Very overpriced . I got the waffle fries chicken nachos (which is an appetizer) and it was was like two pounds of fries and no chicken at all . My boyfriend did get the grumpy goat popper bugger , he really liked it . I tasted it and it was really good . They gave lots of fries , will never have to worry about the skimping you on that for sure . Over all just okay . read more

1st waitress was leaving so she cashed us out.. My change was 18.97 and she only brought me 18 and then proceeded to tell me she didn't bring me the 97 cents? 2nd waitress service was good. Very Attentive and checked on food order. Order cheese sticks and they came out very promptly. Food was not consistent with other locations. Ordered the baked Italian pasta and it was not baked. Great Moscow mules read more

Grumpy Goat Tavern - Italian baked pasta - Pubs Near Me - Des Moines, Iowa

Wow, I haven't been out in forever.. And this was not what I remember about going out! I wanted to go watch the Vikings (since they were not on regular local tv) game in a safe environment and I knew the Grumpy Goat had tv's on the patio so I thought this might be my best bet. I feel like I'm kinda at a loss for words about how bad my experience was.. It didn't help that my Vikings are awful. For a sports bar the staff did a pour job of having all the games on, you should not have 4 tvs side by side with the game thats on local tv? I felt like the place including the bathrooms were just un clean, and their were several tables that never got bussed in the 3 hours I was there.. Our server was one of the worst I have ever had. Never bussing our drinks, not really acknowledging us when he walked by. Never asked if we wanted something to eat... We finally ordered some Fries and Onion rings thinking that would be a safe bet.. After about an hour and me walking by our onion rings and fries in the window multiple times.. I kinda gave up on it.. We reminded him and it was clear he had forgot.. So he brought us some free fries and onion rings.. I think he might have grabbed the onion rings there had been sitting for an hour cause they were cold. The fries were hot but un seasoned and just awful.. This place made me a Grumpy Goat. read more

I decided to give this location another try after all it has been a few months since they opened. I was hoping they had time to improve. Yeah, just avoid this place. Management does not appear to care about customer service. To break things down, I ordered the all you can drink mimosa which included a fruit and juice bar. I waited for my first pre-filled champagne glass, but nothing came. I asked the waitress, she was frustrated. I asked the bar instead, waitress gets upset and rolls her eyes. The bartender hesitantly filled a glass -- YAY! Didn't realize paying for a mimosa bar could become so dramatic. Anyways, it was all you can drink, so obviously I'm going to want another glass. Waitress avoided my table and when we finally flagged her down, she gave all other guests a hard time as well. Siiigh, at this point, I just want to be drunk enough to handle her attitude. This pretty much happened until 3 glasses in... NEVER RETURNING! read more

Great service! We've been to the Ankeny one and the food was better there. We ordered sausage nachos to but got smoked chicken brought to us. It was good but skimpy on the meat. We then shared a Meat Head pizza. It wasn't very meaty. Thin crust but kind of soggy. Perhaps 5 more minutes in the oven would make it crispier. We watched the entire Cubs game and our waitress was wonderful. She kept our drinks filled and was very pleasant. read more

I was excited to try this place and went shortly after it opened. I sat outside on the patio which had a nice vibe to it. The service was extremely slow. One of our water cups had a hair in it that we pointed out to the server who brought us a new glass. The menu had limited options. The spinach and artichoke dip and the steak salad were mediocre. They did not offer dessert which was disappointing. Overall, it seemed like a place with potential if service improved and the menu had more to offer. read more

Visited Grumpy Goat Tavern this week after a state basketball game. While it is on the other side of downtown from the arena, it was remarkably not busy. We came in with a group of seven at dinnertime and were the only party in the restaurant. There was also only one gal working the tables and behind the bar, thank goodness they didn't get busy! We were the only table she had to attend to but I want to note that she was attentive and still did a great job. We ordered apps and a few others at the table ordered burgers. The burgers were huge and loaded with toppings, but I can't speak to the taste. For apps, we got the fried mozzarella, almond crusted chicken tenders, and nachos. The fried mozzarella came in ball form - not really sure what (maybe the type of mozz cheese?) but they were exceptionally good! The almond crusted chicken tenders were also delicious! I recommend dipping in the honey mustard that comes with, even though honey must isn't usually my go-to. For the nachos, you have the option of chicken, sausage, or both - we did both. They also come with jalapeños which gives them a bite, I'd recommend holding the jalaps if that is not your jam. Parking for this location of Grumpy Goat is meter parking so bring your coins or card, these meters take credit/debit cards (handy!). read more

