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7 Iowa pizzerias make Yelp’s list of the best in the Midwest

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7 Iowa pizzerias make Yelp’s list of the best in the Midwest


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Every week, it seems like a new list with the top “this” or the top “that” comes out, and the latest from Yelp showcases the best pizzas in the Midwest. Granted, most of the places on this list come from Illinois and Michigan, which each have pizza styles of their own with Detroit-style, Chicago deep dish and Chicago tavern-style all making appearances.

Missing from this list of 100 is Iowa’s own style of pizza, Quad City-style, made famous at Harris Pizza, with two locations in Bettendorf and Davenport, and a third in Rock Island, Illinois. The pizza features a thin, crisp crust made with a malty, sweet dough and spicy tomato sauce. Next comes the toppings, layered under cheese. The pizza is then cut into strips with scissors.

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Casey’s breakfast pizzas and Happy Joe’s, the originator of taco pizzas, also are not on the list.

The list also doesn’t include the Lincoln Winebar, the pizza shop in Mount Vernon named one of the 22 best in the country by the New York Times in June.

Yelp first broke down its user-generated ratings by looking at pizza locations from across the region, including Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota and Wisconsin.

Then the review aggregator winnowed down the list by using a large concentration of reviews that included relevant keywords and ranked them using factors such as the total volume and ratings of reviews mentioning those keywords.

Here’s a look at the seven pizza restaurants in Iowa that did make Yelp’s list of 100 best in the Midwest.

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Zoey’s Pizzeria

This pizzeria in Marion outside Cedar Rapids landed in the No. 64 spot on Yelp’s list. Zoey’s Pizzeria originally opened in 1991 and serves Chicago-style deep dish and New York-style thin crust pies. Try the NewZago crust, a Chicago-style dough pressed out thin instead of deep-dish style, or the Zookie, a warm chocolate chip cookie topped with vanilla ice cream, chocolate sauce and whipped cream.

Location: 690 10th St., Marion

Contact: 319-377-2840 or zoeyspizza.com

Nonna’s Pizza & Pasta

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This newcomer in Ankeny landed in the No. 72 spot on Yelp’s list. Nonna’s Pizza & Pasta from owners and New Yorkers Donnie Hizeqaj and Mike Kabashi opened in 2022 with options such as Grandma’s Pizza with a crisp, thin-crust square pizza topped with mozzarella, marinara sauce, olive oil, basil and Romano cheese; Sicilian square pizzas with tomato sauce and mozzarella or a lasagna version with everything but the pasta; gluten-free pies; or regular round pizzas.

Location: 1802 N. Ankeny Blvd., Ankeny

Contact: 515-850-1085 or nonnaspizzapasta.com

Sfumato Pizzeria

The No. 90 spot on Yelp’s list comes from Alton in northwest Iowa. Sfumato Pizzeria opened in 2012 with a menu of Neapolitan-style pizzas baked in a wood-fired pizza oven. The husband-and-wife team of Matt and Shannon Slemp along with Mark Slemp, Matt’s father, run this pizza restaurant, technically in unincorporated Carnes. They named it Sfumato, an Italian word for a style of painting that translates into “up in smoke.” The family recommends the Margherita or the fig and caper with prosciutto.

Location: 4995 Carnes Drive, Alton

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Contact: 712-737-3007 or facebook.com/p/Sfumato-Pizzeria

More: The 27 essential restaurants in the Des Moines metro: 2024 edition

Maggie’s Farm Wood-Fired Pizza

This Iowa City pizza farm landed in the No. 91 spot on Yelp’s list. Maggie’s Farm offers Napoli favorites baked in a wood-fired oven from wife-and-husband duo Carolyn Brown and Jerry Zimmerman, who grow the vegetables used on their pizzas on their farm, named after their first labradoodle. Look for options such as the Ellie with caramelized onions, blue cheese and bacon or the soppressata with Italian dry-cured salami and pepperoncini topped with a four-cheese blend.

