The Rooftop

As luck would have it, I ended up here twice last week! They were good days for it, too: sunny, 80 degrees. Perfect weather for a Moscow mule or mojito. The space is small (confined to to the rooftop-​who would have thought?) but used wisely. A few shady spots if you’re allergic to the sun, and the bar is under cover. Beer selection is good, cocktail list is better. Prices are about the same as anywhere else in town. The food is also about the same as anywhere else in town. Good, but it obviously not the main attraction. Great place to sit and hang with friends. Nice to see it in the east village. Free parking at the meters after 6 and all weekend.

15 minutes of getting ignored by staff is my limit. As we walked out, another couple was leaving for same reason. Such a great location and venue. What a waste.

It took us far too long to get up here, only because we just didn’t know what to expect. We’ve been 3 – 4 times in the last month and have enjoyed all of it. It’s a great location in the East Village, nice open-​air top, not an awesome view but nice to be in the out-​of-​doors with a cocktail. Hours weren’t well-​marked and do vary depending on weather, but they’ve since posted them on the door and on Facebook.
Others have remarked to us at the bar (and we did experience this once) that service was slow. That said, our other few visits were just fine. I think it was an «off-​time.» Bartenders are open to making tweaks to listed cocktails and have accommodated my requests several times.
We did not try any food.
There are several steps up to the bar but there is an accessible gliding chair to assist guests who need special access.
Restrooms are nice and clean.

The rooftop is a great place to grab drinks with friends while enjoying the nice weather! I love their bloody Mary’s, and the oriental salad was delicious. I’m looking forward to trying some of their other food and signature cocktails in the future. Also, the servers are prompt and friendly!

Stopped in for a girls night out for drinks and bites before a Nitefall on the River concert down the street. Fun venue, great addition to Downtown offerings. We were all really pleased with our food orders — some great burgers on the menu. Moscow Mules were de-​lish and just a small part of an impressive cocktail list. It wasn’t busy at all but service was slow although pleasant. Would be great to have some ceiling fans installed on the canopy for those hot summer nights but I would definitely go back and recommend to others.

Stopped here on a day trip to Des Moines for a bite to eat and we all had a very nice meal. We were there for lunch, so it wasn’t very crowded at all. I always like to eat outside and being up on the rooftop terrace we nice.
We ordered a variety of things to get a good taste of everything. I had the Cuban sandwich and was happy with it… the seasoning on the pulled pork could’ve been a bit more spicy, but it was still good. Others in our group had a chicken wrap and the grilled chicken sandwich. Both said they were tasty (although the ranch dressing that came with the wrap was too runny). We also ordered the hummus, black bean, salsa appetizer. That was really good. It was clearly made on-​site (didn’t taste canned at all) and came with homemade chips too!
They have a enormous beer selection with a large variety of local options too.

Good weather? This is the perfect place to go!
Fresh Air and great menu! Many beers, wines and drink menu too!
The black bean veggie burger is great. I had the potato soup and was impressed by the flavors!
More than a couple times I have been here and will be returning!
I have seen large groups here but it is really great for couples or small families.
The servers work really hard here.

What a shitty place! People please listen to me and don’t go. The bar tender made me a cocktail from the menu for 15 minutes and with a bug floating on it. You know what’s happening next? She tried to pick the bug out in front of me. Ewwwwww… They thought I was blind! What a shitty place. People please take my advice and avoid this place. The bar tenders are a bunch of idiots.

I love the atmosphere, like the food and drinks. However the service I got yesterday was terrible! We waited 10 mins after we sat down for some one to come over and take or drink order (the place was maybe half full with a four person wait staff.)We ordered drinks and and that took another 15 mins! While waiting for our drinks we saw our waitress eating food, texting and taking new drink orders at the bar. When she brought the drinks over my dates watermelon martini was warm and my mojito had no mint plus I’m pretty sure she used vodka not rum. I let her know that this was not a mojito and she said she would get me a new one and she did (after another 15 min wait again texting and eating while I wait.) we reluctantly ordered food and that took another 25 mins. Ordered the salad got fries (not complaining about that secretly wanted them anyway). Food was good and she did comp me for the drink but still overall not a great experience at a place I usually like. Everybody has a bad day and maybe she was having one but no excuse for bad service.

It was the perfect day to have lunch and drinks on a rooftop but unfortunately this place was a big disappointment. Although it wasn’t overly busy the service was still slow. I had a glass of Chardonnay and it was the worst tasting wine I’ve had in years. We ordered appetizers-​, the hummus plate and the caprese bruschetta– both were very mediocre and not a whole lot of flavor. This could be a great addition to the east village establishments but they’ll need to step up their game.

