BEST PLACE FOR A BUSINESS LUNCH

Centro

A fire in the duct system above the wood-burning grill last June didn’t keep customers away from Centro for long. A week later, the restaurant reopened with no loss of clientele.

Chef George Formaro, who started the restaurant in 2002, said having a relaxed atmosphere, food that’s easy to eat during a meeting and a location near several businesses downtown keeps customers coming back. Another draw is Centro’s ever-changing menu.

“We try to always keep the menu fresh,” said Formaro, “I never go to sleep and think, ‘Oh, I’m done.’ When I go to sleep, I think, ‘What can I do different and better tomorrow?'”

Salads are as popular as ever, with the Centro Cobb salad being the most ordered. Pizzas are also a focal point and can be ordered past the 2 p.m. lunch hour. The restaurant takes reservations and can make arrangements for larger groups, Formaro said. It also handles takeout orders.

Centro already has such a large lunch following that Formaro’s goal isn’t to attract more clientele (although he admits that’s always nice), but rather to retain his current customers, especially with new dishes coming out all the time.

Runners-up: Latin King; Nick’s Bar & Grill

BEST SPORTING EVENT TO TAKE A CLIENT

Iowa Cubs

A new scoreboard, large video board, bleacher seating section and theater-style seats make going to an Iowa Cubs game even more appealing. If the weather cooperates, said Assistant General Manager Jim Nahas, the I-Cubs should beat last year’s attendance, drawing more than 530,000 fans.

More 12:05 p.m. games are helping to boost ticket sales, because businesses are using day-game tickets as employee perks, Nahas said. In addition, the 32 corporately owned skyboxes (some jointly owned) are often filled with Des Moines’ top executives and their clients during night games.

“The backbone to our success,” he said, “are the corporations in Des Moines.”

By opening day next year, a $1.2 million fountain should be completed along the Principal Riverwalk, and as more people start to use the trail, Nahas predicts ticket sales will continue to rise. Because of downtown development, especially residential, he said, “more people are riding bikes and walking down to the baseball games than ever before.”

Runners-up: Prairie Meadows Racetrack and Casino; Iowa Events Center

BEST RESTAURANT FOR A BUSINESS BREAKFAST

Iowa Machine Shed

Though Iowa Machine Shed began in 1978 as a tribute to the hard-working American farmer, many of today’s Greater Des Moines business people still appreciate the made-from-scratch breakfasts that accompany their morning business meetings there.

“It’s a combination of food and service,” said store manager Rick Cox, that makes Iowa Machine Shed the best restaurant for a business breakfast. “We have a really friendly staff, work really hard to take care of people, and the food is the best you’re going to find.”

The restaurant caters to several weekly groups, including business-networking clubs, and also takes reservations. Cox said that the staff usually tries to keep one of the dining rooms reserved during the week for regular meetings or larger business groups.

The Urbandale location is one of seven Machine Shed restaurants throughout the Midwest. It opens at 6 a.m. Monday through Friday. Popular breakfast items include giant cinnamon rolls and steak and eggs.

Runners-up: West End Diner; Palmer’s Deli & Market on Ingersoll Avenue

BEST BAR TO ENTERTAIN CLIENTS

Centro

Centro’s bar is as popular as ever, yet George Formaro, the restaurant’s head chef and co-owner with Paul Rottenberg, said, “we never take for granted what we serve and what we do.”

He attributes the bar’s success to the staff’s ability to make a great cocktail in addition to Centro’s great beer and wine list. Martinis are a popular choice, and Centro offers 13 different kinds. The bar also moves a lot of wine, said Formaro, including red zinfandel, pinot grigio and chardonnay.

Located in the Temple for Performing Arts, the bar’s open layout and tall windows allow patrons to watch the ever-increasing street traffic and enjoy a view of several downtown businesses, which Formaro said makes it a fun location and a great place to network. During the week, the clientele is almost all business people who work downtown.

