We have been visiting our daughter in Des Moines for several years while she attends college there…read more We drive past here several times each trip and have always wanted to stop. Our last trip we had time so we stopped in. I love the decor and the vibe inside. However, I don't know if our bartender was on a bender or what but we struggled to get service. People who came in after us struggled to get service. The customers at the bar or more attentive than the bartender was. With that being said we give this place another chance and plan to come back on our next visit. I must note that we were just there for drinks. I don't know about the food situation.

I think I found me pot o gold! Yes my name is Patrick so if…read moreyou couldn't tell by the name my Irish roots go all the way back to the Island. I wouldn't call me St. Patrick by any means because as legend says he feared nothing not even death! .. I will say I won't be scared to come back to Kathy's. The bartender was super welcoming, and chatty, He even shook my hand at the end of my visit. He was very attentive to all 10 of us in the bar, all from different walks of life! I was super excited that a guy brought in and set up his daughters girl scout cookies to sell to patrons and yes next thing you know everyone in the bar is sharing a variety of Girl Scout Cookies! Law and Order SVU was on the Tv, William Shatner's Christmas album was on the touch tunes and I enjoyed a lazy Sunday afternoon with a cool crew of folks. The place is cool and has framed photos of famous people with Irish roots.. We ain't just talking Conan, Bono, and Van Morrison we are talking Hitchcock and Detective Benson from Law and Order SVU's mom Jayne Mansfield.. Who I happened to just look up on Wiki to make sure on the spelling of her name and I discovered that Jimi Hendrix played on her music she put out in the 60's... WOW all I can say.. I feel pretty LUCKY to know that and pretty LUCKY to have gone to Kathy's.

4.4* (out of 5) Food: 5* Atmosphere: 4* Value: 4*…read more Service: 4* Would I go back / Recommend?: 5* (Definitely) Total check/person: $32 03/14/2026 While certainly not our first visit here, it is the first time that I'm finally getting it documented. Tonight we stopped with friends who are neighbors with the owner after Mass. We started off by sharing a Wisconsin "Charcuterie" appetizer (see picture) - which was great to share with 4 people. Each of the items served in the pretzel were great - and we really enjoyed each of the dipping sauces. For our meals, my wife ordered the Chicago Beef (see picture) and I opted for the Mediterranean Bowl (see picture). As we always do, we shared our plates. While both were very good, I was especially impressed with the Mediterranean Bowl - it was so cool, light and tasty! Merll's is a relatively recent addition to the Waukee pub scene and worth a stop to sample some of their great food! If you found this review helpful, please show your appreciation with a Like or a Follow. Photos copyright: happyhourdesmoines.com & thefoodanddrinkguy.com

My wife and I stopped in to check things out. Service was fair, food was excellent ..... but they…read morehave a serious fly problem. The design of the place with a huge opening to the outside is an issue. Went to the restroom before our meal arrived and it was infested with flies. When our food arrived, we spent the entire time swatting flies away from our food. Hate to think about how many flies spent time on our food before it arrived at our table. Needless to say, we will not be back anytime soon. The experience was horrible regardless of how good to food was.

Such a great neighborhood bar! I took my nephew for lunch...Great pizza, good prices, great staff…read more Ive also been there during busy happy hour times and the regulars are great and the staff are on top of things. Never a bad experience!

This is the trashiest place we have EVER, EVER stopped for a drink…read more We were staying at a high end hotel while traveling and the patrons literally tried to pick a bar fight with us. We were appalled!!! Stay away from this place!

Thao and Kara welcomed us to our first visit to the Smoking Goat Pub like we were family. We…read morestumbled upon this place through a different channel, and decided to give it a try. We are so glad we did. The atmosphere is a dicey but very clean and the vibe looks like a great time. It was a quiet afternoon but the ladies went out of their way to make us feel like we belonged. This visit was only for a couple of cocktails but we saw some food come from the kitchen and it looked on point! Kara made a tasty treat and shared it with some of at the bar and that sealed the deal! We will be back in to give it a shot. I will update my review on the food after that! See you soon!

Stopped in for lunch, had the (really good) house specialty burger. The service was excellent and…read morethe staff was friendly. Didn't get to sample any of their beers but the selection was definitely appealing.

4.8* (out of 5) Food: 4* Atmosphere: 5* Value: 5*…read more Service: 5* Would I go back / Recommend?: 5* (Definitely) Total check/person: $40 05/08/2026 Our primary reason for stopping by tonight was to update information at www.happyhourdesmoines.com. We ended up quite impressed with the value and our server, Kelbe was fantastic - offering great suggestions off of the Happy Hour menu! Overall, this is a top-tier venue for your next Happy Hour trip (especially once they get the rooftop opened)! To share as much as we could about their Happy Hour, we sampled as many food dishes as we could comfortably eat, with all of them being solid options that we would order again. We started with a Margarita (see picture) and a Raspberry Mule (see picture) and while both were very good, it is hard to beat the value for the Margarita. For our food options, we tried all of the following shown in order of my preference (see pictures for each): Shrimp Street Tacos, Carne Asada Street Tacos, Wings (Tropical Habanero sauce), Lettuce Wraps and Buffalo Rangoons. A few comments to understand the priority order: I love street tacos, the wings were good but could have used a bit more sauce, the lettuce wraps were very good - but oh, so messy with the rice and just a bed of lettuce rather than a wrap and the rangoons were good, but a bit too overbrowned. If you found this review helpful, please show your appreciation with a Like or a Follow.