Giving it two stars because of a decent space and patio. Service was nothing to brag about and didn't seem very polite. Drinks served in a plastic cups?? booooo. read more

Grumpy Goat Tavern - Plastic cups for cocktails.... - Pubs Near Me - Des Moines, Iowa

See all

Very cool place! Live band playing while Wheels on Walnut cycle show is going on. Service is great and food was an amazing! read more

Grumpy Goat Tavern - Chicken Tenders - Pubs Near Me - Des Moines, Iowa

See all

My wife and I came down for a night out and stay in Des Moines. We ate supper here Saturday night everything was awesome!Our waiter was top notch on suggesting drinks,food and so friendly. The food was excellent! We started with the artichoke spinach dip and then I had a Root Beer Burger and my wife had the Brisket with garlic mashed potatoes and jalapeno creme corn. All of it was wonderful! Washed it down with a couple of different Mules and I tried the "grilled zombie" again all were good!We decided to come back for brunch the next day and again it didn't disappoint! From the bloody mary bar(full of great choices) to our skillet and omelet. Would highly recommend this to any friends, family or just someone looking for good food and friendly staff! read more

Hate to make a bad review! Hate to do it. But sometime when a place is pretty bad you have to make a bad review. The service was alright. They had a good deal on Coors Light in a big mug. Those were the best parts. The worst part was that the food was bad. Ordered a philly melt flatbread, all of those words were loosely interpreted into a burned meat scrap chalupa on its side. Onion rings were cold and dried out. The server asked if I'd like a box. I said, "No thanks. I didn't like this." They said, "Oh no, we could have made you something different!" I didn't say, "This took so long to get here, cold and bad, that I'm uninterested in anything else your kitchen would turn out." I told her it wasn't her fault since she didn't cook it, and we laughed. I asked for the check. She brought it. I paid full price plus a 20% tip because I'm not a monster, and I left. I'd go back for a big mug of Coors Light on a Sunday night because that's hard to mess up and a good deal, but it is incredibly unlikely that I eat here again. read more

Enjoyable hangout. I especially like the good-sized patio area. We went on a Friday "Jimmy Buffett" night. The special on that night is $5 cheeseburgers and $5 margaritas. It wasn't real busy. Our drink service was excellent, very attentive waitress. We never waited long for a drink. So that was nice...5 stars on drink service. Our food service, however, is a different story. Out of our group of four, three of us ordered burgers and fries. One person had a steak salad. I felt that for burgers, fries and a salad, the wait was a little too long. We had gone through two good rounds of drinks before the waitress came back (with still no food), apologized, and said our food would be right out. Our food finally arrived shortly after the apology. So I'm wondering whether it was the waitress's fault for not putting in the order in a timely manner or if it was the kitchen taking too long to begin cooking it....I didn't ask. 2 stars for food service. However, when we finally did get the food, it was excellent! The fries were hot out of the fryer and the burgers were warm too. I asked around the table and everyone loved the food, great flavor! 5 stars on the food. Overall I think it was a good experience, and I'm sure we'll be back more this summer, especially during warm weather. Patio drinking and dining is the best! read more

Food was average. Two of my friends ordered pasta that came in cast iron skillets and we're cold by the time they got to the table. Waitress was unattentive at best. The thing is there wasn't anybody in there maybe 10 people or so and even with that it was hard to get her attention at times. Maybe try to find a better option. read more

The menu posted online is not this location's menu. Barely any food and no where near the amounts of specialty drinks. The brunch is pathetic and the entire menu is NOT Gluten friendly. Only go Here if you want a beer or easy to make cocktail. Otherwise no point. read more

