Restaurants

Downtown Restaurants

Most are open for lunch & dinner; we’ve also pointed out the few breakfast spots.

Atlas, 127 Iowa Avenue – Wraps, homemade soups, salads, and seasonal entrees. A nice outdoor patio. Lunch & dinner.

Basta Pizzeria Ristorante, 121 Iowa Avenue – Casual fine dining Italian restaurant. Offers fresh, local ingredients and many made-from-scratch dishes. Lunch and dinner with nice outdoor seating.

Givanni’s, 109 E. College Street – Large Italian menu with upscale interior. Dinner only.

Graze, 115 E. College Street – Claiming to have Iowa City’s best martini, Graze offers a world menu.

Masala Indian Vegetarian, 9 S. Dubuque Street – Like the name says – vegetarian Indian food.

Mickey’s Irish Pub, 11 S. Dubuque Street – A Longtime Iowa City pub offers burgers and sandwiches for lunch and dinner.

One Twenty-Six, 126 E. Washington Street – Eclectic menu with interesting sandwiches and salads for lunch; dinner entrees include an array of meat and fish options. A smaller wine bar, Hearth, is upstairs.

Short’s Burger & Shine, 18 S. Clinton Street – Offers great, locally raised, gourmet burgers. Several different varieties to choose from. Vegetarian options also available. Lunch and dinner.

Neart Northside Restaurants 

Bluebird Diner, 330 E. Market Street – A more upscale diner than Hamburg Inn.

Devotay, 117 N. Linn Street – Tapas bar with an eclectic interior.

El Bandito’s, 327 E. Market Street – Fresh and interesting Mexican food; good drinks. Serves weekend brunch.

Hamburg Inn, 214 N. Linn Street – A perennial favorite of presidential candidates visiting Iowa City, this diner offers pancakes, burgers, and pie shakes!

Motley Cow Café, 130 N. Linn Street – One of Iowa City’s more innovative restaurants with a seasonally changing menu. Offers breakfast on weekends.

Oasis Falafel, 206 N. Linn Street – Casual spot for falafel, hummus, and other Middle Eastern fare. Lunch and dinner

Brix Cheese Shop and Wine Bar, 209 N. Linn Street – Teresa’s favorite – wonderful wine deals in the afternoon and creative cheese boards with excellent pickles!

Groceries

If you’d like to get a few items to have for your visit there are two good markets in walking distance to the Obermann Center:  The Bread Garden Market is located on the pedestrian mall in the same building as the Hotel Vetro; and the New Pioneer Coop is at 22 S. Van Buren St. For basics (and good wine!), John’s Groceries on the corner of Market and Gilbert is close.

Coffee Houses

Iowa City offers a number of good coffee houses, most of which have free Wi-Fi. The most popular is probably Java House at 211 E. Washington St., open from 6:00 a.m. to midnight. The Times Clubabove Prairie Lights Books at 15 S. Dubque St., offers coffee and pastries by day and wine by night; as well as being in a phenomenal bookstore, it is also on the site of a former literary club that once attracted writers like Gertrude Stein and Langston Hughes. Higher Ground Cafe is closer to Obermann and has beer & wine and sandwiches in addition to coffee.