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!

Love the service and good is delicious! The ambiance is delightful. I highly recommended it!read more

Food good- service excellent. Menu is varied so suits all palates. Easy to have conversation with…read moreguests.

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.

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!

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.

I had the chicken and waffles which I saw on their site. A little pricey at $17.00.It looked…read moredelicious. It actually turned out to be delicious. The waffles were advertised as being crispy on the outside and soft in the center . They were just that. The syrup had a good flavor to it and there was enough to cover the waffles and the chicken. There were some things that was not impressive. The chicken that came with the waffles was breaded and sizable but not seasoned at all. It was said to come with bacon but what was on there was barely noticeable possibly even bacon bits it was so small. The butter that came on top was very tasty just not enough of it for my liking. All in all it was it was a very good chicken and waffles but I have tasted better. My wife had the classic breakfast with ham and fruit. It came with 1 piece of toast. $13.00. Don't dissuade that from you trying it, that is just my opinion. The waitress was Malarie (pronounced Mallory). She was very courteous answered all of my questions and knew what she was talking about. It would be worthy for you to ask for her if you went in there. All in all 51.68 for breakfast was a little much.

The service was really great. The waffles were crispy on the outside and fluffy on the inside. They…read morewere huge and totally delicious. The chicken and waffles were delicious. Highly recommend this little place. It was clean and fit the bill for a quiet breakfast while on the road.

One of my favorite stops in ames. Staff is kind and the vibe is very cool and relaxed…read more I've tried about every crepe on the menu and they are all great and range from classic flavors to unique combinations id never think to get in a crepe. First time getting the matcha here I usually get the lemonade it's very good but the matcha was surprisingly really good! I'm very picky about my matchas and struggle to find coffee shops that make good ones but this is probably one of the better options in Ames.

Lockwood Café in Ames, Iowa is refreshing little secret nestled in a corner neighborhood off of…read moreOntario Street. The building is a reclaimed grain and feed store originally built about 1870. It's kind of a self-serve place where you order at the counter, go pick up your own food, and bus your own table. With that said, the prices are extremely reasonable, and the food is excellent quality. The menu is a crêperie with a number of vegan offerings and no meat proteins on the menu, with the exception of eggs. I had the Fruit Parfait Sweet crêpe, my wife had the Apple Crisp crêpe, and my son had the Banana and Nutella crêpe. All three were fantastic, and the coffee was delicious! This is a super affordable little breakfast option that I would recommend to anybody who enjoys a good crêpe and a great cup of coffee.

Since neither my husband nor I had ever eaten here before we decided this was a "go" for our rare…read moredate night. I was a little surprised by the atmosphere as I'd pictured it having a little more ambiance than it did. Bright lights & most people seated drinking at the bar. It was a little later so I guess I understood the lack of diners but noticed another foursome enter that were staying at the hotel enter and also comment sarcastically about how bright it was in there at that time. So knew I wasn't alone. The food was exceptionally good though! I had the petite sirloin with roasted asparagus with a lovely mashed potato dish. So good! I felt so bad for our young waiter when the table next to ours ordered a bottle of wine and he came out to open it for them and was clueless as to how to present it, open it, & pour for them. He had no clue. Showed a lack of training for sure. I've always thought of this restaurant as a bit higher class than it felt to us. But at least we know what to expect next time if we return for the good food.

For breakfast, pretty standard Midwest hotel fare though they try to be gay. Avoid the avocado…read moretoast- bread was dry, avocado a bit old, poached egg hard-boiled, and big pea sprouts too big to eat gracefully. Also no yogurt in the menu if that's important to you.

Went here for lunch with the family, this place has a lovely charm - and was at one point a train…read moredepot. Our server was attentive, and it was quiet enough to have a pleasant conversation over lunch. Three of our table had the daily special - a ribeye sandwich with caramelized onions, lettuce, tomato, their version of sweet and saucy steak sauce. Everyone enjoyed it - and I stole a few fries which were golden crisp and perfectly seasoned. I was assured their fries are consistently delicious. I had pork shoulder with two sides, i went with hallelujah potatoes (cheesy potato casserole) and cornbread pudding. The pork was melt in your mouth tender, perfect with the sweet and sassy bbq sauce. Each plate comes with some pickle slices and pickled onions, the onions were nice - i gave my pickles away as i am not a savory pickle girl. The hallelujah potatoes were cheesy, creamy and crunchy (topping) and the cornbread pudding tasty. The lemonade was recommended to me and it was well done - tart and sweet. Overall if I had more time in town I would definitely come back.

Just some suggestions for future guests. Please ask first if guests want to be seated on patio. We…read morewere taken outside on patio, granted the plastic sheets were down, but it was a cool, rainy day. We were told the heaters would be turned on. They weren't. We asked to be moved inside and a they moved us to the loudest part, next to bathrooms and opening to patio, so still cool. Waitress had no time for us, maybe because we were asked to be moved. Idk. Food was good. If the name of your restaurant is "cornbred" you would think your meat dish would come with a piece of cornbread. Instead you have to order it as an appetizer which are muffins. How about one little muffin person placed on the table. I would also maybe include a side with your meal (maybe less meat) to accommodate for the side. Just suggestions. It is a cute place though.

Macubana is easily one of my favorite spots in Ames. If you're into mac & cheese with serious…read moreflavor and creativity, this place doesn't miss. The Original Mac Bowl is my go-to super rich, cheesy, and filling in the best way. And if you want to switch it up, the Tempura Mac is next level spicy, crispy, golden on the outside, and totally over-the-top in a good way. Every time I go here, I'm so full I'm sick of pasta noodles for a week and yet I always come back. That says everything. It's part bar, so depending on when you go, it can be chill or kind of rowdy, but that's part of the vibe. Honestly, it's one of the best casual date spots in Ames if you want somewhere fun and a little different. It's also great with friends or just rolling solo when you want to eat like you mean it. Food's always on point, service is solid, and the menu has enough range to keep things interesting. Definitely worth checking out if you're in town and want something that hits comfort food cravings hard.

The help- very nice and friendly…read more The food- not so good, which is a bummer because I've been wanting to try this place for quite awhile. I kept it simple- fries and an empanada. Perhaps I ordered the wrong things? Fries were hot but tasteless, served with a side of what seemed like mayo? Empanada shredded beef filling was chewy and flavorless, the best part about it was the fried shell, not sure of the sauce served with it, but it was also nothing to rave about. I got a side of chipotle ketchup and that was decent. So....I can cross this one off of my "try it" list with no plans to return. Bummer.