Pizza was good and made fairly quickly. I am out of town so I googled closing times to make sure I had a place to relax for an hour. They closed an hour early at 9 pm during Monday night football so I definitely didnt get the hour. When a customer questioned it, the bartender lady was horribly rude and handle the situation terribly blaming her boss and the customer himself asking him what he would expect and that his business wasn't worth paying to keep the lights on. After he left she proceeded to say terrible things about the gentleman loudly in front of all the other customers. She complained that she didn't get the chance to actually kick him out. Then she would turn around and ask me if I needed something in a sweet voice like I hadn't heard all the terrible things she just said. Incredibly unprofessional. I'm not sure how she keeps a job. I would not recommend. Go somewhere else. read more

A bad server can ruin past positive experiences. Until Saturday night, my wife and I really liked this spot. However, we had a server named Chance that was absolutely terrible. Before arriving, I specified that we had trained service dogs (and one currently in training) with our group and requested a table at the patio, to be courteous to other people. Midway through our meal, our waiter tells us that those of us with dogs would need to leave. I reminded him that ours is an active service animal. He addressed the others in our party, both with and without a dog about this. We arrived around 10:00 and we're told only fried options were available. I ordered nachos, thinking that it would be an easy option that would probably be available. Our server disagreed. So I ordered something else that would fill me, but that I didn't want as much. About 20 minutes later, nachos were delivered at the other end of the table, from a different server. I asked to close out because I was mad and still offended about how the issue with my wife's service dog was handled (no misbehavior or anything, just existing and sitting calmly under our table). I was convinced to stay longer, but he avoided us quite a bit, until he asked us to close out early so he could leave. I thought that given his level of service, he should have let us know he was transferring the checks instead. Until the server we had this weekend, we loved the restaurant, the food, and the location. After the way things were handled, we probably won't be back to this location or any others. read more

We did not look at reviews before arriving and after reading some, we were pleasantly surprised! The service was really good, in and out of restaurant in 20 minutes. Food was okay, definitely over priced read more

I went to the downtown location on the day of Iowa State basketball games. Our sever was also behind the bar making drinks and service was slow but good! The food was great!! Fun atmosphere with all of the screen TV's surrounding the booths! read more

Grumpy Goat Tavern - We got these two appetizers; Spinach and Artichoke Dip and mozzarella cheese bites. The mozzarella cheese bites were sooo good! - Pubs Near Me - Des Moines, Iowa

Find somewhere else to go. Save yourself. Nice patio but absolutely the worst service. Not even because they were busy but the server knew nothing! Don't expect anything within 15 minutes unless your order a beer, but even then plan to wait 15 minutes.... And don't even think of ordering the nachos--unless you like white cheese poured on top of chips. Where is Jon Taffer when you need him?!? read more

Stopped by for relaxing Saturday lunch but the Grumpy Goat took "relaxing" to the extreme. We walked in, past two servers and waited to be acknowledged. The bartender finally said, "Sit anywhere." So we did. However, the wait staff still couldn't stop their coffee klatch to come over and bring water and menus for at least 10 minutes and the place wasn't even crowded yet. When he waiter finally brought menus, she allowed us a lot of leisurely time to explore the limited options. She evidently took our order and we were able to sit back and enjoy the multiple games on screen. The food was typical pub fare - not bad but not outstanding either. If you go, be sure to allow at least 1 1/2 hours for a quick lunch. read more

Absolutely the worst service I've ever experienced. Just wanted a simple Bloody Mary with the fixings (which I might add is $12.50). Had nothing but green olives in it and sat there for AN HOUR waiting for the slider. Upon questioning the bartender she just shook her head and said I don't know. Not only did she look like she should be in middle school but had no concept of customer service. Will NEVER go back there again. read more

With all the establishments in this area, one would think wait staff/bartender would be present. Mismanagement? Not sure if it's just 3 unlucky times but they need to get staff on deck!! read more

Trust Yelp. Terrible service. We sat down and waited for 10 minutes just to get water and place our drink order. Then waited another 15. Our server finally came back and acted like we'd just gotten there. She couldn't even remember that we had already placed an order. Don't waste your time or money on this place. Way better options all within walking distance. read more

We had a very enjoyable experience! Waitress was great, food was surprisingly great, and fun atmosphere. Great little sports bar to wind down the night. read more

Great food and great service. They're under new management with new cooks, and the server Ashley was great. Highly recommended.

