Anyone else get annoyed when someone abbreviates Des Moines as DM? It’s only DM when you’re attaching it to other letters like DMFD. If it’s on its own, it’s DSM. These ARE the rules, right?
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Des Moines Openings, Closings, and Such
As you might expect, it’s a quiet time for foodery news. Oh, and Merry Whatever!
- Opening Soon
- National chain Grimaldi’s Pizza in Ankeny
- Smoke City BBQ in Newton
- Five Starz Restaurant and Bar in Des Moines, going into the building that once housed Casa Cancun and Strudl Haus on Indianola Ave.
- Mini Tapatia on Mills Civic next to Mahalo’s Coffee and Mini Donuts
Let’s get chai!
Recs! Recs! Recs!
- Wanna go out for food tonight? There are way more places open than you might expect.
- Do you know of a Des Moines area Black-owned food business? Comment below or email me with business names!
- Where do you want me to eat before you give it a try? Lemme know in the comments!
- Did you know Glück Tea in West Des Moines exists? Did you know they have poke bowls? Did you know the owners are friggin’ adorable? I don’t think a lot of people know this place exists, and we thought it was cute as could be!
- We’ve passed TNT’s Tacos n’ Tortas in Waukee several times, and their brightly colored storefront always caught my eye. Well, I dined there with a relative this week, and it wasn’t bad!
- I had a few small grumbles that I won’t go into, but I let management know, and they were gracious as ever in their response.
- I love that they have Sidral in the cooler.
- Apparently, they also have breakfast, which I didn’t know about until just now looking at their website.
- I had quesabirria, and my dining buddy had chicken tacos. I found the flavor excellent.
- When I return, I’m getting horchata and a torta because telera bread is severely underappreciated.
- It’s next door to Home Sweet Cone, and I always want dessert after I eat Mexican cuisine, so when Cone reopens for the season, I’m gonna love that.
WTF, Des Moines?
- Agree or disagree with this ranking?
- I disagree. I’d put us in the middle. I mean Brazilian steakhouses, Korean barbecues, Middle Eastern food, and dry bars are hard to come by in our largest city. I could keep listing cuisines we don’t have, but you get the idea.
- UPDATE: Concerning Inspection Pattern
- Last week, I mentioned my concern about restaurant inspections and how it seems businesses owned by people of color have higher rates of violations.
- My thoughts about it being a cultural matter or a matter of racism are somewhat combined and confirmed. This is a systemic issue, not a vindictive one.
- A reader with a more informed perspective than mine explained it’s likely a language barrier problem for some. The inspections department doesn’t appear to have a lot of (if any) translators or translations of safety guidelines. (Thank you, reader!)
- Given the state’s hostility toward acknowledging systemic racism, I don’t foresee this changing any time soon. The Terrible Trifecta running Iowa’s legislative and executive branches wouldn’t even dream of regulating or funding such a thing.
- I wonder if there’s a non-profit out there that might be able to help . . .
