I loved Star Bar tonight! Â Went for dinner with a group of good friends from school. Â It was a little loud for a long table but for an intimate group, it seemed to be good. Â We could hear each other pretty well. Â
One thing...no drink specials! Â So weird. Â But the prices aren't bad and I was so pleased with my food. Â I had a grilled veggie and goat cheese panini. Â Yum. Â It's awesome. Â So was the potato salad. Â
It's a lovely place. Â No complaints. Â Nice atmosphere, great waitstaff, and good food.
More of a restaurant, rather than bar. Â Which surprised me given the name of the place.
I just went for some beers since it's in my new neighborhood. Â They had some local beers, which is always good. Â I peeked at the menu and it appeared to be standard bar food. Â
The crowd was an odd mix. Â College crew, 40's+ group, Girl's Night Out, couples on dates. Â I'm still getting used to that about Des Moines.
Was it just an off day? Dunno, but I was underwhelmed. I'll leave the sloppy service out of the equation and focus on the food.
I ordered a Cuban sandwich and chipotle black beans. Yawn! The Cuban sandwich is open to many interpretations, but "boring" shouldn't be one of them. While Star's was toasted nicely (though "standard" bread), the poor combination of too little flavorless pork, too much flavorless ham, zingless pickles and wimpy mustard made for a BORING sandwich. Top that off with plain black beans, and.....zzzzzzzz.
After driving around in utter confusion we realized the address listed on Yelp! is incorrect. Â It is actually 2811 Ingersoll Avenue. Â We were there for breakfast/brunch on Sunday morning. Â There were customer's at four tables (including our two top), a bartender or two, and two servers. Â The bartender finally came to take our drink order offering some lame excuse for the server. Â The order: Â two coffees and cream (just in case the coffee is horrible though we ordinarily drink it black), she brought water and said our server was coming with coffee. Â The server brings the coffee, no cream. Â Guess what...the coffee is not very good and thus requires cream. Â Though thankfully the cream did come halfway through our time there (the bartender forgot to mention the cream until then apparently).
The server takes our order, doesn't inquire about how we would like our eggs cooked, I remember to mention that I would like mine over-medium as he was walking away. Â I ordered the shrimp and grits with eggs. Â When the meal arrived I noticed the eggs immediately. Â They were crispy, brown, and the yolk was hard as a rock. Â I waited for the server to come back to check on us, ask us how our meal was, refill our coffee or SOMETHING so I could request new eggs. Â Nope, never came. Â I finally decided to eat some of the cheesy grits (seemed leftover and reheated) and three small (boiled??) shrimp whose tails looked as though they had been set on fire so they would appear to be something other than boiled tasting and overcooked. Â The eggs were poked at to see what was going on with them, but other than that remain untouched on the plate. Â The server collected the plates never once asking how everything was because he did not care! Â We received one coffee refill in the hour we were there and waited a long time for the bill to come. Â
I don't feel the place was under staffed, but I do feel the staff was completely inadequate, at least it was that Sunday morning!
Came here with a large group of friends for a birthday celebration and was truly disappointed. I was serviced twice in the 3 hrs I was there. I was there so long because the bill NEVER came. I ordered chips and salsa for myself only to find after everyone started eating that they had been served to the whole group at the other end of the table.
I can look past that, but the fact that people in our group had to go up to the bar to get served was unacceptable.
Will not come back here or suggest it.
Star bar, okay....maybe 2.75 stars
I am not enthralled. Â The menu is okay, with some interesting small plates, but still mostly greasy bar food. Â The two large rooms are pretty (thank you, hardwood floors and good booths, no contemporary concrete crap) but it is damn loud any time of day. Â Not their fault but the outdoor patio is cramped and miserable. Â Really.
Last the service is variable, sometimes wonderful but often inattentive.
Sorry, Star Bar.
I dig this place. Â I'll be honest, their mixed drinks are not my favorite (i.e. specialty drinks like girly martinis), but I can be just as happy with a cold beer.
