dsm Dish - August 15, 2025

Welcome to dsm Restaurant Week 2025.
Your table awaits.

By dsm Staff

Are you ready for the easiest week of meal planning ever? Over the next 10 days, nearly 40 restaurants across the city are offering exclusive prix-fixe menus for lunch and dinner. Chefs have worked all summer prepping the perfect courses to showcase the flavors they're known for, with a little extra flair.

Menus include three courses and sometimes dessert, ranging from $40-$80 per person depending on the spot you choose. Lunch menus start at just $15. To give you a taste of what to expect, here are some of the menus we’re most excited for:

Tupelo Honey’s $50 dinner for two includes their classic fried green tomatoes and your choice between Southern-style shrimp and grits, fried chicken or a decidedly more Iowan favorite, slow-cooked pork shoulder. The deal includes a dessert of banana pudding or brown butter pecan pie. (The best part about dinner for two? Getting one of each!)

Big Grove Brewery is offering a unique menu from chef Dale Rinderman. The specials include crab beignets, a bok choy Caesar salad, salmon burgers, lamb with potato pave and a carrot cake donut with cinnamon gelato.

Fleming’s never disappoints, but prepare to swoon over some of their fan favorites for $80. Diners get a choice of filet mignon or prime New York strip steak, plus a salad and sides, and a gooey brownie or cheesecake for dessert.

And don't forget: Allora offers a perfect weekday lunch. Their three-course options are heavy on flavor but light enough that you won’t fall asleep in the afternoon, all for less than $30. Their menu is great for vegetarian diners too, with a tomato gazpacho and summer veggie pasta.

Explore more menus from participating restaurants at dsmrestaurantweek.com.

What’s one reason you like to dine out during dsm Restaurant Week?

“I love it when chefs go ‘off menu.’ dsm Restaurant Week provides culinary professionals with an opportunity to showcase their creativity and utilize seasonal ingredients that are abundant in August.”

— Chris Diebel (left), dsm contributing writer, public affairs consultant and founding partner of Bubba - Southern Comforts

“I’m pretty loyal to a dish once I find something I love, so I find a go-to favorite and don’t usually mix it up much, but dsm Restaurant Week gives me the nudge I need to try something new. It’s a great excuse to explore different menus and support the chefs and restaurants that make our city’s food scene so exceptional. Our culinary talent rivals that of much bigger cities, and it’s time more people knew it.”

— Jessica Dunker (center), president and CEO, Iowa Restaurant Association

“I like to dine out during dsm Restaurant Week because, as a former bakery owner, I understand how much heart and hard work goes into running a food business. Restaurant Week gives me a chance to support fellow chefs and entrepreneurs while enjoying their creativity and passion.”

— Christina Moffatt (right), assistant director of business development for income solutions, Principal Financial Group

Quick Bites

The Iowa Culinary Institute has a few spots left for various dates in the Fall Gourmet Dinner series. This year’s dinners are inspired by Mexico, Singapore and the Umbria region of central Italy. Check out the menus online and request a reservation.

Smokey Row recently rebranded its coffee packaging. To complement the new look, the chain based in Pleasantville is building a new production facility to increase coffee bag production.

Prime & Providence opened a new patio space just in time for late summer dining.

Panka, the Peruvian restaurant on Ingersoll Avenue, is asking diners to come in soon. Owner Mariela Maya said in an Instagram post, “if things continue like this, Panka might have to close.” Diners can go for brunch on select days and dinner, or order online through the local delivery service EatFuti.

Bubbly Bar & Bistro, atop a hill at the Iowa State Fair, is the "most romantic place on the fairgrounds" according to a Des Moines Register story about its founders, Bryan and Jennie Enloe.

Events

Through Sunday: The Iowa State Fair continues for a few more days of organic, artisanal amuse-bouches and crudités. (Just kidding. Go wild!)

Through Aug. 24: dsm Restaurant Week celebrates the city’s favorite dining destinations with 10 days of chef-curated menus and deals for lunch and dinner.