I have hung out here a few times since working in area. Good service. Good sports bar. Food is hit or miss. Have had good wings w root beer sauce. Worth a try. Last visit had chicken wrap and sent it back. Chicken was cold and hard...my server went back and made sure remade fresh. It was good not worth $12. If thirsty and need a refreshing drink stop in. read more

First time eating here on Thursday for the wings special, I tried the Root beer habinario wings and the Thai sweet chilli wings along with a half order of onion rings, I think I've found my new Thursday spot but I do want to try the flat bread pizza special on Wednesdays, will definitely be going back and telling all my friends. The patio looks really cool as well. read more

We were here last night to watch the NCAA. Great place to do that. Now for the not so great. They ran out of chicken, the kitchen was backed up over an hour and the food they did get done sat at the window waiting to get delivered. The waitstaff (2) tried their best but clearly not enough people working. The bathroom needed a good scrubbing. The partitions are filthy and the toilets just as bad. The sink had black stuff all over it. This is our second time here and the kitchen had the same type of issues then. Great location but definitely in need of a manager. Makes me wonder how dirty the kitchen is. read more

GRUMPY Goat embraces its name! Since we do not live in Des Moines we do not have a Smart Card for parking meters. We were able to get a meter across from the tavern but did not have coins to feed the meter. My dinner companion was recently injured and was walking with a cane and with great difficulty. Upon entering we saw no sign directing us to seat ourselves or wait for a server. We were never greeted but after a moment a server vaguely directed us to seat ourselves. While waiting for the table to be wiped down from previous customers I went to the bar to ask for change for the meter. The bartender was EXTREMELY dismissive. He told me he had NO change. Really? Wow! So I asked him who might have change (thinking he might suggest the server). He said he didn't know and made an off the cuff suggestion of some other fast food restaurants in the area. I returned to the table and waited for the server. I asked her if she might have some change. She also simply answered, "No!". She also offered no assistance or helpful suggestions so that we might be able to stay as customers. She mentioned that they were "looking into getting a change machine" because this "happens all the time". During these exchanges a KIND HEARTED CUSTOMER watched on in disbelief by the staffs' insensitive and dismissive reaction. She was digging through her purse, with minimal success, trying to find change for us. Out of principle and due to a lack of solution to our problem we eventually chose to leave without ordering drinks and dinner. They were not excessively busy so that was a loss for the owner, the bartender, and the server (btw- we are generous tippers). One would think in this day and age that the owner and managers would have come up with a solution to this problem that "happens all the time". Hmmm... One stop gap measure may be for the manager to go to the bank each morning before opening and get multiple rolls of quarters just for these types of situations.,., it's not like it would cost them anything! Due to the rude, unhelpful, dismissive, and arrogant response from the staff we will NEVER find out about the quality of food or drink at the Very Grumpy Goat. Fortunately for us, we immediately drove to Star Bar and were greeted by an extraordinarily FRIENDLY and EFFICIENT staff who served up lovely beer, yummy food and free parking! read more

It's a sports bar. Cheap plastic furniture, regular beer list with two in-house beers, and not great service. The in-house lager tastes like a Blue Moon. We got a brisket sandwich, which was tasty but pricey, and the Iowa Mac and cheese, which was not tasty but still pricey. They did comp us for the Mac and cheese, which I appreciated, because it really did taste like something in it was bad. It's a good location and cute branding, but not worth it for the food. read more

Absolutely a horrible experience from the food to the ambiance, tv screen on top of tv screen. A kitchen staff that can't make the most basic order of a burger and fries to management that was more concerned with sitting and eating at the bar than caring for customers. Don't waste your time or money! read more

1 Star is generous but here we are. Been sitting here at 7:30 on a Saturday night for 30 minutes and still don't have drinks yet. There are 10 people total in this restaurant and they are struggling to serve everybody here. Very sad excuse for a restaurant, would be surprised to see them last through the summer. read more

