The Mucky Duck Pub

Yum! Loved the fish n chips. Also loved the atmosphere. Very nice servers too. Will definitely be back and recommend to friends!

Stopped in for lunch on Saturday. Wow, what a great atmosphere! This place is small and not much seating, and they were packed.
We were able to grab a table and decided to try several items and split them.
I ordered a Porter (sorry don’t know the maker) and it was pretty decent.
Decided to get the Sausage Rolls with mustard and pickle spread. The Sausage Rolls are excellent with the puff pastry. Excellent flavor and the pastry was nice. I don’t know what to make of the pickle spread, it was different. The mustard was very spicy, great, but use caution.
The Fish and Chips was fantastic. Lightly breaded and the cod fell apart. Excellent! The chips were big like steak fries and were OK.
The Bangers and Mash was an interesting dish. The sausage and mash with gravy was very good. The potatoes were light and the gravy had good flavor.
The Steak and Guiness Pie was fabulous. I added some mash and it was comfort food heaven. This went very well with the Porter. The beef was tender with potatoes and carrots. Excellent dish. Came with a nice puff pastry.
The Heinz Baked Beans were nice with tomato sauce, very light for lunch.
The service was excellent and very friendly. Even with a packed room, they were very good.
Great British Food, Wonderful Atmosphere. I would definitely go back to the Mucky Duck!

Today I will be reviewing another restaurant that is near and dear to my heart. It’s hard to have an unbiased opinion about this place, but I’ll try my best to view The Mucky Duck from a neutral perspective.
INTRO
The Mucky Duck has only been in operation for a few years, but the owner Marcus has done business in Ames for years. He opened a British food store (Ames British Foods) at another location in town and also opened «Chip Shop at Char’s» at the current location 9f the Mucky Duck on South Duff. Marcus then purchased Char’s (formerly a half convenience store and half chip shop with a limited menu) and remodeled the entire building, moving his British foods store in with the chip shop, added a pub and now combined make up the present day Mucky Duck, serving traditional and contemporary English cuisine, tea & scones and a nice selection of beers, both local and British, both on tap and bottled. The store sells teas, candies, canned/​packaged British foods and souvenirs.
ATMOSPHERE
I’ve never been to England, but I’d guess this is pretty close to the pub atmosphere you’d find in London minus the smoking. It isn’t a huge place, but going there sort of feels like going to a home away from home. The owner is almost always there and is very polite and friendly. He’s always quick to offer travel tips or recommend products to those of us who aren’t as familiar withnthe foods and drinks from that part of the world. It’s usualky pretty quiet during the day but I’m certain it can get a bit crazy at night or during a soccer match. The walls are covered with British advertisements, pictures, flags and tea pots lining the top of one wall. There is a jukebox, bar counter, dining area, TV (that’s usually tuned to a station watching soccer) and a coubter with the foods, candies and souvenirs. It is nothing fancy but feels perfect. The service is exceptional.
MENU
If it’s British pub fare it’s on the menu. They have it all, from pub pies to battered bangers, fish and chips to pasties, even Haggis gets a spot on the menu. They recently began serving a full British breakfast, complete including eggs, bangers, bacon, mushrooms, tomato, bubble & squeak, baked beans and puddings, both black and white (please don’t ask me what’s in these… but I will tell you they’re both good). They have a nice beer menu and full bar. Desserts are available. They have an EXTENSIVE tea menu available all day as well.
WHAT I ORDERED
On my most recent visit I had the battered bangers (which is a special-​recipe Brtish sausage) and chips. They won’t tell you everything in the original mix, but Marcus did tell us two special ingredients are cardanmom and mace. You get two large bangers and a BIG load of chips, served in a newspaper-​lined basket. The fish is served the same way and with the same amazing batter on the outside. It’s very good, and don’t ask you the recipe because they won’t tell you. I’ve tried more than once. Their fish & chips are light and flavorful. Nothing fancy but this is comfort food at it’s finest.
WHAT’S GOOD
The food is great, the menu is nice and the atmosphere is excellent. It’s all good here no matter what you order. The addition of the breakfast menu was a novel idea. I can’t think of many things I dislike about the Mucky Duck.
WHAT’S BAD
If I have any complaint about it, I’d have to say it’s quite crowded at times and you can feel squeezed in there. There is limited seating here but it’s fine most times during the day. I can’t reall knock anything else. I keep trying to think of something I don’t like and I just can’t.
SUMMARY
The Mucky Duck is a great little pub and restaurant that serves traditional British pub fair, beers and also serves as a small grocery store cotaining British canned/​boxed foods, teas, candies and souvenirs. It has a great atmosphere and feels a lot like home to repeat visitiors. The food and service are great and the return customers and full dining room prove that they are here to stay. Th Mucky Duck is a great place to have a leisurely meal, join friends for a pint or two at the bar or just pop in to have an afternoon cup of tea with shortbread cookies. This is one of Ames’ best kept eating secrets!

Iv been here a few times now and it has defiantly grown on me. The wait staff can be slow but it has more to do with the laid back nature of the place rather than laziness, so it’s ok. And they are always very nice. Iv had some amazing food here and highly recommend the fish fry or bangers. A few things on the menu were obviously frozen and microwaved and I don’t understand why because everything else was great. For the kindness of the staff and good food (minus a couple items) this is a great place for dinner or to grab a few pints for the night. If you from the other side of the pond, I hear it’s also a great place to get tea and other food products you can’t typically find in Iowa.

Fantastic Bangers and Mash as well as Fish and Chips. The wait staff are very friendly.
The ambiance is lacking and it’s always cold. If it wasn’t for the temperature I’d go more frequently.

Lovely atmosphere with really nice owners! The fish and chips are a must have and they have an amazing selection of beers. This is definitely a place to chill with good company.

