If there is just one thing that you can say Des Moines has an abundance of it would have to be restaurants.  It’s almost a problem because it makes it so hard to pick a place to go out to eat.  It’s always a tough decision to decide between hitting up one of your favorite local restaurants, or branching out and trying something new.  Well if you’re the type of person who inevitably winds up choosing what you know rather than trying something new and feels guilty that, then this weekend would be a great time to get on out to the East Village for the 7th annual World Food Festival.

This unique festival is held as a partnership with the World Food Prize Foundation which we talked about a bit more in our blog last year when they were in town.  Basically the internationally lauded prize is awarded to the person of the year responsible for the most vital breakthrough in making significant and measurable contributions to improving the worlds food supply.  In honor of that the World Food Festival in Des Moines was created to honor Iowa’s rich agricultural heritage.  The festival highlights 30 local shops, making family recipes,  each with their own ethnic flair with food ranging from American, Bosnia, the Caribbean, Ecuador, Ethiopia, Greece, Hawaii, India, Mesopotamia, Mexico, Morocco, Russia, Salvador and Turkey.  Stealing a play out of McDonald’s playbook all these merchants will be offering taste tests of their food for a dollar a piece.  Once you find something you love all full plates are five dollars or less.

Food might be the best reason to visit, but it isn’t the only reason to be checking out the festival this weekend.  Live music all day long, cooking demonstrations from local chefs teaching new cooking techniques, salsa dance lessons, the chance to pet an alligator….. there’s certainly plenty to keep you occupied.  For a full run-down on events check out their website:  http://www.worldfoodfestival.org

So give your taste buds a road trip and come check out this festival in the East Village of Des Moines!

In case you haven’t noticed, this weekend marks the arrival of the annual in-state rivalry of the Iowa Hawkeyes and the Iowa State Cyclones in the CyHawk Series. The reason you may have noticed would be the plethora of Cyclone and Hawkeye shirts you’ve seen around town all this week, and especially today as I know quite a few offices have imposed a casual Friday today with  a special tailgated theme for the event.

Living in Des Moines, about 45 minutes from Ames and 2 hours from Iowa City, the fan base is split pretty evenly between the two schools although given the closer proximity of Ames they definitely have the advantage in numbers.  Many fans from Des Moines will be making the trek up for tailgating and the game, which takes place in Ames this year, with an 11am kick-off time.

The biggest controversy for this game so far has been the trophywhich was re-designed by the partnership of the Iowa Corn Growers Association, the Iowa Corn Promotion board and Learfield Sports on behalf of the two universities.  The trophy was largely lauded as a failure and was scrapped in favor of a crowd sourced redesign.  Unfortunately the new trophy is not ready yet so there will be an interim one in it’s place this weekend.  If anyone is interested the submission form for entering an idea for the trophy can be found at http://www.cyhawkseries.com

Of course the real question of the day is who will win the game.  After all, that means bragging rights for the fans for the year.  In the past 10 years the Hawkeyes lead the series 6-4, but have won the last 3 games by a combined 72 points.    That being said both teams always go hard at each other for this game so it’s anyone’s game.  So who do you think will win the game?

• A.  Hawkeyes
• B.  Cyclones
• C.  Don’t care as long as it’s a good game

Feel free to leave your comments here, or let us know what you think on our Facebook wall!  https://www.facebook.com/RealEstateGroup

Labor day weekend, the time of the year more typically associated with a three day weekend than the symbolic end of summer. But that’s what it marks… a transitionary period between summer and fall. So what better way to celebrate the passing of the seasons than with one final summer hurrah?

Earlier this year we talked about Gray’s Lake in one of our blog posts. Going back to revisit that idea there is really no better way to enjoy the last days of summer than by spending time outdoors.  With fishing, swimming, and watercraft rental available (paddleboats, canoes, sailboats, kayaks and hydro bikes to name a few) if you want some fun on the lake this place just can’t be beat. More information can be found here: http://www.dmgov.org/Departments/Parks/Pages/Parks.aspx

If the beach is more your thing there are a couple of options in the area to catch some rays. Over in West Des Moines is a great park with a nice beach, Raccoon River Park. This park boasts a 700 foot beach open for swimming, but you’ll want to get there early to grab a prime spot because it is a pretty popular place. If your interested in more information, or just interested in finding a nice quieter park to do some grilling and relaxing, a list of parks with some more informatoin can be found here: http://www.wdm.iowa.gov/Index.aspx?page=198

If that seems like it might be too many people for you then you may want to check out Saylorville Lake, located just north of Johnston. Used more for boating than anything, it still has a great beach area. More information can be found here: http://www2.mvr.usace.army.mil/Saylorville/

If that’s not your thing then there are a couple of events coming into town that you might want to look into. Out at Sleepy Hollow Sports Park the Des Moines Renaissance Fair kicks off this weekend for the 6th year in a row. Glass blowers, blacksmiths, potters, wood carvers, jugglers, musicians, and comedians all overlooked by a giant castle. If your looking for the best Renaissance Fair in Iowa you’ve found it. If nothing else the giant turkey legs have me sold!

The other event coming into town is the Hy-Vee Triathalon. Do you know anyone running in it and want to help support them? For more information on watching the race check this out: http://www.hy-veetriathlon.com/spectators/spectator-info-maps.aspx

So whether you’re in the water, on the beach, in a castle or watching form the sidelines, have fun and enjoy the holiday!