We came here for dinner with a reservation, which I definitely recommend making ahead of time. We…read moregot complimentary bread, which was very soft and delicious. You don't have to do the four-course meal for $60--they also let you choose just one course if you don't want to spend that much, and they give you a larger portion when you choose only one. My pasta was $22 for the Ragu Rigatoni, and my mom's was $16 for the Gnocchi Sage, which was homemade. They didn't give her a lot, but that's probably because it was handmade. It was delicious! However, I couldn't eat my pasta because they don't list the ingredients, and after taking my first bite, I realized it was pork. I don't eat pork and avoid it like the plague, so I had to spit it out. I ended up getting it to go and was disappointed that I hadn't asked about the ingredients beforehand. So, if you have any dietary restrictions, definitely make sure to ask before ordering. They packaged up our pasta for us, and the staff was very friendly. It's a cute, small restaurant with a really cool kitchen in the middle where you can watch them prepare the dishes in real time. Our waiter even left us some bread and butter in our to-go bag, which was really nice. I'd definitely come back next time I'm in town, but I'd probably try the spaghetti and pepper dish!

Lucca is one of THE best dining experiences in Des Moines. The menu design is a four course meal…read morewhere you can choose your own adventure each visit. The meal begins with a salad course followed by a pasta course. The cod cake salad was incredibly delicious! Both the gnocchi and the amatriciana were standout pastas. I had the pork ribeye which was succulent and cooked to perfection and served with a tomatillo sauce that was so tasty! Dessert is family style with an assortment of desserts for the table including a lemon cake and a tres leches cake. The service was great from start to finish including making the reservation (which I highly recommend). We were greeted the moment we walked through the door and quickly shown to our table. Since we were dining early, the venue was quiet for the first half hour or so, but diners kept coming in and by the time we left the place was hopping. It is very cozy and intimate but not so much so that you feel like other diners are on top of you or that you are listening in on their conversations. We brought our own wine, but there is a vast assortment of wines available. We enjoyed Lucca so much that we have made two future reservations already and are very much looking forward to dining with the wonderful crew there soon!

Great old school Italian atmosphere. I had their house specialty the Chicken Spiedini, it was nice…read morebut did not knock my socks off. I did enjoy the garlicky butter sauce. It also came with a good salad and pasta. Everything was nice and love the old world feel.

Our First time at the Latin King. It was wide open at 6:30pm. A bit of a head scratcher…read more Great waitress and prompt service. The food was a miss and a hit. The garlic olive chicken with steamed veggies was very good. Do not do get the Alfredo version. Our other entree was the Pasta Trio as we wanted to sample different things. I would say some BIG misses. I am not sure what their "lasagna" is but it isn't lasagna. It had no pasta and was FULL of a tomato sauce. There is NO tomato sauce in lasagna. Bolognese, 7-8 pasta sheets and béchamel. Simple The Alfredo was lacked flavor and salt. You need great parm to pull it off. The fried raviolis were not crisp and also flavorless . It's as if they got steamed sitting in a tray under a heat lamp. Overall a disappointment

4.2* (out of 5) Food: 4* Atmosphere: 4* Value: 4*…read more Service: 4* Would I go back / Recommend?: 5* (Definitely) 05/08/2026 Honestly stopped here while updating Happy Hour information in the area for happyhourdesmoines.com. We enjoyed the food and the atmosphere on previous stops and did again tonight. We had already eaten at another Happy Hour and it was too late now for Happy Hour anyway, so we opted for 'dessert' options. My wife ordered the Espresso Martini (see picture) and I went for the Tiramisu (see picture). The Espresso was very good and while the Tiramisu tasted very good, the presentation wasn't nearly as good as last time (think you'll see what I mean in the picture). We do like this place though and look forward to another stop for dinner some evening. If you found this review helpful, please show your appreciation with a Like or a Follow.

On the final night of our six-week road trip, before heading home to Chicago, we stayed at the…read moreDrury Inn in Iowa. Although the hotel offers an evening meal, we decided we wanted something different and ordered takeout from Dolce, conveniently located right across the parking lot. The location could not have been easier. After thousands of miles on the road, the ability to walk across the lot and pick up dinner was definitely appreciated. The restaurant itself looked very inviting. From what I could see while picking up the order, the décor was modern, comfortable, and pleasant. It seemed like a nice place to sit down and enjoy a meal. The bartender who helped me with the pickup was also exceptionally friendly and welcoming, which made a very positive first impression. As for the food, it was unfortunately a bit underwhelming. We ordered polenta with meatballs and a salad. The polenta was okay, and the meatballs were a good size, but overall the dish felt somewhat bland and lacking flavor. Nothing was bad, but nothing really stood out either. The portions were also surprisingly small. The takeout containers were only partially filled, making the meal feel a little light for the price. The salad was probably the biggest disappointment. It felt like very little attention had gone into it: mostly greens with a few toppings and some mozzarella. It wasn't terrible, just uninspired and forgettable. One detail that may seem minor but was actually appreciated was the quality of the takeout packaging and utensils. Everything was packed neatly, and the utensils were sturdy and well chosen, which made eating back at the hotel easier. Overall, Dolce left us with mixed feelings. The people were kind, the location was incredibly convenient, and the restaurant itself appeared attractive and comfortable. Unfortunately, the food simply did not live up to the same standard. It served its purpose on the last night of a long road trip, but it was not a meal we are likely to remember long after the journey itself. Oh, I ended grabbing a bite at the hotel, I was still hungry

Food and service fantastic!!! The atmosphere is old Italian steakhouse, we brought family that had…read morenever been to Iowa and we had the best time with fantastic food and drinks!!!

