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The Serving Cafe

4.9 (34 reviews)
Closed 6:30 am - 2:00 pm

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THE SERVING CAFE ATMOSPHERE

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Paul W.

A great spot. First time there. Nice friendly staff and great ambiance. Had the chicken salad on a croissant. Fast service. Well worth a visit.

The front counter with a pastry case
Jennifer P.

I had "The Kitchen Sink" omelette, with a homemade biscuit as my "toast" option. The atmosphere is open and light, there's free WiFi, and the staff were all so friendly and helpful. I needed to take some of the omelette home, and their "to-go" box is made of paper (cardboard type material?), and I was soooo glad it was NOT styrofoam! I'm visiting family, so I flew to Iowa... but the cafe is just a couple miles off Interstate 80, for hungry road warriors.

Sugar cookie with butter crème frosting
Aaron W.

The tomato bisque paired with the grilled cheese was a gorgeous dance upon the tastebuds . Wow. And punctuating that meal with a sugar cookie with a butter crème frosting made for the most satisfying compliment of flavors and textures I've had in a long time . What a delight , thank you. No wonder it's busy here - the place is amazing

Entry way
Kathy-Sue V.

Fabulous way to Start your day! On our way to Iowa game, needing wonderful food to start it off. The place is extremely clean. Everyone was super helpful. We had coffee, latte's, their homemade Cinnamon rolls, smoothies, pancakes, Gluten-Free French Toast, bacon, eggs, hash browns and biscuits & gravy! Everything was Amazing and all made fresh!!! The owner came out to check on us too. Wishing we lived in Iowa!

Interior, decor, coffee shop, cafe
A B.

*** When I started my road trip from CO to CT I was adamant that I didn't want to be stopping at fast food chains. While Iowa City was popping with food options, they were all crowed with long wait times on a Saturday afternoon. I am SO happy that The Serving Cafe popped up on Yelp just as I was looking for a quick stop for lunch. The sandwiches were fresh and creative - the avomayo and picklemayo really made the flavors pop on the club croissant & the cristo Thank you ladies!

The Mrs.  The dining area seats about 20-25.

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1 month ago

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12 days ago

We stopped by when driving across Iowa. Great food and friendly servers. The pastrami sandwich has a generous amount of meat.

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1 month ago

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1 year ago

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2 years ago

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7 months ago

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8 months ago

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11 months ago

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2 years ago

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9 months ago

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1 year ago

Excellent breakfast, best in the area. Had the traditional eggs, potatoes, sausage and toast. Everything was fresh and well prepared.

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4 years ago

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4 years ago

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2 years ago

Cute little cafe. Clean and modern. Great service. Food was good and fresh. Friendly staff.

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2 years ago

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5 years ago

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2 years ago

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2 years ago

Great all the way around great food great service. I love the facilities and the atmosphere.

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3 years ago

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2 years ago

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2 years ago

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3 years ago

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3 years ago

Cutest little surprise on our trip across the state. Great coffee and pastries, baristas were beyond kind

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4 years ago

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4 years ago

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3 years ago

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4 years ago

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5 years ago

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4 years ago

Small but mighty! Super friendly with amazing menu items! Best grilled cheese I've ever had.

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3 years ago

I love this place! Food and drinks are amazing! They get the food done quickly and the workers are super nice. 10/10 recommend!!!

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4 years ago

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4 years ago

Fun friendly service! They have great good. Cannot wait until I can go again! I had the grilled cheese and it was delicious!

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4 years ago

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5 years ago

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I've been to Blackstone numerous times but this is the first time I've felt compelled to leave a…read morereview. The Chimichurri Steak I had last night was absolutely amazing. Steak cooked (med. rare) and seasoned perfectly and the chimichurri sauce was out of this world. The service was, and is always, really good. But that steak? Next level.

