The Iowastater - Ames

I hosted my baby shower lunch at this restaurant, and it was wonderful! The prices were reasonable considering the quality of the food. Our waitress was delightful and very accommodating. I highly recommend the cyclone wrap – it was absolutely delicious!

I ordered the Lane Hammer Blue Cheese Burger with fries on the side, and the portions were quite generous. I managed to finish half of the burger and took the other half to enjoy later. Overall, I really liked the meal, and the staff were warm and friendly. It was a bit chilly inside during the day compared to my visit to the bar the night before, but it was still bearable.

I ordered takeout of pork tenderloin and mac and cheese. While I've had better tenderloin in the past, it was made from scratch. The mac and cheese was delicious, especially when paired with the grilled chicken. The chicken was juicy, and the macaroni was cooked to perfection.

Attended a Sunday brunch around 1115 or so, open 630-1pm for brunch) they were busy as they are inside a hotel and there was a wedding the night before so there seemed to be several large groups. They took our name and quoted a 30 minute wait which was accurate. We were seated and immediately told the host that we were just having the buffet, they do offer plated meals as well, and we were told drinks were included and to help ourselves. $13 each adult, not sure on kid pricing) We quickly noticed they were out of coffee and most juices, out of sticky buns and very low on several of the food options. We started by making our own waffles to try to wait out the buffet offerings. Waffles were standard make-yourself hotel style, with classic topping choices as well as whipped cream and fruit compote. It took a server over 30 minutes to come to the table but he did apologize and checked back a couple of times before we were finished. We ended up being able to snag a sticky bun, as well as waiting long enough to see fresh offerings on the hot buffet which included scrambled eggs w/cheese, breakfast potatoes, biscuits and gravy, bacon and sausage. They also offered cereal, oatmeal, fruit, a few premade baked goods and bread w/toaster. The busiest of stations was the made-to-order omelets, which offered about a dozen different toppings to fill the slightly over done eggs. A hidden gem was the salsa hanging out with the hot sauces to add to the eggs, which was not spicy but full of flavor. Because we never really saw our waiter, we weren't informed of the **** Mary/Mimosa bar, but did see the sign with pricing listed. They did run out of plates, glasses, cups and bowls on the buffet, even though the dining room was never actually completely full. They didn't seem to notice when things ran out until it was brought to their attention by several patrons. One in our party of two had attended the week before and stated that it hasn't been this discombobulated when they visited. Four stars might be a little high for our visit but we are hoping it was a fluke based on previous experience. I included a pic of the weekly specials for those interested as they do have lunch and dinner service all week.

Pretty straightforward review: good food and service in a nice atmosphere. Not the biggest menu, but still had plenty of reasonable lunch options. I'd definitely return if in the area enough.