Eatery A — Restaurant in Des Moines

Food: 5* Atmosphere: 5* Value: 5* Service: 5* Would I go back / Recommend?: 5* (Definitely) Total check/person: $47

09/28/2024 Eatery A It had been a few years since we have been at Eatery A, mostly due to being new in the area and exploring new venues rather than repeating at a known location. Once again, we were extremely pleased with this stop as in the end, I gave it one of the few full 5* ratings that I have ever given. This place truly has it all - unique and tasty food, a great atmosphere, friendly service and value that is above average for the downtown! If you have the treat of being served by Vee - tell her 'Hi' from The Food and Drink Guy, as she is a gem!

Tonight, we celebrated my wife's Birthday - exploring the menu beyond the pizza's we had on previous visits to the other Mediterranean delights as recommended by our server, Vee. Tonight we truly shared everything - starting with the Two for Delicacies: Bacon Wrapped Dates & Meatballs (see pictures). We followed that up with a Three for $35 Skewer: Swordfish, Chicken Shawarma & Sirloin Tip (see picture). All of them were delicious and highly recommended, but our favorite was the Bacon Wrapped Dates!

Lastly, if you follow my posts, you know how hard it is for me to leave a restaurant without having some type of sweets. Tonight was no different, although it was free for my wife's Birthday. We opted for the Salted Caramel Budino (see picture) and while we have had it before - we truly relished every spoonful. It was sweet, rich and awesome - especially given the smaller portion size that didn't leave us feeling too guilty!

You will love a stop here for your next meal out...and if you want to sample a few things at a bargain price, they have one of the best true 1/2 price Happy Hours in the area!

July 2021 We stopped here for dinner on our anniversary based on an online rating and really liked it. It is very clean, modern and 'chic' (see pictures).

I highly recommend stopping between 3 and 6 to take advantage of the Happy Hour (we did). We sampled several beers and a delicious wood fire pizza (see pictures) - all at 1/2 price!

On the waitress' recommendation we ordered the #10 pizza (...meat & hot honey). As the name implied it was a perfect combination of pepperoni and spicy Italian sausage along with just a tinge of sweetness from the honey. It was just perfect for the 2 of us to share.

Lastly don't leave without trying one of the desserts. Again based on the waitress' recommendation we went with the Salted Caramel Budino (see picture). It wasn't quite what we expected but oh, it was so good! It was a delicious pudding/tapioca (chantilly cream) with some sprinkles of dark chocolate on the top and a dollop of salted caramel. Dessert Bliss!!

This is definitely a place you'll want to try!

Food: 5 Atmosphere: 5 Value: 4 Service: 5

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For a list of great Happy Hour food and drink specials in the Des Moines area,...

[December] We love our Dinner Club! It's an eclectic group formed with one or two degrees of separation, all with a love for good food and great times!

Last night, we met up for our holiday celebration, at Eatery A. And, ho-ho-ho-holy shiatsu it was good!

Our server (I feel awful that I did not get her name, as I usually make a point of it) juggled our large group like it was second nature. To wrangle this herd of cats to get our drink, appetizer, entree, and dessert orders is no small feat.

While I know we didn't cover the entire pizza menu, we deserve honorable mention for covering a lot of the rest. For one small moment, we may have been quiet, as everyone had nothing but rave reviews for their food. Usually there is at least a couple of us who get buyer's remorse and make note of something different to try next time. But, the glorious part of our group, is everyone shares their food!

For starters, we covered the cauliflower, baba ghanoush (not traditional, but you'll love it), mushrooms, papas bravas, and brussels. All were delicious, but the finalists for best in show were the mushrooms and papas.

The pizza is always a crowd pleaser. The pasta must have been good because not much was left to take home. The stars of the show for entrees were the lasagna (don't tell my mama because I could tell she attempted to decline a bite knowing she makes the best) and their grits.

I hesitantly share a somewhat unpopular opinion (especially in the south), but I don't like grits. Put whatever you want in those things and I act like a toddler who's mom snuck pureed broccoli into a dish. I did not know I ordered them. I talked too much and had to order in a pinch and went for three skewers (shrimp, beef, chicken). My plate came and I didn't know what I was eating, but that I could live on it the rest of my life. I shared bites with the table and was shocked to find out that this tasty little treat was, in fact, grits. Whoa.

Too stuffed for dessert, dessert was ordered. Mama loved their creme brulee. And, anyone who took a sample of the edit: dark chocolate Mousse cake made noises that leaves parents telling their kids, "earmuffs."

Din-Din, our mascot, loved it all too - he snuck into to most of our pictures!

Eatery A, you impressed with your execution of your menu, handling a large group, and running like a machine on a...

I am so happy with my experience at Eatery A. It is a divine restaurant located on the popular Ingersoll Ave. We were able to make a reservation ahead of time which I recommend. We had dinner at 7pm on a Saturday night, and it did not appear to be too busy; however, we ate here during the State Fair which may or may not have had an effect on that. The restaurant is large and offers indoor and outdoor seating (booth, table and high top). Right when you walk in, you see where the wood-fire pizza are made, quite cool! You can see the pizza making in action!

We were seated at a table that allowed us to watch the pizza station for some entertainment between courses and small talk. The hostesses were very pleasant and our waitress was timely and knowledgeable of the menu items and beverage offerings. The only downside to our visit, was that the air compressor was down, so they were not offering anything on tap. The individuals in our group did not seem to mind though. The waitress was well versed in offering suggestions for some of the beverages on tap we were considering. I honestly don't remember what craft beers our table ordered, but I ordered a Vodka Pimm's and it was very good and refreshing.

For our appetizers, our group ordered from the Delicacies (two for $15.99) list. We had Bruschetta and Meatballs. The Bruschetta was seasoned and topped beautifully. And the Meatballs were fresh, moist, and also well seasoned. Everything was served at perfect temperature.

For dinner, each couple decided to go with pizza. We had the #7 and #11. The pizzas are one of their specialties which is why they were cooked so well. My only (minor) tweak would be to increase the amount of cheese on the pizza, but that is an incredibly minor suggestion. I do appreciate a decent amount of cheese on a pizza, but I do realize these are artisan and Mediterranean inspired pies. If I remember correctly, there was only one slice of pizza leftover between two pizzas. I think one pizza can comfortably feed 2-3 people.

Our overall experience at Eatery A went very well, and I do believe we will be back again in the future. Our meal was served warm, timely and tastefully. They had a number of other menu items I would like to try. They offer pastas, entrees and an...