The 8 hottest, new Des Moines restaurants to try right now in 2022

Susan Stapleton, Des Moines Register
·5 min read

Des Moines area restaurant fans love to know what's new, what's hot and what favorite chef just launched a second effort that should be tried.

With that, the Des Moines Register updates its hot list, a look at some of the newest restaurants that fans are flocking to.

Here's a look at eight of the hottest new restaurants in the Des Moines metro, an alphabetical list that will be updated monthly as new restaurants arrive with newcomers removed as they reach six months old.

This month, Proudfoot & Bird departs (it's more than six months old), and newcomers Cinnaholic, Maggie's Rumble Room and Tupelo Honey join.

March 2022 hot list: The 6 hottest new restaurants to try in Des Moines right now

Is your favorite new restaurant missing from the list? Drop us a line at sstapleton@gannett.com and we'll check it out.

300 Burger

The 300 Burger cheeseburger is made with Angus beef, served on a gourmet bun, with lettuce, tomato, red onion, mayonnaise, house-made pickles and American cheese, with the secret sauce and fries served on the side.
The 300 Burger cheeseburger is made with Angus beef, served on a gourmet bun, with lettuce, tomato, red onion, mayonnaise, house-made pickles and American cheese, with the secret sauce and fries served on the side.

Burger fans can stop by 300 Burger just across from Principal Park for one-third pound beef patties featuring the basic (cheese, lettuce, onion, pickle and mayonnaise) or fancy pants versions such as the Betty with red onion jam and feta cheese or the caliente with ghost peppers. Josh Buchsbaum, who also partners on The Poké Co. in the same building, owns the restaurant that offers chicken sandwiches, Portobello versions and vegan options as well.

300 Burger, 300 W. Martin Luther King Jr. Parkway Suite 170, 515-421-9300.

More: 300 Burger is your next stop for an all-beef, no-frills, hefty hamburger the old-fashioned way

503: A Drink Lab & Tasting Room

Periperi shrimp with lentil puree available at 503: A Drink Lab and Tasting Room.
Periperi shrimp with lentil puree available at 503: A Drink Lab and Tasting Room.

Lynn Pritchard's new 503: A Drink Lab & Tasting Room in the East Village lets the chef spread his wings by taking a more experimental approach than Table 128, his former Clive restaurant that plans to open south of MLK this spring. Look for casual small plates — perfect for a pre- or post-dinner snack. Of the seven savory items, two cross over from the Table 128 roster with a new menu every one to two weeks. Recent menu items include periperi shrimp wontons as well as house ricotta pizza. The restaurant also offers a cocktail menu and well as complex non-alcoholic drinks.

503: A Drink Lab & Tasting Room, 503 E. Locust St., 515-412-1001.

More: 5 things to know about Lynn Pritchard's 503: A Drink Lab & Tasting Room, opening in Des Moines

Cinnaholic

Giant vegan cinnamon rolls find a home in the East Village. Cinnaholic lets customers choose from options such as a classic cinnamon roll glazed in a cream cheese frosting or the s’mores roll with graham cracker crumbles, marshmallows and chocolate sauce, each made-to-order. Dozens of frosting flavors and toppings are available, and if cinnamon rolls don't catch your fancy, Cinnaholic offers brownies, cookies, cinnacakes, mini cinnamon rolls (called Baby Buns), edible cookie dough and gluten-free oat milk soft serve ice cream.

Cinnaholic, 505 E. Grand Ave., 515-644-7504.

More: Cinnaholic opens first Iowa location in the East Village with vegan gourmet cinnamon rolls

Crumbl Cookies

If the two-hour lines were any indication, Ankeny is gaga over Crumbl Cookies when it opened in January. Every week, the menu switches flavors from a cookbook filled with 170-plus recipes, but milk chocolate chip cookies served warm are always available, with iced sugar cookies served cold on the menu many weeks. The wait times dropped to the usual four minutes from ordering to delivery of slender pink boxes of cookies, so check the website weekly for an updated list of cookies and ice cream available. Crumbl Cookies plans to open additional locations in Ames and West Des Moines.