I finally visited Noah's Ark - I feel like you can't be a local without visiting this place at…read moreleast once! The interior and history is detailed and unique to Des Moines. I ordered the spaghetti with meat sauce and it was good, the serving size was huge! It came with salad, along with bread and butter. Next time I'm going to try the chicken Parmesan! Our server was very friendly and asked if we wanted dessert. Which I 100% recommended going for anytime you visit. Their red velvet cake is amazing!

You can't go wrong with Chuck's. We got there on a Friday night and it was filling up fairly…read morequickly. The onion rings were, as usual, delicious! We brought home part of our half order. Our Canadian bacon mushroom large pizza was crispy and tasty. The sauce is delicious. We brought home half of it. The help staff is great Go there--you can't go wrong!

Haven't been to this place for years. I would imagine I won't be going back for years. Stopped…read morebefore a show downtown. We were there early so as not to run into parking problems at the show. Best laid plans. Ordered drinks. My Diet Coke was forgotten for a while. Ordered onion rings, cheese bread pizza, a salad and a large pepperoni pizza. Service of the food was slooow. I mean excruciatingly, painfully slow. The restaurant was not that busy. The food was fine. Just fine and not that great. We got what we asked for, but had to ask for everything. New plates, a new fork, more napkins, more water, a refill on my Diet Coke.

A small but very tasty Italian restaurant! We had to wait a few minutes for a booth--there are…read moreonly 10 of them! We started with mozzarella sticks and the best tasting red sauce! Our salads came shortly and they are simple iceberg ones with a couple of cucumbers and a cherry tomato. The house Italian dressing is excellent! A warm basket of breadsticks accompanied our pasta. The guys had spaghetti and meatballs, Friend had lasagna, and I had baked cavatelli. Friend and I took some of ours home because the serving was so large! We all loved the red sauce & our dishes. It appears there are only two workers there. The waitress is also in charge of the front desk and there was just one Cook in the kitchen. She was very pleasant and very entertaining! We'll be back because we want to sample more things! The pizza sounds delicious ! You go for the great food - - it's just a pretty simple interior.

I've driven by here on a near-daily basis on my commute. I've been to the taqueria next door…read moreseveral times--thought I would finally give Marino's a try. The lady who answered the phone was very polite. She quoted me a time of 30-35 minutes for the food. I thought that was quite awhile, but decided to proceed with the order anyhow. When I walked in, the restaurant was nearly empty. One room off to the side was dark; it looks like this was a party room in a former life. I saw a solo diner in the main dining room. It was eerily quiet in there. An older lady (whom I believe also answered the phone) was very polite and seemed like she appreciated the business. I wish I could speak more highly of the food. The portions were all very generous, but most all seemed to be lacking in flavor. The breadsticks appear to have been brushed on top with some kind of butter, but no garlic flavor was present and the bottoms had gone untouched. Just bland. The salads I saw online appeared to have had croutons on them but mine did not. The dressing itself had good flavor--likely homemade. The salad was a basic side salad otherwise. The cavatelli was off in several different ways. The pasta appeared to be actual cavatelli, but lacked the firmness I'm used to. The sauce all seemed to have been on one side of the dish. The sausage was Italian sausage. Will probably try again at some point--other reviews seem to indicate better experiences.

The restaurant is lovely and the service was spot on. The food is delicious and plentiful. The…read moreprice and quantity for lunch was outstanding. I had the pasta sampler, and my two lunch mates we're equally happy with their choices. I highly recommend.

We walked in to Portofino's on a Friday night and it was busy! They have a very strange parking lot…read morewith limited space, but I believe you can go around the corner for more. We waited only 15 minutes, and enjoyed looking around the restaurant seeing ambient lighting and fireplaces throughout. They even have a private event room. We were very impressed by the overall service. Our waitress Faith was kind and attentive, suggesting menu items, and allowing us to change our minds while ordering. The bread brought to the table was warm and delicious and the pasta dishes were all very flavorful and unique with huge portions. We were very impressed with the price points as well. Our only (small) complaint was the chicken was a bit tough. We would absolutely come back here.

Where to start? Pepperoni pizza with light sauce for my wife. Onion rings for everyone. Just walk…read morein and get them to go and they will drop them into the fryer fresh. Sausage (patty) sandwich stellar

After a 3,000 mile road trip our EASTside family went to Hilltop for our family favorite pizza…read more After waiting for our pizza after appetizers and beer and waiting for pizza and waiting...we found out waitress did not get our pizza order submitted. A hungry table of 6 decided not to wait another hour waiting for pizza. What ensued after that was not good customer service. It was unacceptable. They put 1 piece of cake , 6 forks and $160 bill on our table. Facts to follow: Im 68. Although I live in another state now, been going there my entire life. I am a calm, nice person and was asked to leave. I will never go back. AMMENDMENT: I just had a family member say" It's to bad we lost our family restaurant."