Prairie Canary

Found this by accident and so glad we did! Salmon sandwich and tomato and feta soup was AMAZING! THE BEER SELECTION WAS EXCELLENT. Service was efficient but environment was a little hectic. Take the time to visit if in the area.

Meh. Got the shrimp app (servers recommendation) the anchovy, I mean Cesar salad (I usually love anchovies but that’s all I could taste in this). Took a couple bites of each and bailed. I did enjoy their tap choices and their cider is clean and crisp. Service was fine. Not going back… disappointing

On our recent trip to Grinnell we happened upon this restaurant. First thing the hostess said to us upon entering was «do you have a reservation» we obviously did not so she said we could sit downstairs and we are very glad we did. We has a wonderful pork belly Thai wrap appetizer. We also had salads that were delicious and our entrees of vodka pasta and the carbonara pasta with andiolle sausage that was also wonderful. A fantastic dessert of banana flambé was a great treat that was made at out table. I would recommend this Restarant to anyone that wanted to try something new.

We had a great lunch here on our way across Iowa. The ambience was pleasant, the food was good, and the service dexterous!

Best service I’ve ever had. This place has such a neat layout. The Underground bar is great for drinks.
We were with a large group for a wedding. So needless to say we were rowdy. We spilt a couple drinks, and the staff there was so nice and was very accommodating.
This place is awesome. Go there.

A little foodie place right there in the middle of Iowa. Wow. That was unexpected. Nice menu offerings, and some hipster twists. Food mostly lives up to expectations. Service is fine, some were more present than others and none doomed really to be involved or card much.

Fantastic! The atmosphere was excellent and the service was fantastic. Only the food surpassed all of that!

I’m only in town for a week and this was basically one of the only places that looked like it was going to be a good meal. With the chic atmosphere and endless entrée options to choose from I would highly recommend stopping in for a meal. I had the
prairie chicken sandwich with an apple side salad. Loved the salad with toasted almonds– I believe it was, and the sandwich was delicious. Maybe a bit too much cheese but it was manageable. Felt like I was back home in Chicago with the vibe the restaurant had!
Happy hour drink deals: 3:30?-6:30 also!

The space is pleasant enough, but the staff seemed disorganized and food was a B– at best. My wife and I both ordered the tomato soup appetizer. One bowl came out pretty quickly, then after a long wait two more bowls arrived. (???) The soup tasted like it was poured out of a Progresso can, with way too much salt and cheese added. My wife enjoyed her salad, but the bread used for my prosciutto & brie baguette was terrible, the brie was stringy (I’m pretty sure I was eating mozzarella), and the arugula tasted like regular green lettuce.
Oh the whole, it’s hard to know whether or not to recommend this place. It might be the best lunch you’re going to get in Grinnell, but don’t expect the food to blow you away. If you’re in the mood for a little snack, maybe skip the Prairie Canary and walk around the block for a nice mini donut and cup of coffee at the friendly and tasty Saints Rest Coffee House.

Looooove Prairie Canary! Highly recommend all of the appetizers and salads (artichoke dip and the house salad are my faves), and any of the sandwiches. The only thing I have had that I didn’t like was the quinoa crêpe. Well worth your money!

Was super excited to take my friend here for her birthday and it is under new ownership and the service was slow and wrong. We ordered a bottle of cold wine and they didnt bring an ice bucket. They gave my friends the wrong food but we switched it around. This is a finer dining restaurant but my mashed potatoes were dry and flavorless, the 3 cheese alrfredo was average. The corn bread muffins were dry. The highlight of the night were the deserts although we were short one because they ran out of the crème brule. The flourless chocolate tort was fabulous. When we got our bill it had to be redone. We still had fun though since it was girls night.

The fried brussel sprouts started the meal. Never had them fixed the way they do and want to come back for some more. The pork chop was really, really good. The carmilized onions on to where a great topping. Wait staff was good and meet expectations for above normal tip. The chocolate tort then completed the evening.

We were traveling from north Chicago area and stayed in this town for the night. None of the reviews of any of the restaurants looked too good. We checked the top rated Chinese, but we avoided then when we found they use MSG in their food.
Our good fortune was finding this spot. Deciduous and perfect options of fresh, well prepared food after a long day driving.
Go here if you are in town on a Thursday night. A

