, like Japanese turnips cooked in local miso with confit egg yolk, or baby back ribs with cherry gochujang glaze and pickled kohlrabi. Check out the team’s casual Korean fried chicken operation, Basic Bird, over in Beaverdale.

Lifelong Des Moines resident and former magazine recipe developer Sammy Mila has been an avid supporter of the local food scene for decades, but lamented the fact that her Laotian and Thai culture was rarely represented on bakery menus. So in 2022, she bought Crème dessert shop and was soon drawing crowds for pan-Asian-inspired items like matcha blondies, milk bread cinnamon rolls, and black sesame Oreo cake. Stop by after sunset for Midnight Munchies: ’90s tunes, cocktails, customizable Cup Noodles, and a rotating cast of cakes and cheesecakes.

You’ll likely see a line outside the walk-up window at this burger restaurant, opened in 2021 by Cory Wendel, who named the place after his wife. Pair the crispy double-fried fries with the Big Balandran, the restaurant’s play on a Philly cheesesteak. Or prepare a handful of napkins and dive into the smash burger of the day, like the recent Grant Plant (designed by local Masterchef winner Grant Gillon) stacked high with mortadella, salt-and-vinegar fried eggplant, mozzarella, arugula, and Calabrian chile oil. A second location will be sizzling into the Highland Park neighborhood soon.

Alex Carter started Black Cat out of a walk-up window at a downtown bar and music venue. In June 2021, the ice cream shop found a permanent home in the former Woody’s Smoke Shack space in the Drake neighborhood. Many of the from-scratch flavors are inspired by local ingredients or classic Midwestern childhood desserts, such as peanut butter puppy chow, butter-flavored ice cream with chunks of fried Twinkies (a hit come state fair time), bomb pop sorbet, and sweet corn with raspberry. In fall 2024, a second Black Cat will jump onto the scene in the walkable Valley Junction neighborhood.

Look for the white truck and awning in the Advance Auto Parts parking lot on University Avenue to find the ideal spot for tacos, sold by the plate, by the sheet pan, and even in counts of 50. Choose from fillings including asada, pastor, pollo, pescado, tripa, lengua, camarones, birria, and more; all come topped with generous handfuls of sliced radishes, chopped onions, fresh cilantro, and lime wedges. Don’t skip the salsa station.

Palm’s Caribbean transports Iowans to the tropics, even in the darkest and snowiest days of winter. Cook and co-owner Amara Sama was raised on his stepmom’s Liberian food and his uncle’s Jamaican fare. Both influences make their way onto the menu at this food stand, which serves customers every other week at the downtown farmers market, as well as large events throughout the year, including the weeklong Ragbrai bike ride across Iowa. The aroma of spicy jerk chicken wings and jollof rice attracts lines wherever Sama and co. pop up.

Since November 2019, Whitney and Scott Selix’s microbrewery has been charting new territory on both the food and drink fronts. At Lua (named after the couple’s Staffordshire bull terrier), they tap new seasonal sours, stouts, ales, and IPAs several times a month, and in 2023, they partnered with neighbors at Big Grove Brewery to launch Iowa’s first cannabis-infused “social drink” (spirit-free sparkling water), Climbing Kites. Chef James Arbaugh, who honed his culinary chops at Michelin-starred restaurants in Chicago and the Bay Area, works with partners to fly in fresh-caught seafood for Dungeness crab cakes and fish and chips. Burgers, wings, unique vegetable sides and salads, and caviar are also frequently in rotation. Dining with kids? Pull up a chair at Lua’s family-friendly sister on the west side of town, Either/Or.

“All French. No attitude. No corkage fee.” Django’s tagline does a decent job of explaining the sculpture park-adjacent downtown bistro — but a bite of yolk-dripping croque-madame does it even better. It’s polished without being pretentious, equally ideal for date night appetizers or a big family dinner. Bring your own bottle of wine to enjoy alongside duck frites, baked ratatouille, and bouillabaisse.

