Is this absolutely MY best (aka favorite) burger...? Is it the best burger I've personally had in…read moreIowa...? Probably not. BUT it is the best burger I've ever had out of a gas station in Iowa...! Actually... I'm not exactly sure which way this place actually goes... Is this a gas station that sells food... Or a restaurant that sells gas? Potato...potatoe! Lol And it IS a very good burger overall too...! But not only do they serve burgers... They have other menu selections... Mostly all deep fried and grill options... And ice cream! I've seen signs for Iowa's Best Burger Cafe for years while running back and forth on I-80 from the Des Moines metro... Kellogg is about halfway between Newton and Grinnell. We've never stopped here until this past weekend when we were on our way home from the What Cheer IA flea market... Iowa's Best Burger Cafe is just off the highway... The first thing I noticed as the GPS said our route was about to end... It looked like it ended at an Amoco gas station... Huh? And then I noticed the signage for the Iowa's Best Burger Cafe on the building... Oh... So we're here...? Not exactly what I expected..., but I eat at food trucks too so it wasn't going to stop me. I did glance at my girlfriend to see if I could tell whether she was feeling it or not... I think she was just really hungry at that point and didn't really care. Lol There's ample parking. As you enter the building it kind of looks like a standard gas station convenience store...until you turn and look to your Right. Red plastic booth seating. There are two counters and a case that sit adjacent to one another. The counter you order at also displays the ice cream. There's a case displaying some ready to eat options. The register is on a shorter counter closest to the entrance. It's an open kitchen. There is also another small room of seating further to the left as you face the counters. The tables are kind of faux marble. Napkins, salt, pepper, ketchup, and mustard are available in each booth. We were greeted as we walked and I let them know it was our first time there and we didn't know the drill. They let us know you order standing there at the counter. Take a seat. They bring the food out to you when it's ready. You pay at the register when you are done. Cash or card...and there is an ATM on site. They bus your table. There are a couple of menu placards on the counter where you place your order... The 16 flavors of ice cream selection are plainly labeled. The two ladies behind the counter were very helpful and were both personable! We ordered: 2x half pound burger combos (one with cheese, bacon, onions and pickles and one with cheese, onions, pickles, mayo, and lettuce) 1x upgraded side to garlic mushrooms 1x upgraded side to onion rings 2x fountain drinks (Coke products...comes with combo) 1x mozarella sticks 1x two scoop bowl of ice cream 1x single cone of ice cream The wait for food wasn't long. Everything was served hot and fresh! They'd asked us if we wanted ranch... My girlfriend always wants ranch! Not only did they bring us ranch... They brought us a HUGE squeeze bottle of ranch! This is how every restaurant should bring you ranch! While we dined in (as did a couple of other customers) most of the business appeared to be take out. One pro tip... The standard half pound burger comes with two patties. I heard a customer ask a guy, at the booth next to her, how many patties he had on his burger... Huh? He had four patties on his burger... A full pounder! So there has to be a way to add an additonal patty (or patties) too... If you want a bigger burger... Ask...! The bathrooms...not horrible. The food was all great. Good service. No complaints. I wouldn't hesitate to stop in here again! And I know what to expect next time...!

Super cute pit stop when passing through. Highly recommend. Friendly staff, good food and hefty…read moresnack selections!

Came in to get breakfast this morning got steak and eggs w hash browns the steak was disgusting…read more The place is bullshit

This roadside diner with a great old Native American-themed roadsign out front has promise, but…read moreunfortunately, the food relies too much on shortcuts -- instant potatoes (yikes!) on the open-faced meatloaf sandwich & mashed potatoes platter. Gravies too salty. Chicken a la King somewhat gelatinous. Maybe the burgers or fried chicken would have been better choices. The locals seem to like the place and the friendly servers know them by name. They get stars for original external appearance (I'm ignoring the ill-advised 1980s mauve floral booth remake), and location on old Lincoln Highway (Rt. 30). Stop a block west at the little roadside park to see an original concrete Lincoln Highway bridge.

