Fair Food$east-villageAug: daily 10:00-22:00 (fair duration only)
The Iowa State Fair food programme: 11 August days, 400+ vendors and hundreds of items on sticks. Pork chop on a stick and Iowa corn dog are the standards.
Worth the queue: Pork chop on a stick, deep-fried butter, Iowa corn dog
Market food$downtownSat 07:00-12:00, May-October (08:00 start in October)
Operating on Saturday mornings from May through October across 12 city blocks in the Historic Court District, the Downtown Farmers' Market supports over
Worth the queue: Iowa sweet corn, local honey, breakfast burritos, kettle corn
Italian deli$south-sideMon-Sat 09:00-17:00; closed Sun
The soul of Des Moines' south-side Italian-American community, Graziano Brothers has been producing house-made Italian sausage, cured meats and Italian
Worth the queue: Italian sausage by the pound, Italian beef sandwich
Mexican$south-sideMon-Sun 08:00-21:00
One of Des Moines' most-loved taquerias, El Rodeo serves birria, al pastor and a full range of traditional street tacos to the south-side community that
Worth the queue: Birria tacos and al pastor street tacos
American deli$sherman-hillMon-Fri 07:00-20:00; Sat 08:00-18:00; Sun 09:00-17:00
The specialty grocery Gateway Market maintains a deli counter producing sandwiches, prepared salads and grab-and-go meals from seasonal local ingredients.
Worth the queue: Seasonal sandwiches with house-made provisions
American$south-sideMon-Sat 10:00-21:00; Sun 11:00-15:00
The most famous tenderloin shop in Iowa. Since 1966, Smitty's has hand-breaded and flat-griddled Iowa pork tenderloins using a family recipe that has
Worth the queue: Hand-breaded pork tenderloin sandwich