New World Cafe

There are few restaurants around that can boast that every menu item is mostly organic, vegan and gluten-free.  New World Cafe in the East Village boasts just that.

The small cafe offers a changing menu of  all local, fresh menu items that are innovative and delicious, even for non-vegans!  They are quite busy for lunch and dinner and also offer fresh juices and smoothies.  Prices are quite reasonable and the environment is clean and casual.

I tried the "The New Mac & Cheese" with gluten-free pasta, kale and "cheese" sauce which has no actual cheese at all, but rather a cashew/pumpkin base which was delicious! And for $6 for a small and $8 for a large it is really a bargain.  I'm pretty sure a lot of you could get your kids to eat this mac & cheese and they'd have no idea they were eating something much more healthy.

I also tried the ginger lemonade which was sweetened with agave and so good!  On another visit I also tried the cucumber lemonade, which was good too, but obviously more "green tasting".

The menu for with week I visited is on the left, but the weekly menu can be found on their website here.

Whether you are a vegan, have celiac disease or are gluten-intolerant or just like great healthy food.  Stop in to New World cafe for lunch or dinner to try something new.

The Little Gym

Today's guest post is by my awesome friend Lisa.  Lisa had a great experience at the little gym that she wants to share.  Thanks Lisa!

We had a party for our 5 year old last year at the Little Gym in West Des Moines and it was awesome!!!  All the kids had a great time.  Parties are 90 minutes long and you can invite up to 15 kids.  Parents can stay and watch or go out and run a few quick errands while the staff at The Little Gym tires out their kiddos.  This is a great package and includes lots of extras like invitations mailed for you, paper goods and drinks for the cake portion of your party, clean up and a very enthusiastic staff member to lead your party. Really, they do almost all of the work!  Show up with a cake and you are good to go!  I notice that on the website, there are party packages that now include a theme-very cool idea and I’m sure well executed.  

The Little Gym is a great place for a big birthday party because there is lots of room for the kids to run around, be loud, experience some fun gym equipment and don’t forget the kids favorite part-the blow up trampoline!  The staff at The Little Gym really seem to enjoy the birthday parties, did a great job explaining the rules to the kids, and leading the kids in games, songs, and taking turns on the equipment. Parties start at $200 for non-members of the gym and $175 for members.

 A great place for kids parties of all ages as they tailor the activities to the age group of your party.  Call 515-225-4443 or go online to the Little Gym's Website to schedule a party.

The Little Gym also has year round classes for kids starting at just 4 months old!  They hvae camps and specials events periodically as well!  Check it out.

Skip's

Chicken Nachos

One of my favorite restaurants on the South Side is Skip's on Fleur Dr., not far from the airport.  They have a full bar, cozy atmosphere (maybe even a little on the dark side, and I mean low light by that), friendly staff and great food.

By far, my favorite thing on the menu is the Chicken Nachos.  They include smoked, pulled chicken, black beans, red chili aioli and cheddar & pepper jack cheeses, served with sour cream and salsa.  Ah-mazing!  I've often eaten just these nachos for dinner.

Staci enjoying her
Chicken Marsala

Tonight my friend Staci and I made a meal of the chicken nachos and split the also awesome, chicken Marsala.  No other restaurant replicates the buttery, sweet Marsala sauce that they make, it's really incredible.  Fabulous that they offer a small portion on the lunch menu as well.

They have a great creamy Parmesan dressing and the steak is always well-seasoned. You can't go wrong here for lunch or dinner. Stop by before or after heading to the airport for a filling lunch or great dinner.  The website with lunch and dinner menus can be found here.

Skip's is a great reason to venture over to the South Side.  It's a great date-night or friends-night destination before or after seeing a movie at the Fleur Cinema.  You won't be sorry you ordered the nachos, Staci tells me she has dreams about them, they're that good!

Olson's Bread & Breakfast

My friend Lisa knows how much I love breakfast, so she recommended that I try Olson's Bread & Breakfast in Norwalk on Sunset Drive.  I'm not sure how I let this gem go under the radar for so long!  The restaurant is small, but the service was quick and the waitress was your typical diner waitress, teasing you about finishing your gigantic meal, but being super attentive and friendly. And when I say gigantic, I mean it! These were some of the biggest diner portions I've seen around Des Moines.


We all enjoyed our meals.  I really liked the egg/potato scramble that I got, I'm not a huge fan of onions and peppers, but didn't mind them in this dish as they were fresh, finely minced and well-done.  Josh ordered the corned beef hash and while it wasn't the "canned, mushy stuff" he's accustomed to that tastes so good when crispy on the outside with a salty inside, the chunks of quality corned beef were tasty enough that he ate the whole thing!  Every meal came out piping hot and you could tell that everything was from scratch.  Even the homemade bread for toast was fresh and it was fantastic.