Location: 1308 Melrose Ave., Iowa City

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Contact: 319-351-4588 or maggiesfarmpizza.com

More: Visit a pizza farm for a plow-to-table, only-in-the-Midwest experience

Basal Pizza

Head to Waterloo for the No. 93 best pizza in the Midwest, according to Yelp. Basal Pizza offers wood-fired Neapolitan pizzas as well as Detroit-style pizzas. The pan-style Detroit pizzas serve two to three people, while the Neapolitan pies are meant for individuals.

Location: 225 W. Fourth St., Waterloo

Contact: 319-333-0180 or basalpizza.com

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More: 9 things you probably didn’t know about breakfast pizza at Casey’s General Store

Smash Pizza

Bettendorf’s Smash Pizza ended up at No. 96 on Yelp’s list. The restaurant offers a 16-inch New York-style pizza and a 14-inch Sicilian square that the restaurant says sells out early daily. Try the elote with corn or the roasted wild mushroom and fried kale for something different. Before opening in 2022, chef and owner Brian Olsen operated Smash Pizza as a food truck.

Location: 3403 Devils Glen Road, Bettendorf

Contact: 563-900-4064 or smashqc.com

More: 11 Des Moines pizzerias to satisfy any craving spanning deep dish to crispy thin crust

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Need Pizzeria & Craft Beer Bar

Head to Cedar Rapids for the No. 98 pizza on the Yelp list. Need Pizzeria offers gluten-free and vegan options with a focus on New Haven-style pizza. Do look for novelty options on the specials menu, which recently featured a sriracha BLT and Crab Ya Goon, a white pizza with crab dip, crab meat, green onions, crispy wonton strips and sweet chili sauce.⁠

Location: 207 Second Ave. S.E., Cedar Rapids

Contact: 319-362-6333 or needcr.com

Susan Stapleton is the entertainment editor and dining reporter at The Des Moines Register. Follow her on Facebook, X, or Instagram, or drop her a line at sstapleton@gannett.com.





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Top 16 announced in Coolest Thing Made in Iowa contest

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Top 16 announced in Coolest Thing Made in Iowa contest


DES MOINES, Iowa — After a week of voting, a list of more than 50 is down to the Top 16 in the Coolest Thing Made in Iowa Competition.

Hosted by the Iowa Association of Business and Industry and MidwestOne Bank, the Coolest Thing Made in Iowa Contest is a newer competition that highlights items that are designed or produced in the state that carry national, even international, impact.

58 products were initially nominated in the contest’s third year, on Thursday, officials announced the Top 16 had been chosen after a week of public voting. Products that made the cut include agricultural equipment, construction materials, food, and beverages.

  1. Mi-T-M ePowerStation (Mi-T-M Corporation – Peosta)
  2. Pella Steady Set (Pella Corporation – Pella)
  3. Beer Caves (Walk-In Coolers & Freezers) (Leer, Inc. – Carroll)
  4. Weiler D1075 Blasthole Drill (Weiler – Knoxville)
  5. Butter Braid Pastries (Country Maid, Inc. – West Bend)
  6. Ironclad Tornado Shelter & Gun Safe (Ironclad Shelter Solutions, LLC – Earlham)
  7. Spalding Arena Renegade Basketball Hoop (Spalding – Jefferson)
  8. Winnebago EKKO 23B (Winnebago – Forest City)
  9. Gushers (General Mills – Cedar Rapids)
  10. Cedar Ridge Straight Bourbon Whiskey (Cedar Ridge Distillery – Swisher)
  11. Load Cell (Scale-Tec – Anamosa)
  12. Flexzilla Garden Hose (Legacy Manufacturing – Marion)
  13. Marie Callender’s Pot Pie (Conagra – Council Bluffs)
  14. 23-28XL Scraper (Mobile Track Solutions – Elkader)
  15. Sterzing’s Potato Chips (Sterzing Food Company – Burlington)
  16. dScribe Studio, 55″ – Digital Lightboard (Revolution Lightboards – Dubuque)

“This is where the competition really comes to life,” said Nicole Crain, ABI President. “These Top 16 products represent the very best of Iowa manufacturing — innovative, high-quality, and made right here in our state. Now it’s up to Iowans to help decide which product rises to the top.”

