The best intentions: Taki

Name: Taki Japanese Steakhouse
Cuisine: Sushi and Teppanyaki / Hibachi
Address: 2677 86th Street, (Westmark Plaza II), Urbandale, Iowa 50322
Phone: 515-331-3030
Pricing: $$$$
Open since: 2002

When we moved to Iowa in 2001, we left many things behind in the Rockies.  We left behind friends, the majestic beauty, and we left behind the best sushi restaurant in the world,  Suehiro's in Fort Collins, Colorado.  When we got to Ames, there was not a decent option for sushi.  Two hours away, there was Aoeshe and Sushi Popo, both excellent sushi joints.  Still, there was nothing close-by. 


Then, in 2002, a Teppanyaki place opened up in West Des Moines.  I am not a big fan of Teppan (Japanese dinner shows).  I had a bad and expensive experience at a Hibachi place in Fort Collins and it soured me for life.  But I heard that this new restaurant in Des Moines also had a full sushi bar, with California-grown Japanese rice and fresh fish flown in daily from the Pacific.  My friend Ryan Fairfax treated me to sushi and sake for my birthday and it was heavenly.  They had all of my favorites: spicy scallop, unagi done right, toro was in season, and they even had uzura (a fresh quail egg layered over masago, tobiko or ikura).  They also had a number of specialty rolls which were geared towards American palates and looked like fun.  All-in-all, Taki turned out to be a top-notch sushi bar.


Plan ahead if you want to visit Taki.  Either make reservations or show up early (5pm on weekdays or 4pm on Saturday/Sunday).

A decade in Central Iowa

After graduating from the University of Wyoming with my Ph.D., my family and I moved to Ames, Iowa.  We lived there for ten years before finally moving back to my native New York.

You get comfortable living in a place for that long.  Especially when that place is full of friendly folks, excellent food, exciting vistas, and good friends.  As I was leaving the state in my overloaded Penske truck, I decided to set up this blog as a love letter to Central Iowa.  Partly to pay back, partly to remember, but mostly because I'll miss my home of ten years.

So, look for weekly postings over the next few months as I reminisce about the great food, exciting entertainment and interesting people of the great State of Iowa.