We went to the Gridiron for dinner & it was so good! Dave had a burger, & I had a cheeseburger…read more Both were delicious, & cooked perfectly. My sweet potato fries with ranch dip were really tasty. We each had a glass of Pinot Grigio, which were refreshing. The service was great! Can't believe we've never been here before. We'll definitely be back!

Camping outside of Webster City, we always look for a local spot to try when we travel. Tonight,…read morelucky us, it was the Grid Iron. Be prepared to show a little grace, there were a lot of cars turning in there as we came up to it- from the food, I'm guessing they're always busy! My wife chose their mainline burger (no cheese) and house fries. Honestly, I think we could tell how good it was going to be when got out of the car and that awesome charbroil smell overwhelmed us. She loved it. I had the Chipotle Bacon cheeseburger on Texas toast, well done for me (they will prepare to your liking), which is charbroiled, then dunked in their home made bourbon sauce and served with Swiss cheese and jalapeños. The fries have some type of coating that makes them a little crispier and a little tastier. Even if you're cruising up I35, it's worth the detour into WC for a great meal. Plenty of tv's but even with a crowd, you can still have enjoyable conversation at your table. It's no wonder one whole wall is covered with "best of" awards. They deserve them. Bon Appetite!

Pickles Pub is central Iowa gem. Hidden on blue Highway D 41 in Kamrar. The building is lovely with…read morea great hometown bar & grill vibe. Always bustling on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday Fun Day, Pickles has a great staff of friendly, small-town folks. They hustle! Food comes out timely, and is good quality. We had a combo plate with fried mushrooms, pickles, and corn nuggets. It's all frozen stuff, but good quality. My wife had the French Dip sandwich and loved it (although she never dips her sandwich... wtf). I had the Patty Melt. It was cooked well on marble rye and was delicious. This is the ultimate roadside joint for a beer and bite. Nothing but positive energy for Pickles Pub!

Had a family event there. Staff was very accommodating! Had lots of great comments on how good the…read morefood was. And great comments on having our event at Pickles. Highly recommend!

My parents only live about 7 1/2 miles from Unkie's and they'd taken everyone in the family there…read more(multiple times)...but me. It became almost a running joke. They'd rave about the food. Remember how good that was at Unkie's? No. No I don't... Lol We were up there this weekend and it was a couple days before my 55th birthday and mom said... We should take Dan and Owen to Unkie's to my dad... I almost refused... Why ruin a good inside family joke? But I'm glad we went! Don't blink or you'll miss Thor! We arrived at about 430 PM on a Saturday. They open at 300 PM for drinks, seat for dinner at 430 PMish and take orders and start serving at 500PMish. It's seat yourself. The seating is a combination of booths and low top tables and chairs. There is also a small bar with seating at it as well... The place is old school. Mostly dark wood and a classic small town steakhouse vibe. Don't expect a five star atmosphere... The real magic is in the food and the customer service. Unkie's is cash only. They will take a local check. And there is an ATM on site. No card payments. Our server was fantastic. I think she is one of the owners... Took our drink orders first along with an appetizer. We ordered our entrees with her a few minutes later. She checked on us every now and then and our drinks never hit the bottom of the glass. My parents ordered the appetizer sampler (fried pepper rings, cauliflower, cheeseballs, jalapeño cheeseballs, mushrooms, pickles, and onion rings) that they shared with the table and they split a 10 oz fillet meal (medium) with sauteed mushrooms, a baked potato, and a side salad with ranch. Dad ordered three extra jumbo shrimp. The shrimp are $4.50 ea, but they are HUGE. The ranch that comes with the apps (or salad)... It's made in-house and is SO good! If you like ranch it's a must try here. My son ordered the 10 oz ribeye (medium) with fries and a side salad with french. I ordered the 10 oz fillet (medium-rare), the Jojo's potatoes (broasted potato wedges), three jumbo shrimp, and a side salad with blue cheese. We all ordered fountain drinks. All the meals came with Texas toast. Everything was cooked to perfection. Not one thing was not on point! The special the night we were there was two 5 oz lobster tails for $40 and there was a halibut special going on too. I glanced at the receipt. I think the total was $143 before tip... Dad was paying or I'd have been more attentive. Unkie's is a hidden gem of a small town steakhouse who certainly lived up to their reputation! Everything I'd heard was true. Is it worth an almost two hour drive from the Des Moines metro on a date night...? If you don't mind the drive... Yes. Yes it is! And it's most definitely worth the 7 1/2 mile drive from Goldfield to Thor...

Review of Unkie's Entertainment Restaurant & Lounge - Thor, Iowa…read more Unkie's is one of those small-town Iowa restaurants that feels like home the minute you walk in -- the kind of place where you can sit down, relax, and enjoy a good meal without any fuss. It's a real destination spot if you're from the area or just passing through north-central Iowa. I was there celebrating my birthday with my family, and we had a great evening. One thing to note -- they won't seat you until your whole party arrives, which keeps things moving smoothly for the staff and other guests. It's a busy place that draws folks from a wide area, and you can tell it's popular for good reason. The food was solid all around. I had the pork chop -- it was perfectly cooked and full of flavor. My wife ordered the chicken and said it was moist and well-seasoned. A few in our group went for steaks and steak-and-lobster combos. Most of the steaks are market-priced, and while they were just a touch overcooked, everyone agreed they had great flavor. Sides were a mixed bag -- my baked potato was a little overdone, and the hashbrowns leaned a bit greasy, but nothing that spoiled the meal. Between six adults and one child, with drinks, appetizers, entrées, desserts, and a couple of lobster add-ons, our total came out around $50 per person -- fair for the quality and portions. A quick heads-up for anyone planning a visit: Unkie's doesn't accept cards, so bring cash. They do have an ATM on-site if you forget, but it's easier to come prepared. All in all, Unkie's hits the mark for what it is -- a good, small-town Iowa restaurant serving hearty food in a friendly setting. It's one of the best we've found in the area, and we'll definitely be back to try their sandwiches next time

