Cocktail Wars Des Moines

I hope you made it out to Cocktail Wars, hosted by Dishcrawl Des Moines at Iowa Distilling Company in Cumming on Tuesday!

What a fun event!  Four local Mixologists whipped up some yummy cocktails using Iowa Distilling Company's Iowa Shine Whiskey, Steel Drum Rum and Prairie fire Whiskey.  So fun!

There were two ticket options, The VIP which included early admission as well as a behind the scenes tour and goodie bag and General Admission.  Both were under $40 (with $10 coupon floating around) and both included 4 nice sized servings of the 4 cocktails.

Mixologists included Nick Eldrige form Americana, Dave Murrin-Von Ebers from Hessen Haus, Angel Cotten from Cattoors on Grand and Hailey Workman from the Lime Lounge.

Party-goers had the same idea as me when it came to judging!  I thought Angel Cotten's Burnin' Pink Lady was the most creative, Dave Murrin-Von Eber's Bumpin' Granny was the tastiest and the all-around favorite was the Hot Toby.

Emcee Ben Gran provided some comedy, Rogue Sweet provided some kick-butt cupcakes made with the Iowa Distilling Co.'s whiskey and other local vendors provided snacks, candles, jam and even jewelery for the gift bags.  Great event Dischcrawl Des Moines!

To the left are the recipes for the 4 cocktails sampled at the event!  Pick up some Iowa Shine or Prairie Fire at your local grocery store, or stop into The Iowa Distilling Company for some samples and a free tour!  The totally nice owners would love to show you around!  Then you can try some of these recipes out at home!  Read more info about The Iowa Distilling Company here.

Wasabi Chi

I have really enjoyed my experiences at Wasabi Chi.  It's located on Douglas right near the Merle Hay mall.  It's sister restaurant, Wasabi Tao opened last year downtown.  

As you can probably guess, I was in this last visit for a Bento Box to continue my Bento Box tour of Des Moines!  I assumed it would be a lot like the one I had at Wasabi Tao, which was great because I liked it a lot.

To my surprise, it was much different.  I ordered the teriyaki chicken box and was promptly presented with miso soup.  I did hear another diner ask for hot and sour soup instead of the miso, so apparently that's an option too.

The miso soup was ok, but not as awesome as the spicy egg drop at Wasabi Tao.  My salad could have used a little more ginger dressing, but overall it was a great box.  And at $7.95 a great value as usual.

The chicken was juicy and especially good.  The "obligatory fried side" was a shrimp rangoon (tasty).

I like that they offer kids meals (Little Ninja meals) and they really have a wide menu including lots of Asian favorites like Pad Thai, fried rice and of course lots of awesome sushi.  Wasabi Tao and Chi both do a great job producing constantly good sushi.  Check out both locations and see which is your favorite!

Wasabi Tao

Wasabi Tao is the sister restaurant to Wasabi Chi (which is located near the Merle Hay Mall) and is located downtown on Walnut St, right across from the Gramercy Tap.

Being that I'm on a Bento Box kick, I stopped in for a Bento Box of course!  I'm getting quite versed on the Bento Box offerings at each restaurant in town and I definitely have some favorites.  It's refreshing that each offers such different options and I was not disappointed with Wasabi Tao's.


They have such a large selection that it was hard to choose.  They offer chicken, steak or salmon teriyaki, shrimp tempura, yaki udon or sushi or sashimi boxes.

I went with the chicken teriyaki so I could keep it an even playing field to make a better comparison with other boxes I've tried it town.

I have to say, Tao's box stood up the competition pretty well.  At $8.50 it's just a great value.  I was first impressed that I was offered a spicy egg drop soup in lieu of the miso and it was fantastic.  You can't go wrong with creamy ginger dressing over some fresh salad and their California roll was excellent.  The chicken teriyaki was in a rich sauce and I appreciated the fresh steamed veggies.  The shumai wasn't my favorite "obligatory fried side" that I've had in a local box, but it was tasty.

Over-all a winning box.  More food than I could finish for lunch and so much variety.  Ahh..the   wonders of Bento Boxes.  They service a lot of the downtown lunch crowd so it gets busy at lunch time, but they are fast and efficient with a good amount of seating.

It's obvious that I'm addicted to Bento Boxes and I'll happily order one from Wasabi Tao again soon.  Try it out or come in just for the great sushi, I don't think you'll be disappointed.

Sam & Gabe's

It had been quite some time since our last visit to Sam & Gabe's.  It's always been a place we'd recommend for a special date-night or anniversary dinner or other celebration.  Since then there have been some mixed reviews about the restaurant on Hickman Rd in Urbandale, so we wanted to check it out again.

Sam & Gabe's has been in business for quite some time and has really become a favorite among locals.

Even though the restaurant is a good size, reservations are encouraged since thy tend to fill up quickly, especially on the weekends.

We dined early on a Friday evening and the place was already bustling.  Our server was very friendly and our salads and meals came out promptly.  We did notice that she forgot to tell us about the specials as we overheard her telling the table next to us shortly after we ordered.

