The Dam Pub — Restaurant in Des Moines

I chuckled that this place is an homage to people "born in the 80s and raised in the 90s." I was born in the 70s, so maybe Im too old... Everything was recognizable, but jumbled together, it was a bit too much.

There was vintage MTV on one TV, a Steve Martin movie on another, and an entirely different playlist yelling over both. The songs ranged from CCR to Poison, which may be narrow in terms of cultural representation, but stylistically, it was... if not varied, say... a different vibe.

The celebrity mugshots in the back hall were cheeky, and the pink, oversized metal mesh gym lockers were cute (too bad so many people were in and out of them all evening). The wall of CDs might have been conversational, but for a generation that lettered in ADHD, it was distracting to see out of the corner of your eye. And, like the music videos, it made concentration, sorry, conversation difficult.

A lot of the decor was just trying too hard. The Miami Vice-themed bathroom? Ok, fine. The sign that said, "Please don't do coke off our diaper changing table"?

To quote the era: "totally dorky."

But none of this says anything about the food. It was... ok. Not good enough to get me to come back. At key issue at our table seemed to be spice-level. Some dishes that were supposed to be spicy were not, and others were way too spicy. Spice is fine. Heat is fine... in proportion to the food item and the other foods around it. It shouldn't overpower the plate or be used to disguise a food service chicken breast that was obviously still frozen when it went into the frier because it came to the table burned and dry. (The poor, delicate baby greens wilting underneath that pile never had a chance, flavorwise, or otherwise.)

The whole experience was both a lot and not much. It's a memory melange for anyone who ever rented Goonies on VHS, or enjoys imagining how fun that would have been. It shoots for nostalgia and lands on the unripe side of camp. Not really conducive to conversation, not exactly killing it on the food end, but it does have a tequlla menu. So you can do at least one quintessentially 90s thing there: pound margaritas after work with friends...

My family & I recently ate at The Dam in Beaverdale. We ate at The Angry Goldfish the week before & was excited for another great experience.

We again went around 2PM on Saturday afternoon. It was maybe 1/3 full. We were happily greeted as soon as we entered. Our server then shortly appeared as we sat down. She was very friendly and did a great job. We started with the fried pickles as an appetizer. They were brought out while very hot. They were good & we enjoyed. I found them to be excessively greasy. They really needed to be patted down with paper towels to try to get some of the oil off. The bowl & plates had puddles of oil left on them.

For our entries, we ordered chicken & noodles, rarebit, monte cristo, and Thai chicken pizza. Both of us ordered the spicy cream corn as a side. It was not good. It was corn in water with little taste. I was disappointed & do not recommend it. I had the monte cristo. It was just alright. I would say average. There was excessive white cheese that was bland that I did not care for. I like Bennigan's much better. It came with a side of hot strawberry jelly. It didn't have much of a strawberry taste. It was mostly just pepper jelly. My son enjoyed the chicken & noodles. The pizza was good & probably the best entree ordered. My son liked the rarebit but thought it could have been better. The cheese was disappointing.

The noise level was better here than it has been at Angry Goldfish. Parking is difficult. Very limited space.

I don't think we will probably be back. We were disappointed. The Angry Goldfish raised our bar, maybe too high. We expected a similar experience from the same owner. The atmosphere is great. The food is...

A Mixed Review for a Des Moines Mainstay

The Dam Pub is a truly nice little spot in Beaverdale. It's got that classic neighborhood feel, and it's always been a go-to for grabbing a drink and some decent pub food. The staff are always top-notch—friendly, efficient, and genuinely great at what they do.

However, a recent visit took an incredibly bizarre and DANGEROUS turn. While sitting at our table, a large ceiling fan came crashing down, hitting me directly on the head. I'm honestly surprised I didn't get seriously hurt. Thankfully, I was okay, but the situation was shocking.

We had already paid for our food, and the staff did comp my $15 meal. The owner did call me later to apologize and PROMISED to send a gift card as a way to make up for the experience. Which to be fair is a low bar, but at least it was something. It's been about a month, and that gift card has yet to arrive. Lots of talk in hopes not to get sued but then ZERO follow through.

While the staff are fantastic, this experience showed a glaring lack of accountability and follow-through from the management and ownership. It's a real shame because it sours an otherwise great local spot. My advice? Maybe think twice before visiting, or at the very least, bring your own football helmet and watch for falling objects.

EDIT: Since I cannot respond to Dam Pub's response.

I wish YOU would have made things right and done what you said you'd do so I didn't have to post this negative review. Saying you sent the gift card is a joke because it's been a month and nothing. I've given you plenty of time to follow through on the promises,...