Goldie’s Ice Cream Shoppe
Massive pork tenderloin sandwiches at a quintessential shop, lentil tacos from a roving vegan bus, cider and pizza at an idyllic orchard, and more of Des Moines’s best food
Iowa isn’t just about fried food on a stick, loose meat Maid-Rite sandwiches, and butter cow photo ops at the Iowa State Fair. One visit will tell you there’s more to the Hawkeye State than corn fields and corn dogs. Local food brands like La Quercia cured meats and Maytag blue cheese, forward-thinkers at the World Food Prize Foundation, and small farms like Wilson’s Orchard all compete with industrial agriculture, slowly inching Iowa back to its locavore roots. Meanwhile, all around Des Moines, the state’s largest metro area, hospitality pros are opening new venues like new American stunner Oak Park and buzzy pan-Asian bakery Crème, even as classics like Tacos Degollado, Simon’s, and Goldie’s Ice Cream Shop hold their communities down with 50-count taco platters, cheese-stuffed chicken on spaghetti, and massive pork tenderloin sandwiches, respectively.
Karla Walsh is a Des Moines, Iowa-based freelance lifestyle writer and level one sommelier who balances her love of food and drink with her passion for fitness (or tries to, at least). She has over 16 years of professional experience covering food, wine, travel, nutrition, health, fitness, and psychology for outlets like Food & Wine, Travel + Leisure, Better Homes and Gardens, Allrecipes, EatingWell, Southern Living, VERANDA, and more.