We stopped in here along our road trip and we're pleasantly surprised. We split a house salad and…read morethe pasta dish to save room for their peanut butter pie. Wow! Everything from the service to the food and the ambience was wonderful. This is definitely one of our favorite restaurants in the area and we plan to come again on our next trip through.

Had dinner here on a Tuesday evening while in town for a conference. I partnered up with another…read moreconference attendee and we came here for dinner. The menu had a diversity of options with both bistro and full size options. We both settled on the Main St. chicken dish on recommendation from the waitress along with swapping the rice for mashed potatoes. Great suggestion. My conference mate asked to have her mushrooms removed and I asked to have the tomatoes removed. Although we both ordered the same meal, the presentation looked different for each of us and hit the spot for our tastebuds. Mine seemed more like a chicken marsala while hers was a tomato sauce. Either way we both enjoyed our meals. We both also had dessert - I had the delicious chocolate cake with raspberry sauce. Honestly there was too much sauce but the cake was still delicious! My conference mate had the peanut pie and it was divine - imagine a Reese cup with an Oreo crust. If I'm ever back in Ames this will definitely be on my return list!!

Awesome place that really surprised. Clearly a farm to table concept with a varied but overwhelming…read moremenu. Came in on a weeknight with coworkers and received good service and fantastic food. Nice drink menu (I enjoyed their take on the old fashioned) with cocktails and a nice craft beer selection. Everyone loved their food, from the barley soup to the ravioli, burger, Brussels salad, and the salmon I got. Hidden gem perhaps was their incredible dessert selection. The cherry tart was a pleasant surprise and the salted caramel chocolate cake will def fix a choc craving. Would gladly come back.

Food and decor, service was all amazing! Gluten free options were nice as well! Enjoyed all of it…read moreand will be back. Just wish the burnt ends weren't like $15 for 5 bites!

I stole some of my colleagues food it was so delectable…read more Service with a smiley face and the day was perfect for the patio dining. Great experience all around!!

Well there's a reason everyone raves about this place. I've had bits of it at the state fair and…read morewhatnot but finally drove out to visit one recent Sunday. The food, service, and ambiance were all great! Don't sleep on the smoked turkey. Apparently that's like a Texas thing, but Iowa - don't knock it til you try it! The smoked turkey is so juicy and was heaven in their Sunday breakfast burrito special! We did the ribs and brisket and both were also really amazing! Like competition winning good. I thought we'd have leftovers. We did not. We crushed everything we ordered, including an Iowa Twinkie to start (highly recommend one of those to start)! It was pretty packed on a Sunday at 1pm but we did get seated super quickly. Highly recommend!

Nice stop on bike trail! Good music and food! Fish sandwich was very good! Glad I didn't follow…read morenegative reviews!

Went here a few times and every time has been awesome, the people are friendly and the food is…read moreamazing. Usually I don't think of getting bar food, but they have jalapeño poppers here and I can find those no where else, plus the added menu selections makes this place fantastic. Also they got the slot machines, I don't use em but hey

The Filling Station is a gas station, an extra stocked convenience store, a breakfast/lunch food…read morecounter, and a tables inside and out to enjoy your refreshments and the view. Gayle and I stopped in today after reading about it within some "48 hours in Ames" article. I ordered a brisket grilled cheese sandwich, while Gayle chose a similar one with blackberry flavoring. We split a can of Guinness off the convenience store fridge, and then sat outside for our street and car wash view. We had nice shade on a not too hot day and took the opportunity to hang out bit after we finished our meal. This was a tasty and pleasant experience of good value overall.

Was nearby for an early meeting and had a gap before my next one. Decided to grab breakfast and…read morerolled the dice and just went here for a quick bite. Wow, it is a lot more than a quick breakfast at a gas station! The kitchen was complete and had a full menu offered up. It was also a commercial bakery... multiple bakers working on cinnamon rolls that looked divine! I had a breakfast quesadilla. It had real flavor in it with candied jalapeños. It was a lot but judging from all the plates I saw come out of the kitchen everything there was solid in serving size. The chai latte was good too. And the folks were nice. They definitely have loyal fans locally, folks were ordering for tailgates!

My how I have missed my favorite restaurant in the Midwest! This was my first time at their new…read morelocation and it did not disappoint. Chef Lynn greeted me when I walked in and took time to chat with me. Everyone and everything here is fabulous and I will be back as often as possible. The food, service and ambiance are fabulous!

We had a good experience! The restaurant was busy when we visited, but the staff handled everything…read morewith a positive attitude. Even with a full dining room, everyone was friendly and worked hard to make sure we were taken care of. However, we spent more time there than we originally planned waiting. The food was good. You could tell the kitchen and staff were doing their best to keep up with the crowd without sacrificing quality.