Crumbl Cookies, 802 SE Oralabor Road, Suite 108, Ankeny, 515-650-8361.

More: Crumbl Cookies opens in Ankeny with up to two-hour waits for over-the-top cookies

Salmon lox Benny at Little Brother on University Avenue in Windsor Heights.
Salmon lox Benny at Little Brother on University Avenue in Windsor Heights.

Little Brother

Joe and Alex Tripp of Harbinger revamped RC's Diner in Windsor Heights into Little Brother with dishes such as the Iowa beef smash patty, a milk bun patty melt, a Reuben sandwich or Kalona cheese curds. A short rib pot roast, chicken pot pie and a meatloaf with grape jelly glaze make up some of the comprised dishes. Breakfast on Fridays through Sundays includes biscuits and gravy, a corned beef hash and a classic eggs Benedict, among other dishes. Joe Tripp earned three of his five semifinalist nods for Best Chef Midwest from the James Beard Foundation for his restaurant Harbinger on Ingersoll Avenue.

Little Brother, 6587 University Ave., Windsor Heights; 515-277-7907.

More: Joe Tripp renames RC's Diner and refreshes the brunch menu with his own twist

The El Camino pizza at Maggie's Rumble Room, 1430 Second Ave., Des Moines
The El Camino pizza at Maggie's Rumble Room, 1430 Second Ave., Des Moines

Maggie's Rumble Room

Sambetti's converted into Maggie's Rumble Room, a neighborhood bar serving pizzas in a vintage space. The restaurant serves seven specialty thin and New York-crust pies and offers a build-your-own option. The pies range from $20 to $28 with classic topping combinations such as the El Camino's Italian sausage with mushrooms and green peppers and the White Lightning with pepperoni, sausage, pesto and artichoke hearts on a ricotta sauce.

Maggie's Rumble Room, 1430 Second Ave., 515-245-9780.

More: Maggie's Rumble Room opens in the former Sambetti's with vintage vibes and specialty pizzas

The Working Class Hero pizza from Parlor in Beaverdale.
The Working Class Hero pizza from Parlor in Beaverdale.

Parlor

Beaverdale’s newest restaurant, Parlor, takes over the former Saints Pub + Patio space. Jason Simon, owner of Motley School Tavern, Eatery A and Alba, opened Parlor with a menu of specialty Detroit-style pizzas, homemade grilled sausages and shareable dishes such as pepperoni fries and Buffalo cauliflower from chef Joe Kuzomovic, the former sous chef at Eatery A. The centerpiece bar features around 20 beers on tap, wine and sangria and a playful cocktail menu.

Parlor, 4041 Urbandale Ave., 515-274-1293.

More: Detroit-style pizza joint Parlor opens in Beaverdale, serving 2 1/2-pound pies

Tupelo Honey

Southern fare with a focus on fried chicken takes up residence in the Miesblock Building at 665 Grand Ave. The menu from chef Eric Gabrynowicz includes favorites such as bone-in fried chicken brined for more than 18 hours, served honey-dusted, panko-crusted fried green tomatoes; a Southwestern wildflower honey-infused Moscow mule that uses ginger beer made in house; and Parmesan and rosemary potato cracklings for the kids.

Four options for fried chicken and waffles (sriracha honey fried chicken, mac and cheese waffles with hot fried chicken, country-style fried chicken or classic), po'boys with shrimp, and shrimp and grits round out the menu. For dessert, the restaurant offers mini and regular sizes of banana pudding or brown butter pecan pie.

And yes, there is brunch.

Tupelo Honey, 665 Grand Ave., 515-513-5922.

More: How to eat your way through the menu at Tupelo Honey, officially opening Tuesday in Des Moines

Susan Stapleton is the entertainment editor at The Des Moines Register. Follow her on Facebook, Twitter or drop her a line at sstapleton@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: New Des Moines restaurants to try from Tupelo Honey to Crumbl Cookies