Worst service experience I have had in the last 5 years. We asked for a waitress 3 times before one came and took our drink order 40 minutes after we sat down. Our food took forever and ²⁄₄ orders came out different than what the menu had said. Would never recommend this place.
I very rarely get upset about bad service or write reviews but this place managed to push me to do both.

Hit this place up last weekend. Unfortunately the weather did no cooperate enough for us to hit the rooftop. Cocktail where delicious had a perfectly mixed Moscow Mule and Dark and Stormy.
My only real complaint about the indoor seating is that I think ownership went a bit on the cheap (it shows) in converting this place from the former beloved rock club House of Bricks. Even with a fresher layout, I still felt like like it was a bit divey. Don’t get me wrong, I love dive bars but I do not think that is what they were going for here.
I will be back on a day when the weather warms up a bit.

I love that there is a Rooftop bar and restaurant in the East Village now! The food is standard american fare but quite delicious and you can go wrong with the drink selection and outdoor rooftop setting! We do not get that many months of killer weather in Des Moines so you have to make the most of it when you do! The Rooftop helps this happen!
Some of the best fries in town!

Can’t go wrong with a fresh air and drinks! Absolutely gorgeous patio to hang out on with company. Often one of us would have to walk over to the bartender to grab another drink since our server was often no where to be found. We also ordered hummus and it was never brought to our table. Beautiful place but disappointed to say the least.

Enjoyed the outdoor air, beer selection and food choices. Their champagne vinaigrette dressing is awesome!

Not remotely toddler friendly
No high chairs, so don’t let your child run out of sight at the end if the bar, there is an open staircase
No lids of any kind for any size cup
No changing table in either bathroom.
I come here often enough because I work close by and the food is great but my girlfriend and daughter surprised me for lunch and it’s pretty disappointing that they don’t have just a couple high chairs and cups with lids.

Just moved to the area. Great rooftop space that I have found is hard to find is dsm. Extensive beer bttl selection all under $ 5. Food menu appears good, step up from the down stairs dive bar. Trying to start a brunch and lunch service but otherwise doesn’t open till afternoon is sounds like. Would def be back, good wait staff and prices and love being outside!!!

I’m back in Des Moines again! So fun!
Today I decided I’d try something a little newer. The Rooftop is classified as «Cocktail Bar» and «American (new)». Sounded like modern American style food and well crafted drinks. No reviews? Mysterious! So I went for it.
Well you walk in and up a flight of stairs, and quickly realize that I’m heading back outside. This is the middle of July. It’s 95 degrees in the shade. What have I done?
The deck looks nice, but there’s literally only the bartender up there, and he’s taking chairs off of tables and setting up for the night. Apparently they had been closed all day because of the heat. I wonder why. He tells me that he’s open now though and invites me to have a seat.
So the place has an alright selection of bottled beers and ciders. I settle on one and when he brings it to me I ask for the menu. I had a very hearty appetite but upon looking at the menu I knew this was going to be tough. Handful of appetizers, some salads, flatbreads, burgers, and sandwiches. Not one thing about this says New American food to me. There’s also an entrees section, but get this… they only serve those Thursday through Sunday, and after 5pm. Apparently people during the week don’t want real meals.
Well I settled on the Bacon Wrapped Shrimp appetizer, and the Basil Pesto Chicken Flatbread. They need to be talked about.
Bacon wrapped shrimp. Sounds easy enough. Comes with a Mango Chipotle BBQ Sauce and on top of a Vegetable Slaw. These came out looking like popcorn shrimp covered in BBQ sauce. Shrimp were a little overcooked, and I’m honestly not even sure if there was bacon or not. The Vegetable Slaw was just bad cole slaw. No flavor whatsoever. The BBQ itself was great though! So I put some of it on my flatbread…
Which was lacking in the flavor department. It was DECENT, sure. But nothing to write home about. Pesto sauce on a flatbread (which was a little too crisp), mushrooms, onions (which they went overboard on), chicken, and mozzarella cheese. The BBQ sauce from the shrimp definitely made it taste better.
The service was lacking, I must say. I get that I was the only person in there, but that doesn’t mean that everyone that works there (who slowly started showing up) should sit in the corner talking. I wanted a water and the bartender serving me didn’t even ask. Hell, he didn’t even introduce himself to begin with. And he didn’t ask if I wanted another beer or anything either. Had he asked, I probably would have said yes. Oh well, bro. He dropped the check. I dropped some cash and got up and left. Some random waiter yells after me «Hey thanks!» and that was it.
All in all, very underwhelming.