I've added Olson's Bread & Breakfast to my permanent breakfast rotation.  They are open for breakfast and lunch Tuesday thru Sunday from 6am to 2pm.  We didn't get a chance to sample lunch, but a diner at the table next to us got a cheeseburger and said it was fantastic.  He ordered it with a fried egg and the well-seasoned beef along with the runny yoke was a heavenly combination he said.


Prices were reasonable at about $7-8 per meal and well worth it for the portion sizes and great food.   Next time you have a hankering for diner food, give Olson's a try!  Just a short drive from Des Moines or West Des Moines.  You'll like it!

Classic Frozen Custard

Classic Frozen Custard on SE 14th Street in Des Moines is just that, a classic.  Man, I love a locally owned and operated ice cream shop. There are a few in town and they happen to be spread around the metro.  Examples are Snookies in Beaverdale, Over The Top in Pleasant Hill and Classic Frozen Custard in South Des Moines.  And the fact that it's frozen custard just makes it even better.

They have a small amount of outside seating, but most business is either through the drive-thru or walk-up counter.  Look for a new location to open in Altoona across from Adventure land very soon!

They offer a wide variety of malts and shakes, twisters and sundaes and floats and scoops.  They have daily special flavors as well as everyday favorites.  Look for their awesome pumpkin custard in the early fall, yum, a can't miss!

I just love the smooth, creamy flavor of their plan ole' vanilla custard in a frothy-float.  

Whatever you get, you are sure to enjoy.  They bake fresh pie crusts and brownies, etc. for toppings and offer friendly, quick service.  

Tips: Hot, summer evenings can get busy though, so keep that in mind.  Totally worth it though!

1, 2, 3 Tequila!

The word on the street was that Tequila Mexican Restaurant in Des Moines has some darn good Mexican food.  I would have to agree!  

We checked out Tequila for lunch the other day and it was very accessible right off of 235 at 2825 Easton Blvd. in Des Moines.  It doesn't look like much from the outside, but the inside is clean and well-decorated.  The $1.99 margarita sign caught out attention right away.

We ordered 2 original margaritas (.51 cent more for a frozen, but still well worth it, flavored margaritas were extra) and started browsing the huge menu.  Familiar favorites at very reasonable prices.  We tried the chicken enchiladas and some chicken tostadas.  The little guys had a cheese quesadilla with fries which came out hot and fresh.  We were impressed with the wide selection in the kids menu as well as the regular menu.


I appreciated the fresh salsa with real (not canned, diced veggies) and that it wasn't the pureed stuff you get in some restaurants, it was chunky with a kick and great with the warm chips.

The enchiladas were reminiscent of most Mexican joints in town.  Good but not particularly stand-out-ish.  The tostadas however were excellent with fresh lettuce, tomato, guac, beans and crema. Very good and very inexpensive.  


We saw a lot of guests ordering the fajitas and will certainly order those on our next visit since folks were raving about them.

If you're looking for a Mexican restaurant with good service, yummy food and great prices, check out Tequila Mexican restaurant and make sure to order a margarita!

Trostel's Greenbriar

Funny story...It's 2005, I had just moved to Iowa from Massachusetts weeks before and it's my birthday. It's July and my boyfriend makes a reservation at Trostel's Greenbriar in Johnston for my birthday dinner.  Dinner was lovely and it was almost time to order dessert (hey, it was my birthday), but I had to pee.  I told Josh that if the server came by to order me a slice of cheesecake.  I got back to the table and sitting in front of me was a huge piece of tiramisu....TIRAMISU?! I wanted cheesecake!  That lousy S-O-B! He doesn't even pay attention to what I want!  Well, after a few choice words and the silent treatment, I decided the wrong dessert was better than no dessert and looked down in my tiramisu to find this...

If it's hard to read, it says "Marry Me".  Sorry, my camera in 2005 may have been one of the first ever invented. So after feeling bad for a few minutes that I was so mean and had a temper tantrum about Josh's dessert choice for me, I got over it and said "yes".  

So thank you Chef Troy Trostel and the beautiful Greenbriar restaurant for hosting my engagement meal and for the lovely dinners we've had here ever since.

For example, we attended the Templeton Rye dinner in June and loved every course from the tuna to the best lamp chops we've ever had that were roasted in a Templeton Rye Whiskey barrel with herb roasted potatoes.

Monday nights boast Burgers & Brew for $10 that includes a burger with salad or fries and a beer.

You can't go wrong with anything on the menu, although I love the prime rib and anything eaten on the beautiful patio seems to taste that much better with one of their great cocktails.

The restaurant is casual enough for a family lunch or dinner.  But nice enough for a business lunch or even a lovely dinner to get engaged over!  

If the Templeton Rye dishes look good to you, you can find some of the Templeton Rye inspired dishes on their every day menu as well, like Templeton Rye marinated grilled Elk.  

Of course we love Greenbriar for sentimental reasons, but we think you'll like it too.  Check it out!