Grinnell is a college town, population 9,000 when school is in session. It’s rather like a ghost town when only the locals are here. So, I am hammering them a little hard on the review. The interior of the place is like the cover of the Beatles White Album. A lot of negative use of space. It’s open. I looked through the menu, a lot of smaller print (yes that matters). For a small town, the menu is very large. I was wondering if this was a French menu, an Italian menu, or something else. In other words, this place needs an identity and perhaps it doesn’t know what it wants to be or its trying to figure out what the customers want. A lot of indecision.
There is a bit of pretension in the menu. Truffle Fries… basically the fries were blanched, fried and soaked with truffle oil. The sauce was nice… but soggy fries and sauce.
Now for the pasta. Picture sliced beef on a pile of penne pasta. How does it look in your mind’s eye? Well, presentation was a massive bowl on a square place. Sliced beef on top of pasta… meat not seasoned… and well it looked like I was eating four portions. Here is where some editing needs to come in. The flavor is there, but we eat with our eyes first.
Dessert. Yes, another chocolate dessert, but the wait staff had asked how I liked the meal and I did give them feedback. I wasn’t trying to get out of the bill, I was being honest. There were men on base, and the dessert was up to bat. I think I pissed off the chef because all of a sudden, I received a highly elevated yin, yang design and offered my «home run» cheer to the wait staff.
My point is. They are really trying to do something wonderful in Grinnell. They NEED to keep trying. BUT, it is always better if they LOVE what they do. They are trying to create an experience where there is very little competition for college student and local populace dollars. On main street USA where a lot of businesses have closed up and moved elsewhere. They are good here, but they need to rally around their identity and stick with it. What is the Prairie Canary known for? Not their food, but their décor. When they are known for their food… they will hit it out of the park every time. If in town… give them a chance.

We wanted to dine here for lunch — the Unilocal reviews looked great. But after 5 minutes of waiting by the empty hostess station (no one else was waiting), we were told that the wait was 30+ minutes because the kitchen was backed up. There was an open table, but we couldn’t sit there. The few diners who had food looked satisfied. We’ll call first next time.

Super cute restaurant in the middle of downtown Grinnell. The overall design and architecture looks like it could be somewhere on Melrose. The food is very simple and quick, yet offering an elevated selection. If you’re a student and want something elegant and simple this is the place to go.
I had a prosciutto sandwich with some local Iowa beer which was good. Overall great service, good food and elegant design for more than half the price.

Very impressed. I have been here for lunch twice now. Food presentation on the plate has always been very upscale. Glad to see that the walk up counter has been removed and more upscale dining feel has been implemented. Staff is very helpful and full of great suggestion when asking about food choices. Love love love!

Let’s just stick with the facts. You can draw your own conclusions. Didn’t answer the phone when I called to see why they weren’t open at 10am. Unilocal states the restaurant opens at 10am; however, website states 10:30am. Brought cold coffee to table twice. Brought cold soup to table. It was not suppose to be a cold soup. Waitresses and management were hanging out and not paying attention to their job. The music started off as 50’s oldies, then went to holiday music, back to 50’s, then finally landing on 50’s Christmas music. Omelette was something anyone could of made with three eggs, frying pan, and leftovers. Mimosa was OK, especially as it was at no charge. Not sure if it was compted or the waitress simply forgot. I recommend the owners start over with new management and wait staff. It is clear that the staff are not trained nor do they care about the quality of service provided.

Oh man, I REALLY wanted to love this place. While I didn’t, I’ll say that I did LIKE it, as is reflected in my 3-​star «A-​OK» rating.
The atmosphere is beautiful. It’s a huge open space, and I love the minimalist décor. Also was happy to see they have some cushiony bench seating at some of the tables, as I always prefer that to chairs.
Our server was young, but kind and attentive. There was also a TON of waitstaff — always a good sign. The cornbread basked brought over immediately was a nice touch.
We started with the fried brussel sprouts and mango jalapeño chicken spring rolls. I didn’t notice on the menu, but they both come with a chili lime dipping sauce. I DID notice when they came to the table, that I found that to be slightly un-​inventive, and as far as a I can recollect it tasted more like a mildly flavored aioli. The brussel sprouts were awesome. The mango jalapeño chicken spring rolls were perfectly tasty, but they tasted neither like mango nor jalapeño — they mostly tasted like curry. Weird.
I ordered the salmon picatta, one of the nights specials. For $ 18.95, I got a large plate of fettuccine with a 6oz portion of salmon, and a lemon beurre blanc sauce. I asked for my salmon to be on the undercooked side, as I prefer it, and got nervous when I didn’t see the server write it down. I was assured by my dinner-​mates that she would tell the chef (or submit it with the order). Unfortunately she either didn’t do that, or the chef didn’t care, because not only when it arrived at the table with a second order for someone else did they not ask which went to which person, but it was actually over-​cooked. Sigh. The sauce was somewhat tasteless, and I asked for a side of parmesan to help, which came promptly and did help. It was perfectly good food and I ate 95% of it, but it left me feeling kind of… sad. I wanted it to be better.
While my initial experience with PC left me unimpressed, I like the menu options and the space/​service enough that I would certainly go back to try something else should I find myself in Grinnell again.

Came here for our daughter’s Grinnell College pre-​graduation dinner. Table of 10. Management was very accommodating in allowing us to come in early and add some extra candles and flowers to our table to make it extra special. Had the champagne on the table, cold and ready to go!
Server was great! Very attentive!
Food is good, appreciate the good mix of options. Chef was open to some adjustments to menu offerings. Appetizers were fantastic (flat bread pizza, mango jalapeño rolls, hummus), dessert was great (cheesecake, flour less chocolate cake with berries, panna cotta). Entrees were well above average for a mid-​Iowa restaurant. Local suppliers, good preparations.
Only real place in Grinnell for group that included vegetarians, vegans, and omnivores. Best Grinnell restaurant, by far!