Voting to decide the Top 8 moves to a bracket-style tournament, which opens on April 17 and runs through April 22. Participants can vote in each matchup, once per day (every 24 hours) per device. The Top 8 will be announced on April 23.

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The 2026 Coolest Thing Made in Iowa will be revealed live in June during ABI’s annual Taking Care of Business Conference in Coralville and Iowa City.

Previously, the Vermeer Automated Hay Baler won the first contest in 2024, and the John Deere CP770 Cotton Picker won the second contest in 2025.



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April rains ease drought across Iowa, Drought Monitor map shows

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April rains ease drought across Iowa, Drought Monitor map shows


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The last few weeks of rain have alleviated some drought conditions in Iowa, though some areas of the state are still experiencing a moderate drought.

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The U.S. Drought Monitor offers a state-by-state tracking of drought conditions nationwide. New maps and forecasts are released each Thursday. What are the current drought conditions in Iowa?

US Drought Monitor map: How much of Iowa is in a drought?

The latest Drought Monitor report, released on April 16, indicated that roughly 22% of the state is experiencing some form of drought. It includes observations as of 8 a.m. April 14, so even more rain has fallen since then.

This is an improvement from the last report, released on April 9, which showed that 73% of Iowa was experiencing some form of drought.

Here is the breakdown of drought conditions in Iowa as of April 16:

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  • 83% of the state of Iowa is experiencing no drought conditions
  • 17% of the state is experiencing abnormally dry conditions
  • 5% of the state is experiencing moderate drought conditions
  • 0.02% of the state is experiencing severe drought conditions

The April 16 map shows abnormally dry and moderate drought conditions mainly in western and southern Iowa. Parts of northwest Iowa are in moderate drought, while a separate stretch of dry conditions runs across south-central into southeast Iowa.

Polk County is not experiencing any dry conditions. Des Moines has recorded 5.06 inches of rain so far in April, well above the normal monthly total of 1.70 inches, according to the National Weather Service.

Current conditions are an improvement from a year ago, when 86% of Iowa was abnormally dry, and 30% was in moderate drought, according to the Drought Monitor.

All 99 counties in Iowa were categorized as drought-free last August thanks to record-setting rainfall totals during the summer. It held this designation for several weeks before the first reports of abnormally dry conditions returned at the beginning of September 2025.

Iowa Drought Monitor tracks conditions weekly

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The U.S. Drought Monitor offers a state-by-state tracking of drought conditions nationwide. New maps and forecasts are released each Thursday.

The intensity levels range from abnormally dry, or D0, to exceptional drought, or D4.

Typically under D0 conditions, corn can show drought stress. Pond levels start to decline under moderate drought conditions and soybeans abort pods, according to the Drought Monitor. The Drought Monitor also has a look-back chart that compares drought conditions from 3 months ago up to 1 year ago.

Cooper Worth is a service/trending reporter for the Des Moines Register. Reach him at cworth@gannett.com or follow him on X @CooperAWorth.



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Iowa City PD searching for missing man with dementia

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Iowa City PD searching for missing man with dementia


The Iowa City Police Department is asking for the public’s help finding a man who hasn’t been seen since Wednesday morning.

Kalenga Byondo, 60, has dementia and was last seen leaving his home along Broadway Street around 7:00 a.m. ICPD lists him as 5’10”, and 160 pounds – and he was wearing all-black clothing when he went missing.

Anyone who knows where Byondo could be is asked to call 319-356-6800.



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