Wobbly Boots BBQ

Friday, December 4, 2015

A Few Iowa Hawkeyes Football Facts

If you live in Iowa, you can't help but be a fan of the good old Black & Gold! The Iowa Hawkeyes are a state treasure, bringing excitement to their fans every week during football season. The best place to watch the game in Des Moines is right here at Wobbly Boots Roadhouse. The whole place is full of fans cheering together for the best team in college football.

photo courtesy of Phil Roeder, Flickr

Die hard Hawkeyes fans most likely already know everything written below, but if you only recently fell in love with this incredible team, you need to read on. These basic facts and bit of history are necessary information for any discussion involving Iowa football. Once you get these basic facts into your brain, then you can work on learning the stats!

The Beginning

Even though football was played in various forms before this, 1889 was the year that the University of Iowa officially became a varsity football team. Their first undefeated season happened the following year in 1899. This impressive year earned an invitation to join the Western Conference, which is currently know as the Big Ten. Another undefeated season followed in 1900. This incredible Iowa football team came right out of the gate at the top of their game.

The Stadium

The Hawkeyes "Iowa Stadium" opened in 1929.  Before that, all of the games had been played at Iowa Field.  This stadium was renamed in 1972 to what we currently know it as, "Kinnick Stadium." 

The new name honors the only Heisman trophy winner in the school's history, Nile Kinnick.  He won that distinguished award in 1939.  While he is the only Hawkeye to claim that honor, the team can boast four Heisman trophy runner-ups.    

The Mascot

Every Iowa Hawkeyes fan recognizes our beloved mascot, Herky the Hawkeye, but are you aware that he is named after a Greek God?  Herky is actually short for Hercules.  He was first drawn as a cartoon in 1948, and his first appearance at a sporting event came eleven years later in 1959. 

"Hawkeye" is a term from the book "The Last of the Mohicans."  Someone used it in its plural form to describe the people of Iowa, and the University of Iowa decided to use the name for their athletic teams.

The Fight Songs

There are certain songs that you will hear at every Iowa Hawkeyes game. The official fight song is the "Iowa Fight Song." "On Iowa" is the school song, and lastly "Roll Away Iowa" is their third fight song. The best one by far to hear at a game, though, is the "Im Himmel gibt's kein Bier" Polka, because this is the song played after every Hawkeye victory. The translation of that title is actually, "In Heaven There Is No Beer." (If that's the case, it's a good thing we keep lots of it hand hand here at Wobbly Boots!)

The 2015-16 Season

Iowa's head football coach, Kirk Firentz, is currently coaching his 17th Hawkeye season. He sure seems to be doing something right, because they are on quite a winning streak! So far this year, our amazing team is undefeated! Wobbly Boots Roadhouse is the best place in Iowa (aside from Kinnick Stadium, of course) to cheer on the Hawkeyes and watch them keep winning all season long.

Wobbly Boots Roadhouse, Des Moines, Clive IA, Iowa Hawkeyes football

If you love the Hawkeyes and love sharing that love with fellow energetic fans, then head on over to the best BBQ restaurant in Des Moines for all of the games. We'll load you up on delicious game food, keep your drinks coming, and cheer right alongside you when our Hawkeyes score again and again! The best football fans hang out together at Wobbly Boots Roadhouse.

Don't forget you can take home 16 oz. bottles of

Wobbly Boots House Recipe BBQ Sauce!!

Second Location - Same Incredible BBQ!

Open EVERY DAY at 11:00 AM!

Like us on Facebook!

Wobbly Boots Roadhouse

1301 NW 114th St
Clive IA 50325

(515) 223-5700

Wednesday, November 25, 2015

Top 10 Favorite Thanksgiving Foods

When someone says the word "Thanksgiving," certain foods immediately pop into your head. It may be different for everyone, but most likely very similar. Your favorite BBQ restaurant in Des Moines did a little research, and these are the ones that popped up again and again.

TURKEY

Most definitely the star of the show, it's rare to find a Thanksgiving dinner table without a turkey on it. It's a great main dish for feeding a lot of hungry people. You can find all kinds of yummy recipes for the leftovers too.

DINNER ROLLS

It's hard to imagine a great big meal without some hot, buttery rolls to go along with it. There's really not a lot to say about them other than they better be somewhere on the table.

SWEET POTATOES

Most people either love or hate this dish. They can be baked, mashed, or cooked into a casserole. It doesn't truly feel like Thanksgiving until you toast some marshmallows on top of these potatoes. A combo of cinnamon and sugar is also great to top them with.