Delicious cheese curds!!! I come to Murph's to load up on cheese curds whenever I'm in the area…read morevisiting my husband's family. I also love to get the peanut butter malt and the jalapeño mac & cheese bites. Yum

Kinda average and a little pricey, but a local alternative to franchises and chains nearby. It's a…read morejumpin' joint, so don't be surprised if you have a wait a bit. Once you order, you might be waiting a little longer than you do at a typical fast food joint because everything is cooked to order. There is a veggie burger, too, if that is your desire. The menu is a bit sparse but covers most of the bases with burgers, hot dogs and a hand-breaded tenderloin. There is also barbecue pulled pork, chicken strips, and chicken sandwiches. There's also an array of grilled cheese with variations. Variations? Can you improve upon the basic grilled cheese sammich? Sure! Add bacon and tomato. Bacon? Sure! Everything is better with bacon! That's what I ordered, it was ooey-gooey as a grilled cheese should be, and the bacon and tomato just added to the experience! Deserts? Of course! Choose from sundaes or, as in my case, a milkshake or malt. I opted for a raspberry malt, which was thick and tasty, but thin enough to pull through a straw. (Unlike a certain fast-food joint where you can hold a malt upside down and it won't budge. Don't try that at Murph's!) I don't get this way very often, but next time I'm in the twin cities of Tama and Toledo, I'll be stopping back here.

Our trip to pick up a truck brought us to Grinnell Iowa. After the pickup we were on the hunt for…read moregood food. Yelp reviews pointed us to Frontier Cafe where we found the sweetest server and delicious food. Hubby had the Texas Omelette and I had the Spring Chicken dinner with extra avacado. Such a pleasant experience. Food was fresh, seasoned perfectly and plentiful.

I have visited this cafe on multiple occasions. The staff are always kind and friendly and the…read moreservice is always good. They have a large menu to choose from and it follows traditional diner food.

Excellent food and service at reasonable price. First visit yesterday 2/23/26 and I will be back…read moreand highly recommend. Tenderloin was absolutely deliciously amazing!! The aioli is out of this world. Also tried the Hawkeye burger and wow, just as delicious!! Love the bar theme!! Can't wait to return!!

Hometown Heroes is a great sports bar with tasty food and great service. Enjoy grabbing lunch here…read moreduring the work week.

This Culver's location restored our family's confidence in good food from Culver's! We have visited…read moreevery Culver's in Omaha, NE and all have let us down. We go to this one in Newton whenever we're traveling east. They never fail to deliver our food hot and exactly how we ordered!

Traveling cross country and overnighted at campground. Cheap camping overnight. Burgers and ice…read morecream were great.

In town for some personal business and had time to kill so we decided to find a local place for…read morelunch. Per my usual when it comes to deciding factors, the name drew us in to The Flying Elbow. Super cute place - simple. Very clean. Straightforward. The menu is on the wall, above the same counter where you order. Staff was helpful and friendly. My husband got a burger - The Patterson. The gentleman taking his order was kind enough to switch out the bread since my hubs isn't a fan of jalapeño. He recommended Texas toast, which the hubs was grateful for and he LOVED it. It was just the right amount of messy, juicy, and YUM. I got the all-beef hotdog with chili, cheese, and green onions. It was delicious. My only recommendation would be putting the cheese under the chili so that it melts (or run it under the broiler for a sec) and gets super gooey. Otherwise, the chili was awesome and tasted great with the dog. I'd definitely get it again. BUT, the kicker of the whole meal, the absolute "must go back" item was the tots. HO. LY. COW. We got one order to share and just figured we were getting regular old tator tots. But NO. The order was six tots that were each about the size of a ping pong ball and they were the MOST epic little flavor bombs. I know they had potato, cheese, and bacon in them ... not sure what else they add to create that little ball-o-flavor but MAN. If you're in the area, this place should be on your list of "must try." If you're not, those tots are worth the trip.

