and scroll down to view the restaurants featured.
Iowa boasts a broad array of dining options to satisfy any taste. Discover 99 restaurants (one for each county) to get you started. Happy dining!
Download Full List
Archie's Waeside Café
For more than 60 years, Archie’s has been dry-aging and hand-cutting mouthwatering steaks. Rachael Ray named them one of the best steakhouses in America (finishing in the top four of 200 selected). Their wine selection was a semi-finalist for a James Beard award in 2014 and they were awarded the James Beard American Classic award in 2015.
Belmond Drive-In
How do these restaurant owners make 2015's best tenderloin in Iowa? A center cut pork loin sourced from a local locker is hand trimmed and cut, dipped in an egg wash and then breaded. Drive in and dive in!
Breitbach's Country Dining
At Breitbach’s in Balltown, everything they serve is made from scratch. So, it’s no wonder they won the James Beard America’s Classics Award and people travel from miles around for their fried chicken and homemade pies.
Cobble Hill Eatery & Dispensary
The James Beard Foundation named chef and co-owner Andy Schumacher a semifinalist for the Best Chef in the Midwest in 2015. The menu, which changes seasonally due to availability of local produce in Cedar Rapids, includes ingredients like smoked popcorn grits and barrel-aged hot sauce jus.
Crouse Café
The food here is so down-to-earth, you'd swear your mom's in the kitchen. Downhome favorites like tenderloins, fried chicken and roast beef sandwiches precede the perfect dessert: famous homemade cherry pie.
Darrell's Place
The winner of the very first "Iowa’s Best Breaded Tenderloin" contest almost 15 years ago, Darrell’s Place in Hamlin is still serving up around 220 pounds of fried pork each week.
Goldie's Ice Cream Shoppe
Goldie’s Ice Cream Shoppe is the definition of a jack-of-all-trades eatery. Serving soft serve ice cream and an endless list of sundaes (including apple pie and s’mores) and other ice cream creations, Goldie's was also the 2009 winner of Iowa's Best Breaded Pork Tenderloin.
River Rock Café
This quaint diner was the Iowa Pork Producers Association’s Best Breaded Pork Tenderloin winner in 2013. The River Rock Café is located on the scenic and peaceful Skunk River. Take in the views and award-winning food in Mount Pleasant.
The Lucky Pig
The 2014 winner of Iowa’s Best Tenderloin, The Lucky Pig is a hometown favorite. In addition to tenderloins, try the prime rib on Friday and Saturday nights and the pie of the day.
The Rusty Duck
Winner of Iowa’s Best Burger in 2011, The Rusty Duck is a gem of a bar and grill just off Interstate 80. The portions are generous and the food is perfectly cooked to your liking.
