4.0* (out of 5) Food: 3* Atmosphere: 5* Value: 4* Service: 5* Would I go back / Recommend?: 4* (Probably) Total check/person: $38 06/14/2025 We stopped here for drinks last weekend with our son who lives nearby, so when it was my turn to choose a place to eat after Mass tonight I thought we'd give it a try. We enjoyed the music from the 70s and 80s last time and in addition to that, they had a live band tonight and the place was pretty full, so we sat at the bar. They try hard to say they aren't a sports bar (on the back of the shirts on all the wait staff), so I asked a bartender what they were then if they weren't a sports bar. After discussing the 70s / 80s theme, we ended up getting a history lesson. We were told that Shirley was the original name of the town of Waukee, but it was changed after lobbying from the Milwaukee Railroad that came through town to name it after them. The Waukee website gives a slightly different take...saying Gen. Reid of the Des Moines Valley Railroad stated that the 'powers that be' in the railroad office in Keokuk insisted that it should have an Indian appellation, and hence Waukee it had to be. For dinner, my wife ordered the French Dip with tots (see picture) and I opted for The Rachel with cottage cheese (see picture). While I really enjoyed the Rachel - great taste with the smoked turkey and nicely toasted bread, my wife and I agreed that the French Dip and tots were average bar food at best. I didn't like the bread, the size of the tots were smaller than average...leaving mostly breading and she asked for Ranch to dip them in and instead received some type of sweet homemade sauce. Overall, I liked this place - especially the drinks, service and 70s/80s music and theme. If you found this review helpful, please show your appreciation with a Like or a Follow. read more

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Last minute family dinner at Shirley's Bar & Grill in Waukee, to watch Velvet Trio sing, a smaller band off the larger group Suede. Seat yourself meant we kindly gave up our booth to another family, and stood by the bar waiting for the next. Fast bar service while we waited. THE FOOD WAS AWESOME BAR FOOD! (short review summary) Wings: tasty sweet chili wings, but I was craving wings all day so it soothed the itch (who am I kidding, I'm always craving wings ). Ranch dressing was good so that hit the mark. Curds: hot and gooey, nothing crazy unique but it's melted, fried cheese with a batter shell (which is our preference). Not a huge fan of breaded over battered. Italian Sammy: thicker slices of ham, capicola, salami, pepperoni, provolone, shredded lettuce, banana pepper, tomato and their awesome creamy parmesan, all on an Italian hoagie. The only thing we wished was we should have gotten a side of giardeniere (which comes in the Italian Sausage sammy). It was delicious and we all loved this sub. Shirley's Burger: what can only be described as a fancy Big Mac but wayyyyyyy gooder! This was so good, and...yeah. Just, just try it! I was between this, the French dip, the club sandwich or the tuna melt. I was all over the place! Tenderloin Fried: my husband has to get a tenderloin just about every time it's on a menu somewhere. It's his way of being able to tell if a "bar food restaurant" has good food or not. This is one of those "tell me you're from central Iowa without telling me you're from central Iowa" moments, IMO but he says that about my "good ranch" obsession so ‍ it was very good, and we love a tenderloin bigger than the bun! The batter was peppery and flavorful, which is a thumbs up for us. Classic Burger: a classic double cheeseburger was still very good! Two kids enjoyed this one. Love their fries, the sweet potato tots were just so so, but LOVED their coleslaw. Not "too creamy" and not "too vinegary", this one was the perfect mix of both - so so so tasty. And their gooey brownie with mint ice cream...get outta here, it was excellent! Server Ella was attentive and kind. This place will be in our family rotation, very very good! read more