CRANBERRY SAUCE

Once again, another dish you either love or hate. Often you will see a can-shaped blob of this stuff in a bowl, but they're actually pretty simple to prepare fresh, and a lot tastier.

GREEN BEAN CASSEROLE

French fried onions are nearly impossible to keep on the grocery shelves this time of year. If you spot them in someone's cart, most likely they will be sitting next to some green beans and cream of mushroom soup. The person that came up with this side dish has made many hungry people very happy over the years.

STUFFING

A true Thanksgiving cook will go all the way and cook the stuffing inside the turkey. Many people choose to go the easy route and buy a box of Stove Top. Either way that you do it, turkey always tastes better followed by a bite of this side dish.

PUMPKIN PIE

A big ol' slice of pumpkin pie topped with a mountain of whipped cream is the perfect end to a Thanksgiving meal, or a great snack for hours later if you forgot to leave room for dessert.

MASHED POTATOES

These are always delicious, and especially important to have on the table if you are one of those people that hate sweet potatoes. Mashed potatoes really don't taste their absolute best without the next item on the list.

GRAVY

Gravy not only tastes great on mashed potatoes, but it tastes amazing over the turkey too. True gravy lovers may even be seen drizzling it over their entire Thanksgiving plate!

HAM

Ham is popular for Thanksgiving in families that have members that don't particularly like turkey. As with turkey, it's a great main dish that can be prepared for a large number of people. Also, it's great for sandwich-making along with the leftover turkey for lunch on Black Friday.

We have a great suggestion for making your Thanksgiving turkey or ham taste even better. Try it with a bit of our house-recipe BBQ sauce drizzled over the top! You can buy it by the bottle to keep on your holiday dinner table. Also, if you miss out on having any of these Thanksgiving classics at your particular gathering, we've got quite a few of them on our Wobbly Boots Roadhouse menu.

Stop by over the weekend and order up whatever you missed out on during your Thanksgiving feast, or have something totally different for a little break from the leftovers you have in your fridge. The best BBQ restaurant in Des Moines will be here the entire weekend after Thanksgiving serving up our delicious food, pouring our awesome drinks, and showing all of your favorite games. Hopefully we'll be seeing you. Until then, have a great Thanksgiving!

Don't forget you can take home 16 oz. bottles of

Wobbly Boots House Recipe BBQ Sauce!!

Second Location - Same Incredible BBQ!

Open EVERY DAY at 11:00 AM!

Like us on Facebook!

Wobbly Boots Roadhouse

1301 NW 114th St
Clive IA 50325

(515) 223-5700

Thursday, November 19, 2015

Wobbly Boots Can Handle All Of Your Holiday Party Needs

The holidays are coming, and along with them, family, friends, fun, and food. YAY!!! That is, unless you're the host. That means all of those awesome things come along with cooking, cleaning, planning, and stress. Wobbly Boots Roadhouse has a solution for keeping your holidays as stress-free as possible.

Let the best BBQ restaurant near Des Moines take care of it for you! Holiday parties with us make for the tastiest and most memorable celebrations for everyone. Thanksgiving is next week, followed closely by family gatherings, work parties, New Year's get-togethers, and a multitude of other reasons to celebrate the season. Make it easy on yourself and give us a call.

Bring your group to us!

Wobbly Boots loves hosting parties for our awesome customers. Let us know when you would like to get together and we'll reserve a special spot just for you and your friends. Everyone is welcome to order from our delicious everyday menu, or our cooks will be happy to create a special meal for your gang. Talk to us about what you have in mind and we can come up with a custom menu just for you. We provide the incredible atmosphere, mouth-watering food, and delicious drinks, and all you have to do is invite everyone and show up. When it's all over, you head home and we'll do the cleaning! It doesn't get much merrier than that!

Let us bring the party to you!

If you have a special place all picked out that your group would like to gather at, then we can load up the Wobbly Boots catering van and head your way. Family gatherings, work parties, whatever you're planning, we've got you covered. Call us up and tell us about the customized menu that you're craving, and we'll show up with the food, hot and ready to eat.

Order your party to go!

Another option is to order your party food to go. Maybe you don't mind hosting the celebration at your place, but you're all for letting someone else do the cooking. You can order our hickory-smoked meats and family-style sides in bulk. Let us know the size of your gathering and we'll help you figure out how much you will need.