Shrimp and grits, fried chicken and waffles, biscuits, and pimento mac and cheese — you’d probably picture devouring these Southern delights in an elbows-on-the-table spot. At Bubba, managing partner Chris Diebel uses the dishes to pay homage to his Southern roots, but does so in a date night-worthy atmosphere beneath sparkly chandeliers. The restaurant also boasts one of the largest bourbon lists in the corn-loving state. Don’t end your meal without the hummingbird cake or whiskey pecan pie — or both.

In the mid-1970s, governor Robert D. Ray invited refugees from the Vietnam War to resettle in Iowa, stirring new flavors into the Des Moines melting pot in the process. One of the city’s best (and coziest) spots, Pho 515 (named after north-central Iowa’s area code) is tucked away inside C Fresh Market. Regardless of whether you’re shopping at the Asian grocery store or not, 515 is worth the trip to savor bountiful bowls of aromatic and soul-warming soup, banh mi, and other sandwiches overflowing with herbs. Along with pho, don’t miss the wonton soup.

From 2011 to 2021, chef-owner Lynn Pritchard gained a celebrity-like following at the Clive location of Table 128, before relocating in 2024 to a new downtown spot, where the restaurant enjoys easy access to nearby office buildings, bike paths, and breweries. Regulars of the old location will still find some favorite items, including the beloved mini chocolate chip cookies and Pritchard’s signature burger. There are also plenty of new options, like chicken arancini with elote salsa and a hearty warm salad of farro, caramelized carrots, and pickled vegetables. Check out the patio and the robust wine list curated by general manager Garrett Dotsch.

Drive about 15 minutes north of downtown and you’ll find the District at Prairie Trail, a bustling, strollable area of locally owned businesses that cuts a sharp contrast to the residential neighborhoods and strips of chain restaurants that make up the rest of Ankeny (Des Moines’s largest suburb). Head for Flavory, a Mediterranean bistro run by chef Lisa Morales and her husband, Hector. The chef excels at seafood paella, gyros, and platters overflowing with salads, house-made bread, sauteed vegetables, falafel, and dips.

Pull up a stool at El Bait Shop, home to the largest craft beer selection west of the Mississippi, and order a glass of your favorite brew. Then walk through the door that connects the shop to this downtown lounge, which feels like stepping back into grandma’s basement. Start with quintessential Iowa bar food, including bacon-wrapped tots, fried cheese curds, and fried pickle spears, before moving on to just-like-mom-made goulash, meatloaf, or chicken pot pie.

Classic diner grub and aesthetics get a chic, social media-era upgrade at Clyde’s. With local ingredients and creative riffs on crowd-pleasing comfort foods (fried Brussels sprouts tossed with Caesar salad dressing and bread crumbs), the results at chef-owner Chris Hoffmann’s diner are far beyond “fine,” earning Hoffmann a semifinalist nod from the James Beard Foundation for Best Chef: Midwest in 2024. Whether you opt for the double smash burger with fries or the seared salmon served over cauliflower puree, zucchini frites, and salsa macha, be sure to save room for the soft serve flavors of the moment.

Matt Small is a lifelong student. In college, he majored in music and education before honing in on his true passion while working at the dining hall. For five years, he then studied under a James Beard Award semifinalist (Harbinger’s Joe Tripp) and other veteran chefs while moving up the ranks at the fine dining restaurant Alba. Small took to masa specifically, eventually going on a field trip to Mexico to master nixtamalization. He capitalized on that education in 2022 with this entirely gluten-free East Village modern Mexican restaurant, where he prepares fresh tortillas every day from organic Mexican corn. Try them in tacos, alongside a zesty main like steelhead trout with mole verde, or with the ceviche sangria, where they’re the perfect fried vehicle for scooping up seafood.

Pork tenderloin sandwiches are a staple at many diners in Iowa, where the meat is pounded thin, typically making it far larger than the bun, and fried in breadcrumbs. (There’s even an Iowa Tenderloin Trail if you’re feeling ambitious.) Goldie’s, about 30 minutes east of the metro, is home to a terrific example, alongside burgers featuring locally sourced Iowa beef. No trip is complete without the signature Twister milkshake.