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Stopped in with another couple for dinner on a cold Wednesday night, and they were very busy. We did snag a booth and our server came over and got in our drink orders. The bar was backed up, so it took a while to get our drinks, but the server apologized and checked back to get our food orders going. Drinks arrived, and not too long after the food made it (kitchen was NOT backed up :-)). I got the Rachel - it was OK, but nothing creative, just as advertsed and could have used a bit more dressing, but that may be me. I got the regular fries and they were very good, and included in the sandwich price. Two others in our group got the Chicken Salad, and the other got the Blackened Cod Sandwich. All three enjoyed their sandwiches, and the Cod won for messiest sandwich! There are quite a few other sides to choose from, and the sweet potato tots were a hit. The cole slaw seemed to be pretty standard, but came with an upcharge. Service was very good except for the occasional lags at the bar. There appeared to be some regulars already, and the vibe was lively. There are a bunch of TV's and they tout that they are proudly NOT a sports bar, but there was one basketball game of particular local interest on with the music videos and other broadcasts. read more

This was our first time here. We tried based on a neighbor's recommendation. There are tv's everywhere...it's pretty awesome. Some of the TVs were tied into the speaker system and had 70's-80's music videos playing. After talking with several workers there, we learned they have live music every Friday night at 7:00 I think. We got here about 4:45 on a Friday evening. Walked right in and found a seat. We did wait a bit before being greeted by our waitress, but once we were greeted, service seemed pretty good. They have a wide selection of beers and drinks. The menu isn't real extensive, but you should be able to find something to enjoy. Prices are around $15 per item. Beers about $5-6 per draft beer. I got the feeling that they don't view themselves as a sports bar and they that their food is better than others, but I can't say I share that view. It's most definitely a bar with sports and a 70's-80's vibe. The food is good. Some unique items on their menu for sure, all good, but nothing that blew me away. The wings and Italian Sub were very good. It's a neat new place. I just don't see it being much different than the other "new" places that have opened up in the area. read more

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Food is great, they have cool videos and staff, and they have Malort. I have seen expert bartenders there. They are not afraid of a cowboy hat. Great fun! read more

I stopped by after work on a Wednesday, a few folks in the place music playing but you could easily carry on a conversation. I was pleased to see Guinness on tap as that's my go to, I sat at the bar thinking about dinner and ordered my Guinness, and that's where everything went wrong. The bartender poured my pint and returned with it in about 5 seconds, if you know you know, a proper Guinness takes a few minutes to pour, when it finally settled the head went to the the bottom of the harp. I know I sound like a beer snob but here's the deal, they wouldn't serve fries still frozen or a burger still raw, that's what getting a bad Guinness is like. Don't sell it if you can't do it right. Needless to say I went elsewhere for dinner. read more

Lots of TVs. Not a lot of seating options for groups bigger than 5. Food was good, drinks were cold. Waitress often got distracted, had to flag her down multiple times. Like that there is live music. read more

After a long, grueling four-hour car ride, it was finally time to eat. Naturally, I decided to check the reviews. A chorus of complaints about poor service and long waits greeted me. I shrugged and muttered, "Meh, whatever." For context, I was traveling solo and talking to myself--because who doesn't do that, right? Walking in, I was immediately struck by the vibe. Dim lighting, just the right amount of buzz, and a lively game of music bingo in progress--how charming! I snagged a stool at the bar, and within 30 seconds, a server asked, "What would you like?" Good sign, right? But then, poof! She vanished. To be fair, I can be pretty indecisive, so I really only waited about three minutes after my initial ten-minute deliberation. One of the other bartenders soon checked in, asking if I'd been helped. I replied, "Kinda," and she swooped in just as the original server returned, apologizing. No big deal. classic with a burger and fries, paired with a Beam and Ginger. I'm a risk-taker in life, but not tonight. My gambles are usually limited to food and drink choices--not that I'm a degenerate gambler or anything. I only throw down $20 on six-leg parlays every other day. Idc what my mom says, I don't have a gambling problem. When my food arrived, I noticed an abundance of green seasoning on the fries, and the burger had what I initially deemed an excessive amount of pickles. Cutting to the chase: it was the best burger and fries I'd had in ages. I decided to eat it the way they intended, pickles and all. Curious about that green sprinkle, I asked the staff what it was. "Chives," they said. Wrong! After a quick investigation, we discovered it was parsley. This sparked a lively food debate. One staff member confessed she didn't like French fries, then tossed in peanut butter as a potential pairing. Another agreed. We also discussed goat meat, which I defended after one staff member exclaimed "Eww!" Meat is meat, folks--let's not yuck someone else's yum. Overall, it was a memorable experience. Shout out to the three staff members, the cooks, and everyone behind Shirley's! I don't remember all there names but incase the owners/managers read the review thanks to the girl who referenced the pond, the one who eats goat meat, and the one who said she will probably never get married. read more

