Blue Daisy just got open this summer, and the food is great so far! They serve a mix of diner…read morefavorites, coffee, and deserts. The Sunday mornings when the American Legion is not serving pancake breakfast they'll be open for brunch. Right now, they're only open two nights a week...taco night and fewer tacos night (Tuesday & Thurday). The deserts are a highlight, fresh and homemade. I just got some rhubarb bars that are wonderful. The diner-esque sandwiches are all good...a nice place to start is the three cheese grilled cheese sandwich on Texas Toast. Definitely worth a stop!

The Filling Station is a gas station, an extra stocked convenience store, a breakfast/lunch food…read morecounter, and a tables inside and out to enjoy your refreshments and the view. Gayle and I stopped in today after reading about it within some "48 hours in Ames" article. I ordered a brisket grilled cheese sandwich, while Gayle chose a similar one with blackberry flavoring. We split a can of Guinness off the convenience store fridge, and then sat outside for our street and car wash view. We had nice shade on a not too hot day and took the opportunity to hang out bit after we finished our meal. This was a tasty and pleasant experience of good value overall.

Was nearby for an early meeting and had a gap before my next one. Decided to grab breakfast and…read morerolled the dice and just went here for a quick bite. Wow, it is a lot more than a quick breakfast at a gas station! The kitchen was complete and had a full menu offered up. It was also a commercial bakery... multiple bakers working on cinnamon rolls that looked divine! I had a breakfast quesadilla. It had real flavor in it with candied jalapeños. It was a lot but judging from all the plates I saw come out of the kitchen everything there was solid in serving size. The chai latte was good too. And the folks were nice. They definitely have loyal fans locally, folks were ordering for tailgates!

We always try to eat here when we are in town to visit family. The menu is quite good but the…read morespecials are usually even better. We had the Baja Shrimp Taco special last Wed and restaurant week started so we had the entire Thai tasting menu on Friday. It was fabulous - please check it out. It is Midwest hot, not Thai hot. Staff is always great. We almost always end with carrot cake - I had ZoeBakes carrot cake in the Twin Cities and it was not anywhere close to as tasty as The Cafe's version. I would agree with some other posts that the lighting in some areas makes it very hard to read the menus or see your food. Updated lighting would be helpful. We try to come early and get a spot near the windows so that we can see better.

Disappointed... I came here for restaurant week to try their Thai Menu. It looked good online and…read morethought I'd give them a try. The Cafe has been on my list for a while now. Disappointed to say the least, I came in the back door not realized there was a correct door and was rudely cut off by other patrons at the front desk. I had to wait several minutes to be waited on and the place had plenty of spots. Maybe because I was a party of 1... they didn't seem to care. After I shared what drink I wanted, I learned they were out... fine no problem. I asked about the Thai specials, the waitress was clueless. I had to ask for the restaurant week menu and ask about the specials. She said they looked good but couldn't describe them and hasn't tasted them. I got the salad on special, but get this... they were out of the main restaurant week special... such a let down. The ambiance was mixed, one corner was a cute date night the other corner was crying children. All dimly lit and outdated decor. The whole experience was off, I ended up leaving after my one drink and salad. I hope to give this place a second chance sometime but hope they aren't out of dishes and I can get a trained server. Maybe another night for sure!

This place is just wonderful. It has a calm and cozy atmosphere and vibe when you walk in. The…read morestaff are warm and welcoming, ready to help. Now, I love a good breakfast and brunch place, especially when it isn't a crowded chain place. This place fits that bill. It is a local place with two locations. The menu is brilliantly "evil" making it extremely difficult to choose just one dish to try. They all look amazing and delicious, so of course, you will need to visit more than once to enjoy all that they have to offer. During my visit, I tried their cinnamon roll pancakes with eggs and bacon. Oh boy are they incredible! The pancakes just melt in your mouth, full of flavor. The eggs were a classic standard of scrambled eggs and the bacon I ordered crispy as I like a good crunch. My companion ordered the Hobo Scramble and just loved it. She made sure to take some home to enjoy for a second time. All in all, I enjoyed my experience and look forward to my next visit and delicious meal.