One of the worst dining experiences ever. Incredibly clueless hostess, and by fair the rudest,…read moreangriest waitress I've ever experienced. Before we could even speak we were met with instant snark, mean comments, rolling of the eyes, slamming of condiment trays and off putting demeanor. Maybe she was having a bad day, but wow. It was enough we got up and left. Would not recommend.

Fun vibe! Stopped in on a Saturday evening & found seats right away. There were people on the…read morerooftop but not outside. We started with tasty fried mushrooms with parm dipping sauce, which I saved for my tater tots. The portion is small. Beers were cold & reasonably priced. I had a Cuban with my tots. It was good--heavy on the ham. I took 1/2 home. Hubby had the hot honey chicken sandwich. He liked it. His mashed potatoes were dry so he didn't eat them. Friend thought the hot honey chicken was too spicy--hotter than the description. She said she would not order it again. She thought the pasta salad was homemade and it was fine. Her hubby had the French dip sandwich and said it was delicious! It ranks right up there as other French dip sandwiches he has loved. The waiter checked in on us several times. It's a fun place with a good vibe. Pay attention to the specials each day of the week and stop in if you're in the neighborhood.

My significant other and I stopped here on a Saturday afternoon. It was busy, but we easily found…read moreseats at the bar. The service is wonderful. Everyone that helped us was kind and continued to check on us as needed. I love how extensive their drink menu is. There is a drink for everyone and every mood. I tried a few of their cocktails and my favorite was their espresso martini. We also ordered a few appetizers while here. We ordered the fried pickles which I enjoyed with their spicy sauce. It did seem like a pretty small portion, but we still enjoyed them. We also ordered the nachos. They were just alright. I loved the vibes of this bar and will be coming back. I am very excited to spend some time at their upstairs bar and patio and try mor of their food

Stopped in at 1 o'clock on a Tuesday for lunch. The place was very full. It's a bar with lots of…read morehigh top seating and has a great vibe. The waitresses did a great job of taking care of us and quickly brought our drinks. I love having Coke zero from the fountain! Sister had the brisket sandwich and said it was tasty, but that the sauce was a little too sweet. Next time she would order it on the side. I had a ham, turkey and bacon sandwich with the cheese sauce on the side. We both had chips which we hoped were homemade, but they were just a bag. It was more than enough for lunch.

We're from Kansas City and took a spontaneous day trip up to Des Moines on Saturday with zero plans…read moreor expectations--and we're so glad we happened into G Migs. What a fantastic surprise! From the moment we walked in, the staff was incredibly friendly and welcoming. Jake behind the bar absolutely stood out--great energy, excellent service, and clearly a bright future ahead of him. The owner, George, was also so much fun and made our group feel right at home. This place is a unique little gem with delicious food, great drinks, and that warm Midwestern atmosphere that makes you want to stay awhile. We had an amazing time and wish the entire G Migs team nothing but the best. If you're in Des Moines, do yourself a favor and check this place out--you won't be disappointed!

I feel bad not liking this place. In theory it should be great. The space is great with lots of…read morehightop tables, U-shaped bar and not one but two pool tables. Plus they have a ton of TVs so you can see the game from any seat. It's close to where I live so we checked it out again despite some subpar experiences. So for those reasons I will give it 4 stars. However, I always seem to leave irritated and wishing we hadn't stopped by. The bartenders get the job done but just the basics of getting what you want but not necessarily checking in. There were what I am assuming to be a handful of regulars, so that must suit them fine. Beer was cold to that was good but more than we are used to spending. We got the pretzel bites which came out cold with cheese in its original single serve plastic packaging. Which is fine, we ate it. We just thought it would be served warm. And since the bartender kind of disappeared we couldn't ask for it to be heated up.

Went here after arriving from out of town. After standing at the door for several minute, without…read moreany instructions we sat ourselves. The menu was about a fourth of what the website showed. Then, nob can to take our order. At the 10 minute mar, my husband went up to the bar where the bartender was continually vaping behind the bar. She then told us we had to order at the bar. Did not know that. Then, her friend came in with a dog that sat on the bar next to many people's drinks. Gross! Terrible experience. luckily the food was ok.

A really great simulator experience good for the youngest and the oldest of our family. Regular bar…read morefare was available; drinks and the cheese curds we had were great! Our server was very attentive and nice, even snapping a pic for us. We celebrated a 37th birthday here and I would consider it a success!! Renting a simulator was very easy and the prices are INCREDIBLY fair. Highly recommend if you're looking for a fun, budget friendly outing

We were served quickly, but I didn't exactly feel welcome. Service wasn't rude, but rather…read moredisengaged or passive. One of the young bartenders didn't seem familiar with what a "Bud Heavy" was; I kinda thought this was bog standard terminology. The overall environment seemed rather sterile at the bar; no one else was at the bar while we were there around 2 in the afternoon. Downgraded to 1 star...they ran my card as a pre authorization. My friend covered my beer. I still got charged. Beware!