The beer is incredibly good...if you can get it. The last two times I have been in and sat at the bar and been ignored by the bartenders. The first time was a bit busy, (4 people at the bar besides me). Waited 15 mins, bartender walked by me several times, didn't even acknowledge me. Second time, was only one at bar. Waited five minutes with a bartender behind the bar, she didn't bother greeting me and walked away from the bar leaving me drink less. If you go here the grumpy goat lager is a phenomenal beer. If you're unlucky like me and are ignored by the bartenders, the walnut pub down the block also has good beer and attentive bartenders. read more

Awful service. Burger took 35 minutes to arrive, no offer of refills and then the server stood around the bar for 25 plus minutes while we waited for our check. Burger was good but not worth the wait. To many other options within the same price range in the area. read more

The service at this establishment is an absolute joke. We have been sitting at our table for 30 minutes. Not one employee has taken our order or greeted us. We finally flagged a gal down and she said she would go get someone and that never happened. We finally had to go to the bar to order a beverage which took a long time as well. This space is so awesome and everything is setup so well to entertain everyone there. The fact that we had to ask the bartender to serve us after waiting so long, made our experience less than pleasant. We shall not return. It's a shame that such a well appointed place has such terrible service. read more

Hesitant to even give this spot a 1 star review. We decided to try the place in hopes our experience surpassing the trash reviews. Turns out our experience was exactly as the reviews say. Waited at least 20 minutes to be served drinks, another 35 minutes to order our food, and even after we put our order in our waitress disappeared. Our order came to us incorrect but our waitress was sitting in her car across the lot and we were unable to tell her. We sat another 35 minutes before she came by to "check in". This was during a SLOW Sunday afternoon. WASTED TIME. Do not come here. read more

It's bar food. What's more to say. We had the grilled cilantro chicken sandwich and it was good. Wifey had sweet potato fries and I got cottage cheese as our sides. The food was hot but the basket it was served in was sticky. Yuck! You'd think that with the Rona going on, sanitation would be key. They did have hand sanitizer at the bar. My wife had bottle beer and I had a draft beer. Mistake!! That keg must have been tapped prior to the shutdown. Skunk flat Blue Moon isn't good. Our waitress was attentive and kind. The place was close to 50% capacity but not quite. Tables were marked as open or not. The patio had a couple open tables but they were filthy when we got there. Tons of TV's on. My suggestion to ownership is clean the place better. Dirty tables and sticky food service items are gross. You have a suitable staff but need leadership. No manager ever stopped by. At 50 percent, you should be there on a Friday night making sure all is running right. read more

Rating 0.00, terrible service. Rude and terrible server. Walked in and no direction what to do so we sat down as The server walked by us many times and did not even acknowledge we were there. 15 minutes went by and another couple walked in sat down at a table next to us and he ( the server) greeted them. When I questioned him why he was avoiding us he said " if you don't like the service leave" What a bright and rewarding future he has. We went to El Bait Shop and had a great friendly server and wonderful time. AVOID grumay goat tavern!!!!! read more

My friend and I went to watch the football games on a Sunday. The bar was not very crowded. We sat outside and one of the servers said someone would take our order. We waited about 20 minutes and then asked the guy next to us if he had been served yet. He said he had been waiting for 30 minutes and still had not been asked for a drink order. After about 30 mins we up to the bar and the server that was supposed to be working outside was sitting on her phone inside at the bar. I hope this was an off day. We decided this wasn't for us. read more

Tavern is the key word here. Bad service can ruin your business and this business won't be around long if servers don't open their eyes. Not one but two servers walked around my guest and I and never spoke to us or took the time to approach us. It's one thing to be busy and of course important to take that into consideration but a goat would be more attentive than the Grumpy Goat Staff. After waiting 15 minutes watching servers walking around wiping off tables and never acknowledging us we decided to leave. That was enough for me and I won't be returning to the Grumpy Goat to give it another chance. There are too many other restuarants that are looking for my business and prepared to give excellent service. read more