Iowa
Discover the 6 best burger restaurants in Iowa City, from gourmet to classic delights
The classic hamburger is an American icon. However, not all burgers are made equal. Luckily, Iowa City has an array of creative to classic burgers for everyone’s taste, from unsuspected quality to unexpected flavors.
Here are the six best burgers in Iowa City.
George’s Buffet
Arguably, one of the most iconic burgers in Iowa City is the classic bar George’s Buffett. Though buffet is in the name, George’s has a limited menu consisting of a cheese sandwich, hot nuts, chips, and cheeseburgers. While George’s might be best known for cheap beers, the bar also has one of the best burgers in Iowa City. The burger is a no-frills cheeseburger with American cheese, ketchup, mustard, and pickles on a sesame bun. George’s is the perfect burger to end a night or even begin; with every bite, there is a taste of nostalgia.
Location: 312 E. Market St., Iowa City
Contact: 319-351-9614
Pullman Bar & Diner
The Pullman is a part of the Gold Cap Hospitality group, and The Mo Burger at Pullman stands out as one of the best burgers in Iowa City because of its combination of flavors and textures. The base is a brioche bun topped with two four-ounce beef patties with a robust taste, and melted cheddar cheese enhances the savory flavor, while the bacon jam adds a sweet and smoky contrast to the subtle heat from the chipotle aioli, which gives a zesty boost.
Location: 17 S. Dubuque St., Iowa City
Contact: 319-338-1808 or pullmandiner.com
More: From the Bread Garden to NoDo and the Chef’s Board, these Johnson County locales hit the spot
Red’s Alehouse
Red’s Alehouse might be best known for its expansive beer and cocktail menu, but a strong lineup of burgers anchors the food menu. The Alehouse burger is an elevated rendition of the classic burger with sweet chili aioli, crispy onion tangles, and provolone. The burger has subtle smoky undertones with a gooey, crispy texture. It’s generously sized, and every bite is perfectly balanced.
Location: 405 N. Dubuque St., North Liberty
Contact: 319-626-2100 or redsalehouse.com
Shakespeare’s Pub & Grill
Located on the east side, Shakespeare’s might be best known for having the best-breaded pork tenderloin in Iowa City, but the pub’s burgers rival the tenderloin, specifically, the bison burger. This burger has subtle sweet flavors with a mild gamey note and is lean and rich. It is an unexpected burger on the menu and a must-try.
Location: 819 S. First Ave., Iowa City
Contact: 319-337-7275 or shakespearespubandgrill.com
Short’s Burger & Shine
Short’s Burger & Shine specializes in burgers. The menu features more than a dozen burger varieties with something for everyone. The Dundee burger is a fan favorite with a brioche bun, mushrooms, bacon, garlic aioli, fried egg, and American cheese. It is a textural journey with a surprisingly added earthy pop of flavor from the mushrooms. Additionally, any of Short’s burgers can be made with a black bean patty as a substitute, making Short’s a must-stop for meat lovers and vegetarians alike.
Location: 18 S Clinton St., Iowa City
Contact: 319-259-7154 or shortsburger.com
More: From yoga to rec leagues and fossils, here’s how you can spend the summer in Iowa City
The Wilder
Recently, The Wilder in the Graduate Hotel in Downtown Iowa City joined the ranks of being one of the top burgers in Iowa. The Iowa Gold Burger is the star of the menu. Made with nine ounces of Jiyū wagyu beef, the burger is not overstated and is rich in flavor. The wagyu beef is complemented by gruyere cheese, caramelized onions, and grain mustard aioli. Its richness and tenderness often captivate diners, and many have declared it the best they’ve ever had.
Location: 210 S. Dubuque St., Iowa City
Contact: 319-327-8258 or graduatehotels.com
More: Behind the story of The Wilder’s Iowa Gold burger, one of the best in the state
Jessica Rish is an entertainment, dining and business reporter for the Iowa City Press-Citizen. She can be reached at JRish@press-citizen.com or on X, formerly known as Twitter, @rishjessica_
Iowa
Libertarian Marco Battaglia running for Congress in IA-03
Marco Battaglia announced on June 16 that he will run for Congress in Iowa’s third district as a Libertarian. His platform includes “promoting agricultural and medical freedom,” combating inflation with “sound money and sound economic reasoning,” and being “a voice for peace and prosperity.”
A longtime resident of Des Moines, Battaglia was the Libertarian nominee for Iowa attorney general in 2018 and for lieutenant governor in 2022, on a ticket with Rick Stewart. Libertarians regained major-party status in Iowa following that election, because Stewart received more than 2 percent of the vote for governor.
A Libertarian convention on June 8 nominated Battaglia, along with two other U.S. House candidates: Lone Tree city council member Nicholas Gluba in the first district, and Charles Aldrich in the fourth district. Aldrich was the Libertarian nominee for Iowa’s U.S. Senate seat in 2016; he later was the party’s 2018 candidate in IA-04 and ran for an Iowa House seat in 2022.
Iowa
NASCAR Cup at Iowa: What to watch for in Sunday night's race on USA Network
NEWTON, Iowa — Tonight’s inaugural Cup race at Iowa Speedway comes with a variety of questions for drivers and teams.
A sold-out crowd will be on hand to witness the event, which will air on USA Network (pre-race coverage begins at 6:30 p.m. ET)
Here is a look at three things to watch in tonight’s race:
How will the tires perform?
