We ate our way through the weekend. There are surprisingly so many restaurants in Des Moines - we spent almost an hour just choosing where to go to on Saturday night. The nice thing about a smaller city though is that you have a better chance of getting a reservation than in a city like Chicago.
I started my Saturday out with a twist on my regular latte. My girlfriend over at A Sequin Dress At Breakfast had posted about peep lattes at Jeff's favorite coffee shop, Java Joe's. This little treat definitely put a smile on my face.
After taking our doggy girl to the park, we grabbed an early lunch at Exile Brewing Co. This restaurant and brewery was recently opened by the same family who owns the established Latin King restaurant. The space is in a renovated former soap building in the Western Gateway neighborhood and the decor is contemporary and sleek with touches of rustic wood. We sat in the brew house, which has a view of the fermentation room. They also have an outdoor patio just off the brew house. The craft beers were so good, but the best thing was the fried pickles. They were entire pickle spears and the breading was still doughy...drooling just thinking about them.
To burn some calories before another big meal with our friends for dinner, we went on a walk along the Riverwalk. This was so much fun exploring and little Travi couldn't have been cuter mimicking my every move.
Before meeting up with friends for dinner, we grabbed drinks at a favorite spot of mine The Continental, which is in the East Village neighborhood. This restaurant has a great bar with a phenomenal cocktail menu. I was getting beyond tipsy trying all of the yummy cocktails. And the bartender is a great mixologist and so friendly that you want to be best buddies.
For dinner we went to Alba in the East Village neighborhood. This restaurant was a nominee for a 2010 James Beard Restaurant Award and was voted "Best Restaurant" by the Des Moines Register in 2010 and 2011. The food is contemporary American and was so good, but the portions were small and some people in our party were left feeling a little hungry. The decor was unique with doors hanging from the ceiling. There is also a chef's table in which you get front row seats to the cooking action. The menu changes frequently so this would be a place to check out again.
And soon the weekend wrapped up and it was time to go home. Always hard to say good bye to this little nugget (and her dad, of course).
This is my favorite blog post yet! Travi is pretty much in love with her Muhma!
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