I met friends here last night. I am at a loss. 20 minutes to see a waitress. Another 12 minutes to get 4 drinks. ONE bartender for a full house. I have 13 years experience, food and beverage. A manager or even an owner should jump into action- IF you want to keep customers coming back. When she finally came for an order, I just said I can't do this. I left my friends. They later texted me- $ 98.00 for 2 burgers, 2 beers, and a mule. Is that even possible ? Bonus- we were here 6 weeks ago- same bad service. read more

What a fun fun spot! Great retro vibe... The music was great, and Jaden at the bar was so attentive, making the best creative drinks! We had the soup and chicken and they were top drawer! read more

Service horrible. We were there 2 hours had plenty of staff working too and place was not busy. Food was fine but not worth the price and not worth the wait. 1.5 stars because of the service. read more

Garbage service. Waited 10 minutes before someone touched the table, they got our order wrong, and took another 10 minutes between dropping the check and and finalizing the bill. There were 3 servers and 8 tables, most empty tables were dirty and one that had plates on it up until our dinner was done. This didn't make a lot of sense for a restaurant that had a "seat yourself sign" The whole time each server also took a turn sitting behind the bar and playing on their phone. The food was ok. read more

I've sat at the bar twice now Great food and drinks reasonable prices But the dj is too loud Read the crowd - we asked then to turn it down. Several tables left because of it :( read more

One waitress for the entire bar which was packed. We would've bought two or three more drinks per our group of eight people if the waitress had time to bring them. Standing at the bar also doesn't work to get drinks. Terribly understaffed and frustrating. read more

Not welcoming to children. Tried bringing grandchildren in and needed a high chair. No high chairs. Nobody even came to assist us so we just moved on. Looks like a nice place. If families with kids bit of interest then post on door I guess. read more

Cool little neighborhood bar. It's a chill no-rush kind of place where you can grab a decent bite to eat. Don't come in with babies or expecting gourmet food and you'll be really satisfied. Despite being a Dark Side of the Spoon business the vibe isn't overwhelming and cartoonish like most of their other locations. Servers are either college aged children or real grown up industry professionals. Either way, you'll get what you asked for, just at varying speeds. read more

It is kinda crappy bar food. Maybe I should go back to verify. The atmosphere is kinda like a dive bar.

Had an awesome experience thanks to our server, Alex. Super friendly, attentive without being overbearing, and just had a great vibe overall. They made sure everything was on point, checked in at the right times, and even gave a solid recommendation on what to order. It's always nice when someone seems like they genuinely enjoy what they do--definitely made the meal more enjoyable. Would totally come back just for the great service! read more

Great Service, Food & Prices. Went for first time last week and saw a slew of "regulars' arrive for their lunch rush. A bit noisy for me, but it's a sports bar; so to be- expected. I'll definitely go back. read more

Shirley's was awesome! I had Cassie as my server and she provided great customer service. Attentive to detail, and continued to check in on us. The food was delicious. Thank you Cassie and team for a positive experience. I will definitely be coming back. read more

My husband & I went to Shirley's on New Year's Eve. Our server was very attentive. The ambiance was so much fun!! The music and videos. Definitely will be going back! read more

They charge for you for ESF (electronic service fee) for paying with cash, 4% of yor bill before tax. As a business owner, I understand for a charge for using a card, but not on cash transaction. Highly illegal. Not to mention the food. The buns was burnt and the fries were so salty that they tasted like they were dipped into the ocean before they were served. I am the type of person that puts salt on everything, this was the first time I ever thought that there was too much. The only nice thing I could say about this place is that the decor was cool. read more

Great service and a really great atmosphere. The food is great, but overall the prices were higher than normal. $13 for about 10 cheese curds is a little much. read more