I was very excited to learn that they now have gluten-free pasta available.  My husband and I ordered the linguine and Italian sausage and the beef tenderloin medallions gorgonzola to share (highly recommended to us).  We wanted to try the Italian nachos as they also came highly recommended, but we just knew we wouldn't be able to finish it all.  We have also tried the antipasto platter in the past and it was quite memorable as a nice appetizer.

The pasta sauce was very tasty and the beef medallions were full of flavor.  We did order them medium and they came out very rare though.  They were eager to make us happy though and fix it.  I think that's what matters most.

All-in-all, a nice meal.  I did catch a few things that other reviewers have noted though. For instance, they didn't have the ingredients for the drink my hubby ordered, and they did not offer us grated cheese for our pasta, but we saw the next table over being offered fresh grated cheese.

These are obviously things that shouldn't be overlooked at this price point, and are some of the things that make a meal memorable.  This was not enough to deter us from coming again though.  They did earn double points for having gluten-free pasta available and being able to order most of the pasta dishes gluten-free.  They are open for dinner Tues - Sat and they have such an impressive selection of house made dishes.  Check out Sam & Gabe's for your next date-night or celebration and let us know what you think.

Iowa Distilling Co.

If you saw the photo on Facebook of me sampling some whisky and rum on Friday, you know, my average day at work...You might have been wondering just what I was up to.  Well, even if you weren't, I'm about to tell you all about it anyway!

I was just taking a tour and meeting the awesome guys at Iowa Distilling Company.  Of course sampling the goods was necessary as well.

The guys have a great story about starting out distilling in one of their garages (with proper license of course) before eventually ending up in their current location, a 100-year old building in Cumming, Iowa, They opened here about a year and a half ago.  It's conveniently located right across the street from The Cumming Tap.

The guys have come up with some stellar concoctions including all local grains.  They have Caribbean molasses shipped in from Barbados for their rum, but they use local ingredients wherever possible.

We got to sample the Iowa Shine, which is a 100% local corn whisky that is smooth and exciting for those who don't do wheat gluten.  We also tested the Steel Drum rum, which was lovely and their very popular Prairie Fire whiskey (my personal favorite) which is cinnamon-y and spicy and fantastic in warm apple cider.  You can find their products at most local stores who carry liquor as well as a lot of bars and restaurants around Iowa.

They do tastings and tours on Saturday afternoons and Tuesday evenings, which is totally convenient since Tacopocalypse serves up tacos on Tuesday nights just across the way at the Cumming tap (who also carried their product).  They also do tasting by appointment since they guys have flexible day jobs that allows lots of days spent at the Distillery working remotely.  Tastings are free and Todd, Tom and Phil and truly nice guys who are excited to show you around, so you the process and share their knowledge and local product.

I'm also excited to announce that they are teaming up with Dischcrawl Des Moines to bring you "Cocktail Wars" on December 10th.  5 local bartenders will come up with a cocktail using an Iowa Distilling Co. rum or whiskey and participants get to vote on their favorite to crown the winner.  Read more about Cocktail Wars and get tickets here.

Take a a short ride to Cumming and check out this awesome operation.  Support local!

Shhhhh...It's a secret!

Dishcrawl Des Moines' first Secret Supper did not disappoint.  Tickets were $49 and guests were told of the meeting location and menu the week of the event.

The first Secret Supper was prepared by Chef Mike Holman in the private room at Dos Rios Cantina and Lounge on Court Ave.  I had the pleasure of interviewing him before October's Battledish competition and you can read about it here.

The venue was cozy and nicely decorated for the intimate group of 15 for the event.

This was seriously one of the best meals I've had in a while.  Chef Holman outdid himself on this one.  Drink pairings were also offered and got rave reviews from the diners.   I was smitten with the blood orange cocktail I had.

The Amuse course was a cold smoked seared foie gras with black mole, duck chicharron and black mint & apricot compote.  The flavors surprisingly blended so well together.  It was excellent.

The first course was an ancho infused tamale with slow braised goat shoulder, charred tomatillo salsa and jalapeno pickled onions that added just a little kick. It was superb and the goat was tender and delicious.  I loved it.

The second course was a sweet corn bisque with fried octopus, crispy chorizo, cilantro and garlic jalepeno crema.  These flavors
together worked so well.  This was a favorite among a lot of the diners.

The third course was a seared sea bass with Spanish cannelloni ragout, braised swiss chard and lemon ginger espuma.  They must have had this bass flown in today because it was incredibly fresh and and perfectly flakey.  It was my favorite dish of the evening.

The fourth course was picadillo stuffed rotisserie quail with crispy tacu tacu dressing and romesco cream sauce.  Chef Mike called it his version of Thanksgiving.  It was fantastic.  Almost too cute to eat, but the flavors meshed so well.

The fifth course (yes, another course!) was a chile crusted rack of lamb with fried smashed plantain, spiced black bean sauce and mint jalapeno jam.  The black bean sauce made the dish.  I didn't care for the texture of the plantain as I'm used to it a bit softer, but the flavors of this dish were great.

