The Pelican Post Bar & Grille (West Des Moines, IA) Review

4.5* (out of 5)

Yelp Review

Google Review

Food: 4*

Atmosphere: 4*

Value: 5*

Service: 5*

12/18/2023 The Pelican Post Bar & Grille (515) 214-1873

I’ve been wanting to stop and try the food here after a visit for my other web site (HappyHourDesMoines.com) shortly after they opened. Tonight I met my wife here after an appointment and was pleasantly surprised to find that it was $12.99 Steak Night (Mondays starting at 6:00 until they are gone). This is a lively, fun place, with 80s / 90s music playing tonight and a good selection of tap and bottle beers (see pictures), including our current favorite – Barntown Brewing’s Peanut Butter and Jelly sour on tap.

By catching the end of Happy Hour and catching a couple of $3 Wells then following that up with a $12.99 Sirloin & baked potato dinner, this place deserves a 5* rating for Value. Meghan is a fantastic and attentive server, providing great insight on the menu items – also deserving of a 5* rating (be sure to tell her ‘Hi’ from The Food and Drink Guy when you stop in).

The Food and Atmosphere ratings are where things get tougher for me as a reviewer. While the Sirloin steak (see picture) was very tender and flavorful (with my wife claiming it was possibly the best she’s ever had), as the pictures show, they are served on disposable plates. While I have no issues with this and actually enjoyed the homey / family feel of the whole experience – it is hard to give this the same rating as a high end steakhouse experience with linen napkins and high quality serving plates.

With all of that said, I personally liked the build-your-own salad and foil-wrapped baked potatoes and agree that the Sirloin steak was one of the best I’ve eaten – even if it was all served on disposable plates and bowls. Therefore, I’m going with 4* ratings for Food and Atmosphere. Given the choice, I’m fine with a top-quality steak served on paper if it saves me a few dollars. And its hard to beat a hands-on owner that stopped by our table several times to assure that everything was ok with our experience.

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Photos copyright: happyhourdesmoines.com & thefoodanddrinkguy.com