Five Cup teams had tire issues in Friday’s 50-minute practice. All had issues around 20 laps on a set of tires. Christopher Bell, Austin Cindric, Tyler Reddick and Ty Gibbs each had a right front tire go down in practice. Ross Chastain had a left rear go down in practice.
“What is even more concerning and makes it way more confusing is the fact that we had three cars out here at a tire test that did 50-lap runs and none of us blew a tire,” Bell said after Friday’s practice. “So, I don’t know. But yes, It is very, very alarming and there are red flags all over the place that we had so many tire issues today.”
Martin Truex Jr. said he is excited about his future but doesn’t know what that will entail.
Bell did the tire confirmation test May 28 with Kyle Larson and Brad Keselowski.
There was a feeling by some in the garage that some of the tire issues Friday could have been related to lower air pressures.
A key will be how teams react and how the track changes as the race progresses into the night and cooler temperatures.
Who will be the inaugural winner?
Kyle Larson will start on the pole, but he says he thinks many drivers enter this race believing they can win.
“I think there’s still so much unknown, so I think that’s exciting for race fans and all that … even drivers,” Larson said. “There’s probably more drivers in the field that feel like they have an opportunity to have a good run because if this (track surface) was old, worn out, bumpy – your Hendrick Motorsports teams, your Joe Gibbs Racing teams, they’re going to be the ones dominating.
“Where now, I feel like – especially with qualifying shaking-up the order and all that, I think the starting lineup is a little bit odd. So yeah, I think more teams probably feel like they have an opportunity.
Joey Logano enters this weekend at Iowa outside the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs with 10 races left in the regular season.
One driver to watch could be Joey Logano, who starts 11th and has won three of the last eight races at newer events for the series.
Logano won the 2021 Bristol Dirt race, the 2022 Clash at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum and the inaugural Cup race at World Wide Technology Raceway in 2022.
Logano’s most recent win came in last month’s All-Star Race on a repaved North Wilkesboro Speedway.
Playoff bubble
Bubba Wallace enters the race holding the final playoff spot.
Two former champions are close behind. Kyle Busch is eight points behind Wallace. Logano is 16 points behind Wallace. Chase Briscoe is 27 points behind Wallace.
Wallace starts 16th. Busch starts seventh. Logano starts 11th. Briscoe starts sixth.
Nine races will remain in the regular season after Sunday night’s race.
Iowa
Sam Mayer celebrates Iowa Xfinity win but also explains what 'makes me so mad'
NEWTON, Iowa — Runner-up Riley Herbst ran into winner Sam Mayer’s car after Saturday’s Xfinity race at Iowa Speedway but when Mayer explained what “makes me so mad,” he wasn’t referencing that contact.
Mayer, who turns 21 on June 26, earned his second victory of the season and his sixth in 99 career Xfinity starts.
Sam Mayer scored his sixth career Xfinity win Saturday at Iowa
While NASCAR’s Silly Season has focused on where the Stewart-Haas Racing drivers could go or where Craftsman Truck Series driver Corey Heim could be headed, Mayer’s name rarely is mentioned among the young prospects for potential Cup rides.
Asked about that after the race, Mayer said: “Yeah, it kind of pisses me off, to be honest with you. I feel like we’ve proved ourselves a lot more. Like I’m dead serious. It makes me so mad that my name isn’t in more hats for race teams. So hopefully today kind of put my name in a couple of them. We’re working really hard. I want to go Sunday racing, obviously, one day. How soon? I don’t know.
“Me, (Herbst), all those guys, there are so many people in the top five and top 10 that have something to prove. If you can be top dog in those guys, I feel like you deserve it.”
Mayer’s win was his seventh top-four finish in the last nine races. His Iowa victory marked his first victory on a short track. His other wins had come at road courses (Road America, Watkins Glen and Charlotte Roval) and 1.5-mile tracks (Homestead and Texas).
Highlights: NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Iowa
Watch the best moments from the NASCAR Xfinity Series HyVee Perks 250 at Iowa Speedway.
As for what happened after the race? Herbst ran into Mayer’s car and flattened Mayer’s left rear tire.
“I like racing Sam, but stage one or two he just absolutely brooms me,” Herbst told NBC Sports’ Dave Burns after the race. “We were racing clean for fourth and takes us back to 10th and then doors me down the back straightaway before the green-white-checker. It’s just frustrating the way he wants to do that.”
Herbst later said: “There’s no issue. I was just frustrated by the way … he slid me, I think it was stage one or two and he wasn’t clear. He drove both of us up to the fence in Turns 1 and 2. … At the end, it was fair racing on the green-white-checkered. It was fun. I enjoy racing Sam, but I was frustrated early in the race.”
Said Mayer of the contact after the race from Herbst: “I knew immediately it was either … ‘I hate you’ or ‘Congratulations.’ I think that we know the answer to that unfortunately. I feel really bad. Obviously I got into him earlier.
“It was so top dominant there at the end. We were all fighting for literally four feet of asphalt around the whole race track. Just did all I could to get there and just overstepped it a little bit.”
Herbst recaps runner-up finish, racing with Mayer
Riley Herbst comes up just short in the NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Iowa Speedway and expresses his frustration with the way Sam Mayer raced him on the final restart, but feels encouraged with the No. 98’s speed.
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