The sixth and final course was a dessert of leche fritz, goats milk caramel, vanilla apple chutney, powdered hazelnut espresso brittle and white chocolate cinnamon tuile.  Can you imagine fried cream?! It was stellar.  Heavy and sweet and heavenly.

This was an overall great event.  I feel like Dishcrawl's events get better with each one and I'm looking forward to Cocktail Wars next month.  Great job Chef Holman and the staff at Dos Rios and kudos to Dishcrawl on a great first Secret Supper event.

Fong's Pizzeria

If you've been to Des Moines, you've probably heard of Fong's Pizzeria.  It's an Asian restaurant turned pizza joint.  Well, I guess I can't really say "turned" since the menu, including the pizza, is mostly Asian inspired as is the decor of the restaurant still.

With pizzas like Thai Chicken, Fongolian, Beef, Happy Family and even Crab Rangoon (which is wildly popular), you'll think you are ordering off a Chinese food menu, but what you get is truly unique. You can also get most pizza's gluten-free by the way!

On my latest visit, I tried the Kung Pao Chicken.  It was really very tasty.  Not overly spicy, but it definitely had a kick.  Picture a plate of Kung Pao Chicken in a zippy sauce with veggies, but on a pizza crust instead of served over rice.  My dining partner had the veggie taco pizza and was also pleased.

Even though it was 11am, it's hard to resist Fong's tiki drinks, so we didn't!  My friend ordered her go-to drink, the Mai Tai and I chose the Bahama Mama.  Really, I ordered it just because of the cup it is served it in.  ---->

The menu has an array of salads, sandwiches, appetizers, pizzas and even desserts.  The bar is well stocked and the atmosphere is fun.  They are also one of the only places to get some late night slices in the Court Ave area downtown.  They are open til 2am most days!

They offer lunch and happy hour specials as well and you get a good bang for your buck here.  The restaurant is quite family friendly for lunch and dinner and turns more into a bar in the late hours.  They of course have more traditional pizza and sandwiches if you aren't feeling so daring, but check it out and try something new!  You might be pleasantly surprised at how good crab rangoon on your pizza is!

Eat Play Love Des Moines Night @ Confluence Brewery!

Don't miss it!  Proceeds from this evening's event will go to Buy Fresh Buy Local Des Moines!  This is a family-friendly event!  Please RSVP on our facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/events/407552842680118/?ref=3&ref_newsfeed_story_type=regular

Sakari

I'm officially on a Bento Box kick.  I love the boxes at Miyabi 9 and recently had a great one a Sakura Sushi in West Des Moines and Wasabi Chi on Douglas near Merle Hay Mall, so I decided to go for it at Sakari Sushi Lounge on Ingersol.



 The first photo is someone else's meal  I just had to snap a shot of since they were making it right in front of me at the sushi bar and it looked cool.

This place was busy!  Definitely a fun atmosphere and the chefs were were having a great time behind the bar.

The bento box was $12 which is a little more expensive than the other restaurants in town, but instead of the standard 1/2 roll you usually get, this included your choice of any of the special rolls they offer.

The menu said you could get a salad or miso soup, but I didn't specify and it came with a house salad which was fine.

While I prefer all white meat, the chicken teriyaki was very tasty and a good portion.  The highlight of the box though was the dynamite shrimp.  I have found a new addiction.   These are shrimp and cream cheese lightly tempura battered and fried.  OMG.  Amazing!


All-in-all I loved the fun atmosphere here.  I can see having a great time with friends eating sushi and drinking some cocktails.  The bento box portions were slightly larger than others, which was good because of the increased price and the dynamite shrimp was worth every calorie!  The sushi was beautifully presented and fresh.  Great meal!  And if I had any room left I would have went for the green tea cheesecake.  Next visit.

Goodsons-Beaverdale

 I had a chance to catch up with my good friend who lives in Beaverdale over lunch at GoodSons, a popular Beaverdale restaurant.  


I had only been there for drinks and appetizers before and enjoyed the hummus plate and friendly service.


They offer a selection of panini's, salads, cold sandwiches and desserts.  Appetizers are only $5 on Monday's.



The restaurant was pretty empty at lunchtime on a Wednesday afternoon, but half of the parties there had kids along.  GodSons doesn't offer a kids menu but a grilled cheese panini is on the menu and if your kiddo isn't picky could easily share.  The tables are actually chalk boards and they have chalk available to go to town on the tables with. That really helped to keep my friend's kiddos entertained while we ate.  They also didn't mind that we brought along some snacks from home for the kids.  


While it took a little longer than we hope for our meals to arrive, it was worth the wait since they both came out hot and fresh.  My vegetarian friend was impressed by the uniqueness of the veggie panini. Lots of fresh roasted veggies with a good amount of heat (spicy) and very filling.  I really liked the cheeseburger panini with lots of gooey cheese.  The crunchy panini crust was a welcome change from a normal bun.  The potato salad wasn't particularly noteworthy, but it was cold and tasty and went well with our panini's.  At around $8 for a panini it was nice lunch and would make a great dinner as well.   Check it out and don't be afraid to bring the kiddos along for lunch.