We had booked this location for a lunch after a funeral. We were to be served half of a sandwich…read moreand a salad from a very limited menu. (3 sandwich choices and 3 salad choices) Service started off good with a waitress, taking our orders and getting us drinks. Once we had placed our orders is when the problems started to happen. We brought in a group of approximately 35 to 40 people. (We had reserved a party room) Sitting at long tables with approximately with 8 people to a table. We waited and waited for our order to be taken with some tables receiving their food before we had even ordered. The waiters and waitresses slowly went from table to table taking approximately 20-30 minutes in all to take our orders. We were the last table to place our order and people were being served prior to us even ordering. We waited for over an hour and never received our food. Some people were even done at point. Needless to say, we were a little exasperated and finally asked them just to bag our food. Believe it or not, that took them another 30 minutes. In all we were there for close to two hours without being served. And when we asked our waiter, why it was taking so long he informed us that they weren't expecting our group to be so large. I think I would've preferred a simple "I'm sorry, we messed up," or even if a manager had just shown up to let us know that they had forgotten our order completely, rather than the lame excuses that they came back with. I don't know if this was just a bad day for Blackstone or if this is what can be expected from them, but our experience there was horrible. Unfortunately, as we were from out of town, we can't go back again to see if the service will be any better. I do not recommend this place. The food may be fabulous, but we'll never know. Also be forewarned if you have any complaints the management does not care.

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The Encounter Cafe - Iced vanilla latte. Biscuits & gravy + eggs.

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4.5(208 reviews)
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These aren't just pastries; they're the kind of baked goods you think about long after they're…read moregone. Absolute perfection.

Stopped in to grab a couple of coffees, a scone and a cinnamon roll. The Encounter Cafe is…read moreliterally across the street from our hotel, so this was a no-brainer if you're looking for an upgrade to the complimentary powdered eggs and overused waffle machine offered by the hotel that your staying at. The space itself is large and looks to be separated into two halves. I entered on the one side, ordered at the counter, just like you would at any coffee shop and waited. This place serves a full-service breakfast as well if you're looking for something more substantial (eggs, panini's, pancakes, etc..). I was just here picking up and bringing it back to our room. The coffees were fine, but there was only one gentleman working the counter, and he was a bit overwhelmed. He forewarned me that he had 4-5 drinks ahead of mine, so I ended up sitting there waiting for about 15 minutes for our two drinks. I wasn't pressed for time today, but if I was, this would've been an issue. I ordered a raspberry chocolate scone and a cinnamon roll. The scone was delicious. Not too sweet and was definitely made this morning. The cinnamon roll was delicious as well, but it was extremely sweet. To the point where it hurt your teeth. It would also have been better if it were warmed up. Lastly, they gave me this big cinnamon roll in a bag without any napkins or utensils?!? I had to stop at the free breakfast at our hotel to get a fork, knife and some napkins. So kind of a mixed-bag at the Encounter Cafe. I would give it another shot and try some other things, but it didn't blow me away.

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The Encounter Cafe
The Encounter Cafe - Chocolate croissant and a lavender-honey iced latte w almond milk

Chocolate croissant and a lavender-honey iced latte w almond milk

The Encounter Cafe - Front counter and menu boards

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Maxwell's at the Merrill - Baked goat cheese

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We really enjoyed Maxwell's at the Merrell. Both dinner and breakfast are very good. The chef is…read morewonderful. This is by far hands-down the best restaurant in Muscatine, Iowa. My travel companion had a cold and we were able to ask for a home remedy. They were gracious enough to give it to us. The home remedy is a teaspoon of cayenne pepper and a shot of milk. Ambience is clean high and priced right.

Highly recommend if you're in the area!…read more I was in Muscatine for work and we stayed at The Merrill and am so glad Maxwell's is right in the lobby. We travelled at the end of January and after a long day of travel and many delays due to heavy low fog, we were definitely excited to have a restaurant right in the hotel. There is a parking lot across the street and a parking deck behind as well so there is plenty of parking. The restaurant is located right in the lobby and also has a full bar. My coworker and I were dying for a drink and some food after a long morning. The bar has speciality cocktails, but also a full bar, wine, and beer. You can check out their speciality cocktails, wine, and beer lists on their website as well as make reservations. For food, my coworker and I decided to share a few appetizers. We ordered the Brussels Sprouts, Wings (1/2 Honey Sriracha, 1/2 Ginger Scallion), and the Baked Goat Cheese. They were all DELICIOUS! The flavors were great and the portions were as well. I've never had goat cheese before and it was so amazing I couldn't stop eating it. The sriracha wings were spicy, but not overwhelming. Later, some other people met us and we ordered the shrimp tacos which were also very good. The next morning we also had breakfast and I ordered the Omelet which comes made-to-order and you can choose 4 different additions. It also comes with potatoes. All delicious. Additionally, the service was also great as well! If I'm ever back in Muscatine I will definitely plan to return.

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Maxwell's at the Merrill - Brussels sprouts  Wings - half honey sriracha and ginger scallion  Baked goat cheese

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The Serving Cafe - bakeries - Updated July 2026

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