Eggs and Jam — Restaurant in West Des Moines

My co-worker sent me here to pick up her lunch for her. I had honestly never heard of this restaurant, but it was her second day in a row ordering from here so it has to be good! I loved the set up of this restaurant! The way it is decorated with the colorful walls. The music. Even the name of the restaurant is awesome! But the service was even more amazing.

I was greeted right when I walked in and given a server right away when I said I was placing a to go order. My servers name was also Nicole and she was extremely personable and helpful. She gave me an estimated time frame for when the food would be ready, 15 minutes, and let me know I was more than welcome to hang out inside while I wait or out in my vehicle, whichever I preferred. She timed it out perfectly. When I came back inside the food was ready to go!

It was someone different giving me the to go order, but he was just as friendly and personable! He took the time to promote their FB page to me and described some of the creative dishes they make there. I then asked him if we could double check the order to make sure nothing was forgotten. He didn't act burdened at all by this! He untied my to go bag and he showed me that everything was there. And then Nicole came over to make sure everything was okay too, which made me think even more highly of her!

The best part about this was it was minutes away from their closing time (3pm). They restaurant was still full with customers, which speaks volumes about the food and the service!! But not a single worker there had a negative attitude (that I saw)... Everyone was full of life, helpful, and looked like they were genuinely happy to be working there! I may have just been picking up an order for a co-worker, however my husband and I will definitely be back to enjoy the food...

This place sure exists... What a weird atmosphere that delivers a friendly mix of cultural appropriation and absurdity. I should point out the owner of this place is not at all who I was expecting, and I strongly encourage you to Google the ownership and history behind this restaurant. There is Des Moines register article that puts it into perspective very well. I would have never known about any of this, had I not gone to the restaurant myself with high expectations. I heard about this place before and with as many good reviews as it has I had to try it out. This place is weird, the entire inside is spray painted with graffiti elements that include black caricatures. I really wanted to like this place, and went in with the expectation that I would. I mean, it's brunch and hip hop, what's better? I honestly felt uncomfortable after staring at all the wall art - which is what even prompted us to research anything in the first place.

For the food, I ordered eggs, sausage, and toast. I can't remember what this meal was called but it basically the first brunch option available. Every entre has a somewhat objectionable theme name. My meal was fine, nothing to write home about and basically as good as what I make myself at home. The breakfast potatoes were seasoned with salt and pepper, and something green that I couldn't name. My partner got the chicken and waffles. He said everything was okay, he ate his plate and he did complain about chicken not being great but we ignored it and finished our meal quickly and left. He threw up in our driveway about 45 mins later. I'm not saying it's because of the chicken, but we hadn't eaten anything else before then. Draw your own...

I'll start my review by saying the only reason I removed a star was because of the wait - be prepared to wait, at least on the weekends. I'm not sure what the wait is like during the week. We waited 90 minutes which we expected since we visited in a Sunday for brunch. They do offer coffee during your wait.

Once we were seated, everything is 5-star. The staff as so helpful and friendly. The menu is short, but has variety and substitutions are available upon request. The menu is also vegan-friendly. I'm not vegan, but if I was, these menu options would be tasty. I saw the vegan pancakes served to a table nearby, and my eyes had hearts in them!

I ordered a Bloody Mary, it was very good. It was smooth with not too much alcohol for a morning beverage. Our table had the following items; Fhat Stacks, P. Diddy and a sandwich I can remember the name of. The Fhat Stacks were the showstopper here! So fluffy, so tasty. Even without syrup. If you order the Fhat Stacks, make sure to bring your appetite, and maybe a friend to share with. There are 4 giant pancakes served with the order. I sadly left 2 behind because I ran out of stomach space.

The atmosphere of the restaurant is fun and upbeat. V fun, and I would recommend brunch here! Looks like they also offer pick up if you want to call in your order, but I still recommend dining in. They also have outdoor seating...