The bar is open Monday through Friday from 11 a.m. to around 11 p.m., usually an hour after the restaurant closes. On Saturday, it’s open from 11 a.m. to midnight and on Sunday from 5 to 9 p.m.

Runners-up: Nick’s Bar and Grill; Star Bar

BEST AFTER-WORK BAR

Star Bar

Happy-hour specials are not needed to attract large crowds to this bar at the end of the workday. Owner and chef Jeremy Morrow said that it’s an interesting selection of wines, beer and liquor in a “lively, but not too loud” location on the way home from work downtown that draws people of all ages to Star Bar.

A year after the bar opened, “it exceeded our preliminary budget projections quite substantially,” Morrow said. “We’re very happy. I think it filled a need for a more casual restaurant and little more upscale bar in the area.”

Popular drinks right now include martinis and Widmer Hefeweizen, an unfiltered wheat beer. In addition, Star Bar’s extensive wine list offers quality selections that customers don’t normally find in a grocery store, said Morrow.

Many patrons also order from the appetizer menu, which features a mix of traditional bar food, such as chicken wings, and contemporary small plates, such as sesame crusted tuna. Some even stick around for dinner, which includes specialty salads, popular items during the summer.

The bar is open until 2 a.m. Monday through Saturday and midnight on Sunday.

Runners-up: Centro; Nick’s Bar and Grill

CLOSING THE DEAL

Best Restaurant for a Business Dinner

801 Steak & Chop House

Year after year, Business Record readers chose 801 Steak & Chop House as the best restaurant in the city for a business dinner. It’s no wonder. The USDA prime cuts of beef are melt-in-your-mouth tender, the seafood tastes as if it’s just been caught, the wine list is deep and includes many vintages not found anywhere else in the city, and the wait staff is attentive but not intrusive. It’s also one of the most beautifully appointed restaurants in the city, offering ambience and elegance that are sure to impress clients.

Located in the state’s tallest building at 801 Grand Ave., the restaurant is conveniently located to downtown businesses. It has private meeting rooms that can accommodate up to 60 people, and private dining rooms for up to 14 people.

RUNNERS-UP: Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar; Nick’s Bar & Grill

BEST BROWN BAG LUNCH

Palmer’s Deli & Market

The Palmer family figured out its recipe for success when it opened its first deli in Urbandale 18 years ago: Focus on one thing – lunch – and be the best at it.

Now with restaurants in West Des Moines, Urbandale, two in Des Moines and a fifth location in Ankeny in the planning stages, Palmer’s Deli & Market serves lunch to an estimated 3,000 people a day, according to owner Joe Palmer. He said his delis prepare many box lunches every day for corporate outings and lunch meetings. Companies like the fact that the food is fresh and healthful, Palmer said, and that they can have the food delivered.

Palmer’s is modeled after big-city delis, with a variety of soups, made-to-order sandwiches and salads, desserts and several deli salads such as potato salad. Each day, the restaurants prepare 25 to 30 of these side dishes.

“The beautiful thing about Palmers is you can get a little bit of everything in any quantity you want – 4, 8, 12, 16 ounce servings of the salads, a half sandwich or whole, a cup or bowl of soup,” Palmer said. “Having so many products in different dimensions is a true quality of a good deli.”

RUNNERS-UP: In the Bag; Jason’s Deli

Best Place for a Business Conference

Hy-Vee Conference Center

Located at 5820 Westown Parkway in West Des Moines and easily accessible from Interstate 80, the Hy-Vee Conference Center is a snap to get to, making it a popular destination for business meetings, employee appreciation dinners, cocktail parties and black-tie events.

Located close to several hotels popular with business travelers, the conference center can handle gatherings of 100 to 800 people. A professional kitchen staff prepares fine cuisine and event planning specialists tend to the most minute detail. State-of-the-art audio and visual systems are available.

RUNNERS-UP: Des Moines Marriott Downtown; Iowa Events Center