Gino’s Restaurant & Lounge

My experience wasn’t bad but it wasn’t good either. The salad had way too much dressing and wasn’t already special. The bread tasted like it was store bought not fresh baked. The pasta was the same nothing special. For a meal that was just ok it was over priced and not as good as I expected. My boyfriend’s good was also just ok.

Gino’s is THE place to get what is to me the quintessential Des Moines dish, steak de burgo. Absolutely the best in town.
They make their own salad dressings as well, and the creamy Parmesan dressing is another Des Moines classic you can’t find in other cities.

the bar has awesome midcentury modern design, its like having a cocktail on the set of mad men. would absolutely love to hang out here for cocktails. as for restaurant, onion rings outstanding. dont like their marinara sauce but this is a question of taste not quality. my friends loved their chicken alfredo and lasagna. The salad is lettuce only with two tiny cherry tomatos and a massive quantity of their signature dressing, too much for me. my pan roasted chicken was once a famous item, but mine was dry and the cooks here seem to not like salt very much. this is a very old school genuine family restaurant and it is loved by the local restaurant critics. décor throughout looks like the 1960“s so its retro chic in a way.

I fell I’m love with Gino’s on my first visit years ago and keep going back. The service is always great. The food is a bit on the high side but the portion sizes are generous. Old school 60’s atmosphere adds to the charm.

Our first visit to Gino’s. the reasons for the low rating were, marinara sauce lacked flavor. The salad was over dressed, but the dressing, garlic, was very good. Bread was cold, and not even Italian. Servings were large. Chocolate cake was good too. Serve was ok, but they weren’t real busy either. Sarah had spaghetti and Italian sausage. I had lasagna, made with a macaroni type of pasta. A little pricey for the quality, but the quantity made up for that.

I really had high hopes for this place based on how much I like their jarred marinara sauce you can buy at the store. So we came here on a busy Sat night and were told there would be an approx 30 min wait– we were finally seated in an hour. Ok, it’s Sat night at the dinner rush time, so I can forgive that. After we were seated, it took 10 – 15 minutes to get our order taken. Our salads were soggy (like they were pre-​dressed or sat in the pass window too long before they were brought to us) and the croutons were mushy– gross! We got the bread when we were almost done with our salads :(I ordered cavatelli w/​meatballs with extra marinara and received ravioli with marinara and a meatball on the side. I said that I had not ordered the ravioli and the waitress said, «ma’am, you said ravioli» which I had not & was shocked that she put the blame on me. Hasn’t she ever heard that «the customer is always right»? She brought me cavatelli with meat sauce with a meatball on the side, which I also did not order but since, by this time, I was ready to eat my napkin, I didn’t say anything. Needless to say, I was annoyed. She also pissed off the table next to us by not filling their water glasses, not bringing any bread and not bringing the man his drink, which l heard her say she would pay for – she didn’t blame them for her mistakes! I also heard the man say that his chicken was deep-​fried «twice» and not pan-​fried like the menu said. My cavatelli was «meh» with a really tasteless meatball (which I did not order on the side). My husband’s meal was much better. I am giving this place 2 stars, not for their bland food or their shitty service, but for the atmosphere – I’m sure it looks exactly like it did the day they opened in 1966 – which I find charming :) Their bread was really good, but not worth the 2 hours I spent there. Save yourself a trip, folks, and just go to the Latin King, where they serve Italian food to die for and in much less time!

My sis used to hostess here when she was in high school. Still a wonderful family owned Italian place. Somewhat of a dying breed in Des Moines where the chains are starting to take over. Known best for their Steak de Burgo and homemade creamy garlic salad dressing.

You cannot beat Gino’s for an old school, family run steak house. This is not a fancy-​schmancy dinner club… it’s GREAT food at great prices. Hand poured bar (no computer drinks here) make this one of the cities best places for a before dinner cocktail.
Try the top sirloin (we call it the ‘individual pot roast’) or the pan-​fried, Italian seasoned chicken… house dressing on the salad, of course!
¹²⁄₁₄: The wife and I went to Gino’s on Saturday night. We learned that they now offer PRIME RIB Thursday through Saturday. I tried it and it was fantastic! PLEASE GO THERE TONIGHT!
We love this place!

This is one of the best parts when visiting family in Des Moines. Husband and I have had some wonderful memories here. The service is great, food is consistently good.