SingleSpeed Brewing Co - DSM TapRoom — Restaurant in Des Moines

9/25. I am editing my review of Single Speed

Previously, I had been disappointed in Single Speed several times over the summer. Last night I had such a different experience, I had to edit the review.

Over the summer, I was very upset with the lack of wait staff, the mediocre food, and an all around… “abandoned” feeling to Single Speed. It almost felt like Single Speed gave up on itself. Last night, I hope(!), is the turn around they need to get back to their opening months’ vibe.

Let’s start with the food. They used to have this vegetarian Reuben that was worth riding to Single Speed to order. They have since swapped that with a vegetarian banh mi. I was not in the mood for a banh mi, so I decided to go with the wings. (Please note, I will order the banh mi on my next visit.) I ordered their rotating sauce with blue cheese (no ranch for me!) and fries. Their rotating sauce last night was a habanero and …peach? The wings were perfectly cooked! That crispy skin and the fall off the bone meat were just…perfect. I asked our waiter to have the cooks damn near burn the fries because I really love a crispy fry. They delivered! The blue cheese tasted homemade. If it wasn’t they need to stick with that brand. The rotating sauce on the wings is the only drawback of the whole meal. I never tasted habanero or the fruit that it was paired with. That being said, I would rather have perfectly cooked wings that pretty much just taste like wings than over sauced and/or poorly cooked wings any day!

I really wish I remembered our waiter’s name. I am sorry if you are reading this, dude, because you personally changed my entire review of Single Speed. You were attentive, but not overbearing. You were friendly without being fake. Yes, the food was good, but your professionalism and friendliness made the night. Tom Colicchio once said, “People come for the food, but come back for the service.” You deserve a raise....

Went with a group for a birthday party. Business does not take reservations, which wasn't a problem because they were dead. There was plenty of space and no one was waiting, neither before we sat, during our stay, or as we were leaving. They do not seat you. It is first come, first serve, hall seating. Our party took one beer hall style table plus two more seats. Greek fries were tasty. Beer was what you'd get from a gas station cooler. The waitress was nice, but inattentive. She spent the majority of our time in the restaurant sitting and chatting with other staff members. She disappeared for most of the evening. We still had to pay the 21% service charge, which included an enforced gratuity. Which means we paid for good service, but didn't get good service. When you have a service charge for large parties, often the tables are reserved ahead of time, set up for you, and staff is dedicated to your group. That is understandable. But that was not the case in this casual establishment. When we asked the manager about it, his only explanation was that "all the restaurants are doing it." We often patron plenty that aren't, so we won't need to...

Love having single speed in DSM! They have such a great, spacious spot! Super friendly staff and plenty of room for friends to gather! Def the spot you want to plan an event at or gather a big group at! Biggest bummer is… the food! It’s not very vegan friendly. Vegetarian, yes! Vegan… not so much. Ordered the beet Ruben made vegan but it BARELY had any food in it. Just toast and a super light amount of beets / sauerkraut. No avocados. No vegan Mayo. No vegan substitutes like vegan cheese. Big bummer for food! Hoping they add more options that are more hearty and filling (yes they have veggie tacos and yes they have impossible burgers but without vegan sauce or vegan cheese - without vegan chorizo or beyond crumbles or great vegan options it’s all meh. Hope that makes sense and is honest and hopefully makes a tiny impact / change. LOVE their lavender hazy ipa and hope it comes back on the menu! Drove around to Hyvee’s and hunted down the last few 4-packs...