Iowa Restaurant Association

https://www.thegazette.com/restaurants/loco-launching-new-food-delivery-option-for-cedar-rapids-restaurants//?utm_medium=referral&utm_source=shareArticleButton&utm_campaign=shareArticleButton

New delivery app hopes to give Cedar Rapids what Chomp and DoorDash couldn’t Drawing investment and leadership solely from Cedar Rapids restaurant owners, the new venture hopes to take on the outsized power big players like DoorDash, Grubhub and Uber Eats wield over locally owned restaurants.

The Iowa Restaurant Association released its sixth class of 40 “Women to Watch” in Iowa's Hospitality Industry. The 2024 honorees exemplify both the diversity of workforce and breadth and depth of career opportunities available to women in hospitality. Nominations were submitted from across the state. All were nominated by a member of the industry or the public and were selected by the Iowa Restaurant Association. Each of the forty have demonstrated a passion for their customers, teams, and businesses. The forty will be recognized as part of the Iowa Restaurant Association’s Annual Celebrating Excellence Awards Ceremony on November 18th. The awards are held in conjunction with the Iowa Hospitality Showcase.

To learn more about each woman, visit restaurantiowa.com.

¡VEN Y ÚNITE!

Check out this fun giveaway from our friends at Iowa Pork!!

Starting July 1, establishments that serve alcohol will be able to receive 𝗮𝗳𝗳𝗶𝗿𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗱𝗲𝗳𝗲𝗻𝘀𝗲 protection for those certified through approved, in-person safe alcohol courses - like ServSafe Alcohol! For a limited time, in-person ServSafe Alcohol classes are just $𝟭𝟬 𝗽𝗲𝗿 𝗽𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗼𝗻! We'll even bring the class to you! Register for one of our upcoming classes, or contact us to set up a class in your community! https://restaurantiowa.com/upcoming-servsafe-alcohol-classes/ or call 515-276-1454.

Iowa Restaurant Association launches new Latino Hospitality Council The Iowa Restaurant Association is one of the first in the nation to use a new program to help support and elevate Latino restaurant owners.

The Iowa Restaurant Association's 40 Women to Watch Honorees continue to make waves in the state's hospitality industry. Congratulations 2019 Honoree Gwen Page. In 2021 she bought Whatcha Smokin' BBQ + Brew in Luther. It was just named "Best Barbeque in Iowa" by Food and Wine Magazine. https://www.foodandwine.com/travel/best-bbq-restaurants

Nominate a trailblazer for the 2024 list of 40 Women to Watch in Iowa's Hospitality Industry. Nominations taken at restaurantiowa.com.

The Best Barbecue in Every State American barbecue remains as resilient and exciting as ever. Here are the places you can't miss smoked brisket, whole hog, racks of ribs, pit-smoked chicken, and all the regional barbecue sauces and sides.

Excited to see a group dedicated to Iowa's Latino hospitality business owners get off the ground!

La Asociación de Restaurantes de Iowa Lanza el Consejo de Hospitalidad Latino de Iowa para Apoyar al Creciente Demográfico de Restauradores Hispanos

See the full press release (Ver nota de prensa completa):
https://restaurantiowa.com/iowa-latino-hospitality-council/

This week on Table for Two, Jessica sits down with chef and owner of Duck City Bistro, Chef Jeremy Moskowitz!

Hospitality may have been in the blood of 2020 Iowa Restaurant Association Chef of the Year Jeremy Moskowitz, but as a pre-teen it was his desire for a new video game that actually got him into the kitchen of his family’s restaurant. He started washing dishes to earn his game money and quickly realized he’d found a new passion. He worked his way through the kitchen roles of his parent’s restaurant, then honed his skills at Le Cordon Bleu in London and Paris. He then made his mark in fine dining restaurants around the globe and on the sea before returning to Davenport to take over Duck City Bistro. Today customers are daily treated to his personal approach to hospitality, as well as culinary creations with European flair. From memorable dishes to chalk-marked favorite tables, discover the passion and detail behind one of state’s culinary gems.

Listen to the full episode at the link below!
https://www.buzzsprout.com/2096485/15191521

Our 40 Women to Watch in Iowa's Hospitality Industry alum continue to make news in the state's hospitality industry. Christine Johnson from the class of 2022 is ready to take her soul food concept Joppa Experience to a standalone bricks and mortar. If you know a woman who is an exceptional hospitality pro and who the rest of the state should know about, nominate her for the 2024 40 Women to Watch honors. Nominations can be made restaurantiowa.com.

Chicago-style soul food restaurant to land permanent spot on Sixth Avenue in Des Moines A Chicago-style soul food restaurant is on its way to landing a permanent spot along Des Moines' Sixth Avenue corridor in the River Bend neighborhood.

This week on Table for Two, owner and chef of Table 128, Chef Lynn Pritchard!

After a nearly three-year hiatus, Chef Lynn Pritchard has finally re-opened his award-winning restaurant Table 128. His one-time suburban destination now draws those in search of his famed farm-to-table dishes to the Gray's Landing neighborhood of Des Moines proper. He’s good-humored about the extended timeline of this highly anticipated relaunch, in part because it has given him the time needed to ensure that every detail of the new space—from the menu to the way sound bounces— deliver the guest experience for which he is renowned. Join us as we talk with the Iowa farm kid who learned to cook so he could eat something more than his father’s fried bologna sandwiches, turned CIA-trained award-winning chef, as he shares his trials and celebrations of (re)opening a restaurant in a post-Covid world.