I like the atmosphere - it's two big, open rooms, and feels clean and welcoming. Â Even when it's crowded, I've never had much trouble finding a place to sit with a small group of friends. Â I've also never had bad service here!
Our last visit was with a friend for her birthday. Â We had left another place because of poor service, and we jokingly told our waiter the same. Â We were a big group of 12+ people, and he was FAST! Â He had a great attitude despite being busy, got all of our orders out correctly and even did separate checks for us. Â
I had a veggie sandwich, I've also had salad there, it's tasty!
Maybe 4.25 Stars.
Gayle and I treated my parents and the Kid to Lunch here earlier this week. Star Bar and the nearby Bauder Pharmacy (for an ice cream dessert) were our final stops before DSM and the flight home after another wonderful Midwest vacation.
Star Bar consists of 2 large rooms and a nice, but Ingersoll noisy patio area. We sat on the Kitchen side and I enjoyed the hardwood decor, the ample room, and the handsome art on the walls. At the same time, there seems to be one piece missing here that would make this place more architecturally whole, but I can't put my finger on it. Â Of course, I haven't been here during the dinner or the party hours, and that handsome bar in the other room definitely merits a return trip.
Theresa our waitress was impressive. She took down our order by memory, kept us in the loop, knew exactly what she was doing and where she was going, and was particular perceptive and kind with all members of this multigenerational family. The only small glitch was my Dad getting fries instead of black beans, which was corrected quickly.
As for the food, Gayle ordered a Steak Salad which she declared to be the best she ever had. Â Mom and Dad really enjoyed their Blue and Southwest Cheeseburgers respectively, while the Kid devoured his Pork Dumplings I went for a delicious BBQ Pulled Pork Sandwich (with equally good fries) and a cold glass of Anchor Steam Draft. Star Bar's selection thankfully goes beyond the the yellow stuff you can get during "Crappy Beer Night" at El Bait Shop.
The total bill (before tip) for food and drinks was a very reasonable $54. We headed out feeling full, happy, and looking forward to our next Raccoon City culinary adventure at Star Bar or beyond.
Star Bar is one of my all time favorites. I'm comfortable going there with friends for drinks or one my own for a quick bite. It's got a nice neighborhood feel while still being just a little bit classy (but not pretentious).
I love the steak sandwich and the crispy edamame. And they usually have some interesting and tasty desserts, which change frequently.
I'm not a huge fan of their brunch on the weekends but it's not bad.
The crowd varies depending on the time and night. Parking can be kind of a pain when it's crowded.
I always end up going back here because I always know it's going to be good.
I wish I had written this review earlier, because now I'm having trouble remembering what we ordered. Â I remember the penne being good and I think we ordered the cajun pasta. Â Regardless, we loved the atmosphere here. Â The interior is well decorated and the outside is a really great place to sit and hang out with friends.
Review Source:There are not many places you can get food after 10pm on a weeknight around downtown Des Moines, so we end up visiting Star Bar fairly frequently, and I generally like it.
I absolutely love the decor and atmosphere, although it can get VERY loud inside (lots of hardwood, etc, nothing to absorb the crowd noise - or the salsa band depending when you're there). Â In the summer, the patio seating is a great solution. Â In the winter, well, you just have to sit as far away from everyone else as possible if you want to be heard. Â Usually that's not a big problem, since there are two sections of the restaurant, and the section without the bar tends to be considerably quieter. Â
Star Bar has a great beer selection, which I always appreciate. Â And most of the food is excellent as well - or CAN be. Â And that's my only problem with Star Bar. Â It's not consistent. Â Usually the food is excellent... but sometimes it's terrible. Â On one particularly bad visit, I would have sworn the the edamame was actually a soup as my poor soybeans had been drowned in three inches of too-salty soy sauce; the spinach and queso fresco dip looked and tasted like cat food that had been rewarmed in a microwave; and the garlic parmesan fries (which are normally delicious) were so salty they were difficult to choke down. Â It didn't help that the service was practically nonexistent, despite the fact that we could see our waiter lounging about in the kitchen.