Came into this place early before a Clones game. We were seated quickly and served coffee. We all…read morehad standard orders of pancakes and sides. There were only maybe 3 tables seated, so it felt like quite a bit of time for food to come out. When food did come out, pancakes looked great, but eggs and bacon sides were pretty measley. For $13-$16 plates, I guess I expected these to be a little more substantial. Food was overall good, but not great.

Nice place with friendly staff. But did it live up to my expectations after all of the rave 5-star…read morereviews? Maybe not... We sampled our way through the Reuben & Gobbler panini sandwiches with sides of chips and baked beans. Both were good, but neither was amazing. Typically I'd expect a panini to be oh so warm, melty, soothing (in a sandwich way). These were more what I'd title as toasty sandwiches... bread sizes were vastly different, which resulted in different portions. And on the Reuben specifically, where's the meat? The kids meals (and everything else) were very reasonably priced. But I was a little disappointed that the "treat" was a pack of fruit snacks at a place apparently known for their baked goods. Our toddler was unsurprisingly very pleased with the fruit snacks. I wanted to love it, but didn't. Ultimately it was an entirely adequate dinner. Good. Sadly not exceptional.

CLOSED PERMANENTLY as of last Friday according to sign on door…read more Had yesterday off so did the wife I decided we should drive up to Story Chitty and check this place out for lunch. 1215 pull up front sign on door states closed. I just looked at their website at the menu & hours would have been awesome of the owner to put something on the site about NOT BEING OPEN ANYMORE...

Salad Bar alone would take me back here. While it's not as big as other salad bars (like Nicks in…read moreClive, IA) it's still a great salad bar. Cheese Curds: we like these because they were battered, not breaded. Piping hot, very good. Plain Burger: my son says it was good ‍ but wasn't interested in sharing so I didn't actually try it. Prime Rib: I ordered a medium rare but, unfortunately, it was super dry even with the au jus side. Lately, I've been disappointed more than not by prime ribs that are bland and dry. Sirloin: alternatively, this was very juicy and delicious. Great grill flavor and lovely side of mushrooms. Broasted Chicken: in true "me" fashion, I ordered two entrees. While my salad bar trip was great and my prime rib was so-so, this more than made up for it! Soooooo juicy and flavorful, highly recommend their broasted chicken. Chopped Steak: my husband loves a chopped steak. Don't ask me why, it's not at the top of my list but to each their own. He didn't love the demi glaze on this dish, and thought their beef gravy would be been much better. The demi was "too much wine" flavor. I can't say "too much red wine" is anywhere in my dictionary but whatever. We really enjoyed this dinner, even with the dry prime rib, and plan to go back for that salad bar and broasted chicken.

Don't blink or you'll miss it. I'm speaking of the entire town of Paton. This is a needle in the…read morehaystack of western Iowa. But a great find. Good quality homestyle food and a very large building. They seemed to be slightly understaffed on the Saturday night we visited as they were only seating half the restaurant. This led to a short 5 minute wait for a table. The in-laws just moved about 20 minutes away so I'm sure we will be back. Lots of things on the menu that I'd love to try!

I hear this place gets busy during boating season, so we tried to get in before things got crazy…read more We walked in on a Wednesday morning in June around 10:30, were greeted immediately, and the service was helpful and well-paced. The menu was pretty simple, with nothing too crazy. The most exciting thing on the menu to me is the Cinnamon Roll French Toast - I will need to surprise my wife some of those someday! I ordered the more giant biscuits and gravy with two pancakes. It was too much to finish in one meal, so I grabbed a box. It was good, but it wasn't anything extraordinary. It tasted exactly how I would expect pancakes and biscuits & gravy to be! I'm going to have to try again in the future and do something different to figure out what the locals go crazy for, but for my first visit, it seemed like a typical spot that seemed to be reliable.