I’m a fish and chips guy. If I go out to eat and fish & chips are on the menu, I just can’t resist ordering it. The fish and chips at Mucky Duck were up there with the best I’ve had. Batter is delicious and cooked perfectly. The beer selection was also a plus and the service was great. I will definitely be returning to Mucky Duck the next time I’m in Ames.

Seating is tight, but the food is authentic. I’m a fan of the bangers and mash. My go to for great British fair.

It’s been awhile since my original review, so, since my wife and I just had lunch here today, I thought I’d update things. I’m pleased to report that the quality of the food remains very high. This time around, my wife had the chicken pasty, and absolutely loved it; she said that it evoked her memories of Britain better than the vegetable pasty she had before. I had a bite of it and although I prefer the beef version, had to agree that the chicken one was quite good. I went this time with the pork tenderloin, which isn’t really what I think of as British food, but which was tasty and quite large (I brought home half for leftovers and still had a very filling meal). Both the tenderloin and pasty came with an order of steak fries (called «chips» here) that were excellent.
We also noticed that there is an outdoor patio. We didn’t take advantage of it now, but in about six months we will likely be baby-​sitting our daughter’s dog, and we made a mental note that this is a place we can eat with the dog in tow; places with this feature are in short supply in Ames.
I recommended this restaurant highly before, and I still do.

Hey, come on, it’s a real British pub, not an imitation. Great fish & chips, real British chocolate. One of the best places in town!

Ordered the large fish and chips with a side of Cole slaw, best I’ve ever had. Went and ordered another piece of fish a la carte not because the first order wasn’t enough but I not going to be back to Ames for a while and I couldn’t resist. I didn’t need any tartar sauce or ketchup just used the house vinegar. Can wait to go back with the wife so she can enjoy the same !!!

Awesome food, drinks and service. This is now on our list of go to places to eat. Can’t wait to enjoy this place again

British pub with great selection of British and imported beers. I had the fish and chip with a pint of King Goblin. It was very good, fresh cod, breaded just right. Pleasant atmosphere and laid back patrons and staff.

One of my favorites. Great beer, even better food. Of course the fish and chips are great my my favorite is definitely the bangers and mash. The new patio is great!

British style fish & chips shop run by an all around good guy in Ames. ‘Nuff said. No? Ok, I’ll say more.
The Mucky Duck Pub grew out of the Ames British Food Store (rest in peace). I miss Ames British Foods but I am so thrilled to see Mucky Duck a success.
Fish & chip portions are quite large. I’m set with a half basket order. I couldn’t imagine ordering a full basket. The fish is very moist and flaky. Batter is light and not cakey by any means. Just a good, traditional British style batter. Chips are solid and do not disappoint.
Don’t eat fish? Try the bangers or the scotch egg. Both great.
Try to arrive early on quiz night as tables fill up quickly.

The food is fair and the service is less than. I was in town for business and I stopped in for cold beer and some food. Well, the draft beer was not very cold and the bartender filled my Guinness to the brim on the first pour. I had to ask for a beer and a menu. Then, my pint glass sat there empty until I finished my meal and I was sitting at the bar. There were two female bartenders that seemed to be deep in conversation and didn’t bother asking if I needed anything.

They were at the British Car Show in Ames. Offering some food for the people at the show. Roasted a lamb there on the spot. Mucky Duck Pub is just down the road and it a cute little spot worth a stop. Menu is fairly diverse. British grocery store to purchase some items from such as mustards and sauces. Somewhat overpriced as you can get the same items at a grocery store for less. It is the only place like it nearby so stop in and try it out.

As a resident of the neighborhood behind the Mucky Duck, I often lamented the lack of restaurant and bar options. Nothing is within walking distance and most things that are close are chain restaurants in the South Duff madness. When the Chip Shop first started moving into the old Char’s, I was happy, and following the remodel, I was downright delighted! It is walkable and bikeable, and even better, it’s GOOD.
As a craft beer enthusiast/​snob, I couldn’t be happier with the beer selection — there are a number of taps that are frequently changing and a great bottle selection. I have tried a number of menu items and nothing has been disappointing. My go-​to order is the delicious curry, and my boyfriend says the fish and chips are among the best he’s had (and I consider him to be something of an expert in the field of fish and chips).
It’s a small place, and it’s doing a bang-​up business so it’s frequently busy — and as someone who hopes to have the Mucky Duck in the neighborhood for a long, long time, it makes me happy to see the parking lot full every day. Visit the Mucky Duck! You’ll be glad you did.

This divey British restaurant is a great place to find some good food. The tea is good and served in a teapot. There’s also a little area where you can buy British products. Thumbs up!

So where does one go in Iowa if they have a hankering for bangers and mash served up by nuclear scientist? Why The Mucky Duck Pub of course! The proprietor, a true Brit and PhD, formerly of the Ames Laboratory, is serving up a pretty genuine English Pub experience right here in Ames. The aforementioned bangers are custom made in Carroll Iowa from a family recipe he provided. Fantastic! The fish and chips are just greasy enough to be authentic, but are much better than those at several actual British pubs I’ve experienced. Stick with the half order unless you have a huge appetite. The chips, aka French fries, are cut wide and nicely seasoned. Just to compare, I sampled fish and chips at the Red Lobster. No surprise really, the helpings were more generous and the food was more flavorful at The Mucky Duck — all at a lower price. By the way, the sticky toffee pudding with ice cream is a treat!
One possible surprise for those not used to the pub experience: they have a great kids menu! Yes, there’s a bar on the premises, but it’s a restaurant first, at least during the lunch and dinner hours. They also carry a fun assortment of British candies, teas and souvenirs.
The owner and staff are very friendly. I suggest you stop on by the Mucky Duck Pub and enjoy their company. They’ll also prepare your order to go.