A little outside of my normal home base of the Des Moines metro, but Marshalltown is an easy…read moredrive... The short. The food is really good...! And it was worth the trip. See the pictures. Now to the long part. If you want to skip that feel free and just go on what is above this line. I grew up a wrestling fan back in the 70s and 80s... When the NWA used to do house shows and setup in high school gymnasiums. I remember the Attitude Era well (1997-2002) and watched it a lot at the time. I took my son to RAW and Smackdown shows at the Well when he was younger... Today I'm not an avid fan, but if I told you I didn't follow things at all...I'd be lying. I mean AJ Lee's epic return alongside her husband CM Punk...! C'mon! The Flying Elbow has been on my list a long time... As "a fan" I wanted to check it out soooo bad. And even though they were awarded Iowa's best burger in 2022... I wondered it was just another gimmick to draw people in to mid food... I don't put a lot of stock in contests. As you walk in the front door there is a small bar directly to your Left. Classic wrestling was playing on one of the TVs above the bar. Football on the other. You'll see a combination of low top tables and chairs and a few booths in front of you and to your Right. There's an Order Here sign at the end of the long counter. The fountain drink station is at the end of the room (Coke products). From the fountain drink station the entrance to the patio is to the Right. Restrooms to the Left. It's order and pay at the counter. Cash or card. It's seat yourself and they bring your food to you when it's done being prepared. Bus your own table when you're done. Staff was quick to clean up as people left to prepare for their next guest. I ordered the following: 24 oz fountain drink (free refills) 3:16 chili dog (all beef) with cheddar cheese and white onion -- Choose up to three toppings: Cheddar, pepper jack, and nacho cheese. Sour cream, nacho Doritos, and chili cheese Fritos. White, red, or green onions... Fried cheesecurds An order of six smoked bone-in chicken wings with buffalo sauce -- Sauce choices. Plain BBQ, buffalo, Korean BBQ, raspberry chipotle BBQ, People's BBQ. and Asian peanut A Bang! Bang! burger as advertised (no modifications) off the Attitude menu -- Pepper Jack, caramelized onion, cactus steak sauce, 4 Horsey sauce, fried jalapeño chips The burgers are smash style and have great flavor. I got the single burger and was wishing I'd gotten the double. Same with the 3:16 chili dog... They offer an Andre sized dog (+$2). But I'd ordered a lot of food...! The buns here! So good. The hamburger bun was a classic sesame seed bun that met the size of the burger. The meat peeked out the edges. The bun for the dog was a potato style...not a cheap flimsy bun. The bun seemed a little big for the regular dog, but I bet it would be perfect for something Andre sized. It held the chili well without falling apart. The smoked wings have a light smoke to them...not too heavy. They are big and meaty. The ranch that came with the cheesecurds was fire. I ordered some blue cheese with the wings. In hindsight I would say that one of the BBQ sauces would probably pair better with the smoked wings v. the buffalo. That's on me. I hit them right in a Saturday lunch rush and fortunately was able to grab a seat as someone else was getting up to leave. Staff was friendly and patient. If you're not patient...I'd probably not hit them right at peak lunch hour on a Saturday. Seating in the main dining area and on the patio was full. Service was great! The food was great! Is the wrestling thing kind of a gimmick? Yes. Yes it probably is. But it's a fun gimmick that hits home for a lot of us! I liked seeing the references that remind me of entertainment I grew up with and enjoyed. It's no different from a 50s diner theme, railroad, or zombies. And they back it up with good food! For me it's kind of like going to Prairie City for Goldie's or going up to Whatcha Smokin' in Luther... I spend a lot of money locally right here in the Des Moines metro, but sometimes it's a good thing to just hit the road and explore our neighbors a little. The Flying Elbow is the worth the drive to check out! And if you're a wrestling fan... It's a destination...enjoy the experience! https://www.facebook.com/theflyingelbow https://flyingelbowfood.com/

If you haven't been here, you need to go. The ambiance is…read morehometown friendly with wonderful decorations to the walls. The selection of beer and cocktails is outstanding. Whether you are looking for pizza, wings, monster burgers, or something else, you can't miss. Your hosts always provide service with a smile. It's a bit like going to your friends house.

Quick update! ! Pretty busy on a Friday night! We got lucky and a group had just left so we got a…read moretable. We visited for a while before ordering our food. We had the spaghetti special - - spaghetti meatballs, bread, and a salad and a small Reuben pizza. The Reuben pizza was very good. The spaghetti meal was as well. The salad is served on the same plate as the spaghetti so it doesn't come early.

Everything about our lunch here was fantastic- our waitress was cute, friendly and efficient. Our…read morefood was so delicious. My Berry Salad, Corn Chowder and Portabello fries were all great! We will definitely go back when we are in Pella.

Awesome staff, food and service! Great lunch before walking around town looking at tulips!read more