The last time we visited (a few weeks ago), we didn't have ANY of these issues and the food was back to its usual great level of execution. Â Somewhat gun-shy from our last experience, we had different food entirely: the wings, the pork dumplings, and something else which I can't remember - all were very good with no hint of the prior kitchen troubles. Â The service was also back up to Star Bar's normal standard. Â
I like Star Bar, and I'll continue eating and drinking here (though I don't think I'll have the courage to try the spinach and queso dip ever again). Â My only problem is consistency... you never know which Star Bar you're going to get.
We really enjoyed the atmosphere here. Â We got the BBQ chicken egg rolls with mango slasa which were dicious. I had the Cajun pasta which was pretty greasy but what do you expect from a dish with sausage? Â The food was all nice and hot and arrived at a relaxed pace. Â The drink menu also had great variety. Â We're sure to come back again!
Review Source:I went to the Star Bar directly after a day in airports and plane rides, so perhaps my appetite and palate were slightly skewed by somewhat of a ravenous attitude towards the food. However, at looking over other reviews, I think I'm probably right on the money. My companion and I took advantage of the summer afternoon and scored a table outside, which doesn't do too much by way of atmosphere since there isn't a terrible amount of people-watching to do, but it's always nice to dine outside. She had an arugula salad with pine nuts and smooth creamy non-"goaty" goat cheese, topped with a piece of grilled salmon. The cheese was the highlight of the meal - I hope it's something locally made, and I give kudos to the maker! Otherwise, the salmon was slightly dry and the salad itself had a bit too much dressing. Still tasty, though. I opted for the Nimon Ranch steak burger, which was cooked to perfection (med-rare) and had a great soft flavor to it - one that actually allows you to taste the high quality meat rather than being doused with seasonings. The burger was served on a soft water-roll that was just perfect, and quite frankly, the fries were the best I've had in a long time - crunchy outside, soft inside. Way to go! If I lived in town, I would definitely hit this place up again, especially to enjoy more of the live music that was just starting as we were heading out.
Review Source:I flew in from San Francisco, and went straight to this place for a late-night bite. They serve small plates after 10p which was great! We had chicken fingers/fries which were OK. BUT the potstickers, bread w/goat cheese and green beans were even more yummy!
Great cookin' band there too! A bit too loud, but it was 11p.
Sad that yet again someone not from Des Moines wrote the first review for a Des Moines Fav.
Star Bar is still a fairly new bar in Des Moines after talking with the owner his concept was to open a bar with really good bar food. With that said he surly surpassed his goal. In my opinion it is a really good restaurant with a really good bar.
After a stroll around the neighborhood I like to pop in here to get the Edamame's or the Stir Fried Green Beans with ginger & garlic both around $5 you can not go wrong.
Their brunch on Sundays is really nothing to write home about and that on its own would only get a three star.
But if you never had a tenderloin or want a really good one stop in and get the "Boss Hog" pork fritter, ham, bacon, Jack cheese & grilled onions! My fav!
The services is not the fastest at all times but they do make a really good drink. The bartenders are pretty good and the wait staff could use some training and guidance.
The Decor is really nice the walls are adorned with local artist and rotate out from time to time. They should really change the umbrellas on the patio to class it up a bit. Get rid of the free ones from the distributor and put up your own custom made umbrellas.
Some of my favorite meals in Des Moines have been at Starbar, which was recommended by a fellow team member (aka co-worker). Â
Try the catfish tacos with avocado salsa and black beans - really really quite good. Â But they also make a tasty burger, and the sesame-crusted tuna salad with spinach and oranges is fantastic. Â Great margaritas, good tap beer selection, too.
Great for outdoor dining in the summer, even though Ingersoll Ave doesn't give you much to look at. Â Staff is always nice, though sometimes a bit slow. Â I recommend sitting at the bar if you're there to dine alone.
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