Best road-trip restaurants in Iowa
Start here: 10 route-useful dining stops in Iowa, grouped by town and filtered by cuisine or price. This is the curated road-trip layer, not every restaurant in the state.
Updated 2026-07-01. Check current hours, reservations, and seasonal closures before you go.
10 spots
Balltown1
Des Moines6Town guide →
Family-run Vietnamese staple since 1989 with an enormous menu and standout spring rolls.
Seasonal, ever-changing modern American plates that earned multiple James Beard nods.
Tiki-bar pizza joint on the site of the country's oldest Chinese restaurant, home of the original crab rangoon pizza.
Counter-service Ethiopian near Drake serving spicy wats scooped up with house injera.
James Beard-nominated chef Joe Tripp's vegetable-forward small plates from the wood fire.
No-frills 1984 neighborhood diner whose loaded hash browns even drew Jason Momoa.
Dubuque2
Top Chef alum Kevin Scharpf's culinary gem in the Historic Millwork District focused on fresh, locally sourced ingredients and bold flavors.
Warm upscale-casual spot on historic Main Street with creative market-driven plates and an impressive cocktail, wine, and craft beer list.
Marshalltown1
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