This café used to be a favorite breakfast spot, but a recent visit was disappointing from start to…read morefinish. Despite the restaurant being nearly empty, the service felt curt and unwelcoming, beginning with a confusing interaction as we entered and continuing throughout the meal. The food quality was also below expectations, with overcooked eggs and poorly prepared sides. Most notably, there was little hospitality--no check-ins, no coffee refill without our request, and difficulty even getting the bill. After many years of positive experiences here, this visit stood out for all the wrong reasons and was disappointing enough to make longtime customers reconsider returning.

Awesome place that really surprised. Clearly a farm to table concept with a varied but overwhelming…read moremenu. Came in on a weeknight with coworkers and received good service and fantastic food. Nice drink menu (I enjoyed their take on the old fashioned) with cocktails and a nice craft beer selection. Everyone loved their food, from the barley soup to the ravioli, burger, Brussels salad, and the salmon I got. Hidden gem perhaps was their incredible dessert selection. The cherry tart was a pleasant surprise and the salted caramel chocolate cake will def fix a choc craving. Would gladly come back.

Provisions Lot F in Ames…read more If you like fresh baked breads and bomb desserts, along with amazing food, head to Provisions if you're in the area. Pork Belly app: thick cut pork belly in lettuce cups, topped with sweet thai glaze, pickled carrots, onions, celery, mint, thai basil, cilantro, scallions and crushed peanuts. A tad sweet for me but overall this was a great app. Slice of Sourdough: delish. Chicken Japchae: since my mom has celiac disease, we were very excited to see this on their menu - dining out with her can be a challenge. Especially at a place specializing in breads! The only unfortunate part about this dish is (I think) they forgot they already salted the chicken and salted it again...and then again. I'm not one to say something is too salty, I love my sodium but this was mouth-puckering salty. Inedible, actually, but the noodle dish itself was SO GOOD that she set the chicken aside and ate the entree. NY Strip Steak: perfectly med-rare, served with a garlic-rosemary potato pavé (like a potato casserole of sorts), roasted broccolini and a house steak sauce that was similar to a demi glaze. Not a bite left - no leftovers with this one. I ate the whole dang thing. Myself. And I have zero regrets. Crème Brûlée: I also couldn't leave without ordering a crème brûlée because there are some really bad ones out there. This did not disappoint. I also took home a Dubai Chocolate tort, Raspberry Crumble and a Flourless Chocolate cake. ZERO regrets but if you love Dubai chocolate then you know there are some discusting renditions of this in the market. However, the Dubai chocolate tort at Provisions Lot F is . I can't even describe how delicious this was and is worth the drive to Ames just for this dessert. If you're north of DSM for a game or whatever, I highly recommend Provisions! I'm already scheming a way to get back there...soon!

My husband and I went to Nilands Cafe after golfing at Lincoln Valley golf course. We have eaten…read morethere before and every experience with the food, employees were fantastic! I love the atmosphere and retro style of this nostalgic restaurant! The chef is an amazing cook! We were both commenting on how delicious every bite we taking in!! (Yummy) The best Cafe in between small towns!!! We are so very thankful Nilands is still here and "continue " to support them! I want to thank the young ladies who were kind to us and served! If you're looking for down home cooking and great customer service......."Come to Nilands Cafe" in Colo, Iowa!!! God bless you for serving

Cute little piece of nostalgia!! Stopped by while headed home from the holidays. Shared a piece of…read morebanana cream pie which was really good. So good we ordered Strawberry Rhubarb next. It was also delicious. I highly recommend the detour. Oh... and it got us off I-80 and put us on US30.... I have to say it made it a much better ride across Iowa.

Food was great! Staff were friendly and polite, I enjoyed the local diner vibes. I would eat here…read moreagain

Small town diner kinda place. Good food. Service was friendly but a little disorganized (not a big…read moredeal). Had to go down in the scary basement to find a restroom so not good for folks e mobility issues. But given the food was good and people friendly, I would return.