Wednesday: The Garden Party Luncheon at the Wallace House celebrates seasonally fresh flavors with a three-course lunch featuring edible flowers and a floral-infused drink.

Aug. 22-24: The World Food & Music Festival at Western Gateway Park is a multisensory feast that regularly ranks among USA Today’s 10Best Readers’ Choice Awards.

Aug. 24: The Know Your Farmer Dinner at the Wallace Center in Orient introduces guests to the Wallace Centers of Iowa garden programs manager Kevin Blair, and the organization’s geothermal greenhouse operation. Guests will enjoy a three-course dinner and a tour of the greenhouse.

DIY dining out

By Libby Nichols

Next time you’re planning a celebration or getting together with friends, why not try a cooking class? It’s a fun way to get your creative juices flowing, hone your kitchen skills and savor delicious flavors along the way.

Des Moines offers so many classes — for different cuisines, skill levels and price points — that you’re sure to find something to spark your culinary curiosity and further your cooking ambitions. Here a few locally owned options we recommend:

Cooking with Alessandra
Alessandra Meschini brings the soul of her native Italy’s cuisine to her East Village cucina, offering hands-on classes that highlight traditional recipes and techniques. From ravioli to gnocchi and focaccia, each class is a journey to her homeland. She holds classes weekly, priced at $65 per person, with high demand, so booking early is recommended. Private or corporate events start at $1,000 for up to 14 people. Bring your favorite wine, and she’ll provide the glasses.

Culinary Annex
Sushi, pierogies, dim sum, focaccia, cake decorating — you name it, the Culinary Annex teaches it. The cooking classes in West Des Moines, led by skilled instructors and talented local chefs, offer a chance to sharpen your skills, whether you’re mastering traditional dishes or experimenting with foodie trends. The Annex offers multiple classes each week, ranging from $65 to $115 per person, as well as private lessons and access to its commercial kitchen for rent.

DSM Pasta Co.
If pasta is your favorite food, DSM Pasta Co. has you covered. Kali and AJ Brudos make fresh, handmade pasta using locally sourced ingredients, and sell their ready-to-cook noodles online and at Moxie Kitchen + Events, a shared-use commercial kitchen that supports local food entrepreneurs and events. DSM Pasta Co. offers pasta-making classes at Moxie every Wednesday night for $50. They also send chefs to your home to lead demos and prepare three-course dinners for you and your friends, starting at $85 per person.

“Our pasta classes aren’t just about learning,” Kali said. “It’s incredibly rewarding to see the joy and connection that comes from sharing a meal you’ve made together from scratch.”

Home Kneads
Up in Madrid, you’ll find Home Kneads, a baking school dedicated to sourdough. Twice a month on Sunday afternoons, they offer hands-on classes where you can learn to make artisanal bread from scratch. Fresh sourdough not only tastes incredible but also provides natural health benefits from the fermentation process. For $75, each class includes a sourdough starter and a printed recipe guide to kick-start your bread-making journey. Spots fill up months in advance, so be sure to reserve yours early.

Kitchen Collage
Since it opened in 1999, this East Village shop has built a reputation for kitchenware and thoughtful gifts. It also offers classes in the back. They typically cost $55 per person, with options for hosting private sessions for larger groups, and cover a variety of practical how-to skills: to make taquitos, to bake a lemon meringue pie, to master knife skills and so on. Most classes take place on the weekends.

Libby Nichols is the creator and founder of Meet DSM, an Instagram account and brand dedicated to showcasing Des Moines. She also writes about local businesses and events for dsm magazine.

The French term “prix fixe” (pronounced pree feeks) means “fixed price” and dates back to 18th-century taverns, where everyone sat down at the same time for the same meal at one set cost, according to a fascinating website called foodtimeline.org. Communal meals were practical for the kitchen, social for diners and easy on the wallet. Parisian restaurants later refined the custom into a more elegant format with multiple courses (usually an appetizer, main course and dessert) for one tidy price, often with a few choices in each category. Today, prix fixe menus are a hallmark of fine dining and tasting menus — a way to savor a chef’s vision without fussing over any à la carte math.