Table for Two Iowa Restaurant Association

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 fin...

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 g...

Taufeek Shah, founder of Lola’s Fine Hot Sauce, is not your typical small town Iowa boy, although he did grow up in Winthrop, Iowa. The son of immigrant parents—a Filipino mother and a Pakistani father—Taufeek was immersed in a world of diverse cuisines. Inspired by his mother's unique flavor combinations, he set out to bottle her secret sauce and then named his company in her honor. This 2023 Iowa Restaurant Association American Dream Award winner found early adoption for Lola’s creati...

In the first episode of 2024, Jessica sits down at the Table for Two with Dave & Jean Thompson, of District 36, Urban Cellar, Urban Grill and Urban on the Square and the Association's 2023 Restaurateurs of the Year. Technically Dave & Jean are in the process of retiring. The couple has turned over day-to-day operations and management to longtime employees and family but their definition of retirement is not typical. Empowering team members, creating partnership models, and giving that...

Building upon both the recognition and reputation he garnered as a standout competitor on Bravo’s Top Chef program, Chef Kevin Scharpf could have easily capitalized on his success and opened a restaurant in a major metropolitan market. But this award-winner instead stayed true to his roots—opening his Brazen Open Kitchen and Bar in Dubuque’s up-and-coming historic Millwork District. Today Chef Kevin’s seasonal menus draw patrons from across the country in search of unique dishes featuring hyp...

It was 1970 something when B-Bops Founder Robert Johnson and his cousin faced a dilemma. Both held car loans and had only one payment saved in the bank. They needed jobs fast and found two possibilities—one in insurance, the other at a local burger joint. Bob took the restaurant job and Des Moines will be forever grateful. He went on to create B-Bop’s, which today has a dozen locations and more on the way. His success has always focused on growing people from wit...