Eater's Best Restaurants list showcases Des Moines' food scene
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Wilson's Orchard & Farm in Cumming made the list. Photo: Linh Ta/Axios
Most national coverage of Iowa's food has focused on our caucus season, namely corn dogs and tenderloins from the Iowa State Fair. But Eater's updated list of the metro's top cuisines showcases the maturity and diversity of our growing dining scene.
Why it matters: In a state that helps make the world's food, we should be known for our culinary scene too, Karla Walsh, a local writer who's covered Des Moines' dining scene for a decade, tells Axios.
- "It's not just Italian southside red sauce joints, as lovely as those are," she says.
Driving the news: Walsh updated her Eater list of the 36 best restaurants in the Des Moines metro this month, and there's a wide mix of must-try spots, ranging from a Lebanese market vendor to an Asian-owned bakery.
- "Local food brands like La Quercia cured meats and Maytag blue cheese, forward-thinkers at the World Food Prize Foundation, and small farms like Wilson's Orchard all compete with industrial agriculture, slowly inching Iowa back to its locavore roots," she wrote.
Flashback: Walsh recalls that when she first got the Eater assignment, back in 2021, it was nearly impossible to narrow down the metro's best eateries. She spent weeks with 50-plus restaurants in her Notes app, steadily whittling it down to her inaugural list, published that year.
- She focused on "What's the story of Des Moines?" as well as where it was heading and the metro's growing diversity.
What's new: In her updated version for 2024, Walsh added newly opened and established eateries, including Wilson's Orchard & Farm, Pho 515, Oak Park, Prime & Providence and Crème.
- But she also wanted to include unique spots that would be exciting discoveries for people who live in Des Moines.
- Those include Tarboosh, a Lebanese vendor that serves Turkish coffee at the Des Moines and Valley Junction farmers markets, and Palm's DSM, a Caribbean and West African vendor that opens for RAGBRAI and the Des Moines farmers market.
What they're saying: Some of the biggest changes in the local dining scene have been non-brick-and-mortar options like Pie Bird Pies' home bakery and Veggie Thumper's vegan food bus.
What's next: Walsh's "wish list" for Des Moines' future includes a Spanish tapas place, a gelato store, and a food hall featuring local restaurants and ingredients to buy.