Listen to the full episode at the link below! Don't forget to subscribe to Table for Two so you never miss an episode.

https://www.buzzsprout.com/2096485/15046433

What a fantastic Day!! Congratulations to our Winners!!
Top Mixologist: Ellie Rastetter, Cattlemen’s Steakhouse
Runner-Up: Connor Hayes, RoCA
3rd Place: Jake Leiberton, Destination Grille
People's Choice: Heather Loops, Trostel's Greenbriar, with her Southern Magic Cocktail, featuring Templeton Distillery Fortitude Bourbon
Best Ruffino Cocktail: Connor Hayes, RoCA
Best Mango Shotta Cocktail: Jake Leiberton, Destination Grille
Best Templeton Cocktail: Ellie Rastetter, Cattlemen’s Steakhouse
Best Pernod Ricard Cocktail: Alex Rowan, Ken's - a not so secret speakeasy
Competitor's Choice: Ellie Rastetter, Cattlemen’s Steakhouse

Sazerac Company, Pernod Ricard USA, Templeton Distillery & Ruffino Prosecco

Thanks so much to our fabulous host, Smash Park Des Moines!!

Coveted People’s Choice sampling underway. Voting until 8 pm! Smash Park Des Moines Iowa Restaurant Association state mixolgy finals. Cone join us!

Tickets at door come soon enough to try all 21 People’s Choice contenders! Smash Park Des Moines Iowa Restaurant Association State Mixology Championships! $30 at door.

Join us Smash Park Des Moines tonight until 8 pm… public tasting portion of State Mixolgy competition!

Did You Know ⁉️
For a limited time, we're offering ServSafe Alcohol training for just $10 per person!* Restaurants & bars in Okoboji jumped on the chance to train their staff before the busy summer season ☀️ Host a class in your area for no extra cost! Call 515-276-1454 or email [email protected].

Or visit https://restaurantiowa.com/upcoming-servsafe-alcohol-classes/ to find a class near you.

Thank you, Parks Marina and Snappers Turtle Bay Cafe, for hosting us!

*Class is $10 per student for materials/exam fee. A grant from the Governor’s Traffic Safety Bureau covers all other instruction-related costs.

Great trip to DC to talk about how Federal issues impact Iowa restaurateurs.

Congressman Randy Feenstra—Thank you for meeting with the Iowa Restaurant Association group today.

Thank you Congressman Zach Nunn for discussing hospitality issues with Iowa’s restaurant delegation.

https://www.thegazette.com/people-places/iowas-2023-chef-of-the-year-commands-quiet-respect-from-black-sheeps-kitchen/

Meet Iowa’s 2023 Chef of the Year from Black Sheep Social Club Despite earning the crowning jewel on Chef Mon Sayasit’s prestigious awards, there’s no rarefied air around him. With a reach far beyond his own kitchen, Iowa’s Chef of the Year for 2023 manages remarkable influence with humble groundings.

Sustainability & Innovation
Dave Moore & Janelle Buxton
Big Grove Brewery
Solon, Iowa City, Des Moines, Cedar Rapids

Over the past decade, Big Grove Brewery has become a well-known name across the state. In addition to their award-winning beer, the hospitality group is a culinary innovator with four Iowa locations—each serving as a catalyst for community revitalization. The hospitality group also has a strong commitment to environmental responsibility.

Dave Moore, Director of Operations for Big Grove, oversees all construction projects and sustainability is always a key design consideration. Each location incorporates green-building features, high-efficiency equipment installation, recycling, and kitchen composting systems. In fact, their Iowa City and Des Moines locations together compost nearly 8,000 pounds of food waste each month. Big Grove also uses a carbon recapture system dubbed “CiCi,” a closed-loop unit which helps recapture Co2 from the brewing process and reuses it downstream for draft lines and beer packaging.

Their 28,000-square-foot Iowa City Brewery & Taproom helped spur the Riverfront Crossings redevelopment project and recently reached Platinum Green Status, a point-based system awarded by the Iowa Waste Reduction Center. In addition, this year the Des Moines location was the first brewery restaurant to be recognized as the Des Moines Economic Impact Newcomer of the Year.

“The brewing community is very sustainability-focused,” explains Janelle Buxton, Director of Public and Industry Relations for the company. “Beyond our building designs, our team proactively finds ways to support causes we care about, in particular those involving trees, trails and water projects.”

The Big Grove staff has always planted trees to help “green up” their properties. This fall, the team is taking those efforts to the next level. A special brew—Good Grove Fruited Ale— will commemorate a Big Grove pledge to plant 400 trees in four years across the communities where their employees live, work, and play. “We want to revive our environment for future generations," says Buxton.

The brewery’s “Big Grove for Good” initiative also impacts the communities in which they operate. Donations from Bison Burger sales and proceeds from special events, benefit environmental and social justice causes. They’ve contributed thousands of dollars to non-profits, as well as administering a $73,000 grant program which benefitted seven local organizations.

Big Grove’s dedication to environmental and community stewardship is the reason why they are being recognized as the 2023 Iowa Restaurant Association Sustainability and Innovation Honoree.

Thank you WoodRiver Energy for sponsoring the 2023 Celebrating Excellence Award Winners!