This was probably one of the most highly anticipated Dishcrawl events that Des Moines has been part of. It was a unique Dishcrawl because we got to explore a neighborhood – The East Village – and instead of a couple of restaurants there were 8! I was also really excited because I had some close foodsters tag along – my girlfriend, Dena, and my grandparents!
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We started off at Mad Meatball’s new location which is going to be right next door to Capital Pub and Hot Dog Co. We weren’t able to go inside but it looks like it’ll be a really neat spot. Mad Meatball, sadly, wasn’t dishing up any meatballs. They were serving pizza from their food truck. The slices were super small, but they had a great flavor. I had a square of the Fuke: Pepperoni, sausage, mushroom, onion, black olive, and banana peppers.
We then moved over to good ol’ Capital Pub and Hot Dog Co for a Chicago Dog. This place has all kinds of good lookin’ dogs. ‘Gourmet’ dogs are the hot culinary item right now, and Capital knows how to make an average dog into a gourmet dog. So get over there and check’m out.
One stop that I had previously been to was New World Cafe. This is a vegan style restaurant so it is definitely very ‘Foodster’ and unique to Des Moines. I haven’t really found my taste yet with vegan style dishes. Dena and my grandparents really enjoyed the mac and cheese.
My favorite stop was at Plain Talk Books & Coffee. My goodness, do they have an outstanding vegetarian panini!! I had no idea this place existed. I’m going to have to visit again and try out their coffee – and definitely get a panini! 🙂 
Outside of Plain Talks was a cute little patio and Jimmy’s Italian Ice was out there. Now, they were from Marshaltown but they plan to have a cart out on the Des Moines streets soon. They had blueberry, and bubble-gum flavored ice. I thought the bubble gum option was a little odd — I’m not at the dentist 😉
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I came a way with a heart full of appreciation for the East Village.
I didn’t leave Dishcrawl full, which I was kind of expecting to, but the more that I think about it, I came a way with a heart full of appreciation for the East Village. That’s what Dishcrawl is about. So, really, enjoy the experience and the opportunity to try new things! Even if you aren’t coming away stuffed like you just ate at a grand buffet, you should come away with a new view on what Des Moines has to offer.
Mandi has put a lot of work in to make this a unique and special event to Des Moines. I hope to see you all at future Dishcrawl Des Moines events.