When you pick your party date, call us up and we'll talk details. Our catering requires advanced notice, so book early before all of the best dates are taken. Our holidays are the happiest when we can help you celebrate. The best BBQ near Des Moines is sure to please even the pickiest eaters at your holiday party. Let Wobbly Boots Roadhouse in Clive keep your event as stress-free as possible for you. You deserve to enjoy it with the rest of your guests.

Don't forget you can take home 16 oz. bottles of

Wobbly Boots House Recipe BBQ Sauce!!

Second Location - Same Incredible BBQ!

Open EVERY DAY at 11:00 AM!

Like us on Facebook!

Wobbly Boots Roadhouse

1301 NW 114th St
Clive IA 50325

(515) 223-5700

Friday, November 13, 2015

What the Heck is a Burnt End?

While the name makes it sound like a cooking mistake that should never find its way to the table, a burnt end is actually a sought-after barbecue delicacy. The best BBQ restaurant near Des Moines knows this first hand. Our burnt ends are a very popular menu item, but we still get a lot of people wondering what the heck it is and how in the world it got that unattractive name.

The best description of a burnt end is the flavorful pieces of meat cut from the point half of a smoked brisket. A Wobbly Boots beef brisket spends a large amount of time in the smoker to give it the incredible flavor that it is known for. The pointy tips end up cooking faster than the center and drying up, looking charred and burnt. That is where the name comes from. They aren't always the prettiest food, but they are most definitely one of the tastiest that you will ever have the pleasure of putting in your mouth.

A long time ago most cooks would throw them away or save them to use as flavoring for other dishes. Some even gave them away from free. These soon became sought-after pieces of meat. The extra cooking time allowed for an extremely intense, delicious smoky flavor. It didn't take too terribly long to finally realize that the burnt ends weren't something to throw out, but rather a dish that people wanted to eat.

Here at Wobbly Boots Roadhouse, our burnt ends are extra-smoked, seasoned, and seared. We carve these enticing beef chunks right from the brisket point and serve them up to you with our award-winning house recipe BBQ sauce. Whether you choose to eat them on a sandwich or have us serve you up a big ol' plate of them, you are guaranteed a flavorful treat.

Don't let the name fool you. It doesn't sound pretty, but you better believe it's some of the best bbq near Des Moines that you will ever have the pleasure of eating. Stop by Wobbly Boots Roadhouse in Clive soon and try them for yourself.

Don't forget you can take home 16 oz. bottles of

Wobbly Boots House Recipe BBQ Sauce!!

Second Location - Same Incredible BBQ!

Open EVERY DAY at 11:00 AM!

Like us on Facebook!

Wobbly Boots Roadhouse

1301 NW 114th St
Clive IA 50325

(515) 223-5700

Thursday, November 5, 2015

A Cool Weather Treat - Wobbly Boots Smoked Meat

As the temperatures slowly creep a little cooler each week, a hot meal keeps sounding better and better every day. The best BBQ restaurant near Des Moines has on incredible selection of smoked meats cooking up daily. No matter when you join us for lunch or dinner, you can be sure that our smoker is working hard to keep our kitchen full of tasty choices for you.

Our smoking process adds the best flavor possible to a piece of meat. Wobbly Boots Roadhouse has perfected our cooking process. We have learned the perfect timing for each type of meat so that it reaches its flavor peak.

Here is what you will find at your favorite BBQ restaurant near Des Moines when you come in hungry for smoked meat. All of our BBQ is served wet (meaning with our amazing house-made sauce), but feel free to ask for it dry.

Pulled Pork

We slow-smoke our pork over hickory for 16 hours. Once it's ready, we hand-pull and trim it.

Beef Brisket

Our juicy beef brisket gets 10 hours of slow-smoking goodness, and then it is sliced in a way that achieves its maximum tenderness.

Burnt Ends

These are extra-smoked, seasoned, and seared beef chunks that we carve right from the brisket point. (These can NOT be served completely dry.)

Turkey Breast

We take 100% white meat turkey breast and smoke it to delicious perfection.

Pit Ham

Lean, thin-sliced, double-smoked ham. Pure happiness for your taste buds.

Smoked Sausage

Our hickory smoked polish sausage is low, slow, and unbelievably mouth-watering.

After you make the difficult decision of which smoked meat you want to order, you need to decide how you want it. We offer all of the savory selections above on a fresh kaiser roll, and that smoked meat sandwich will be paired with one of our incredible home style side dishes. For the customer that is having too much trouble choosing, we offer our Combo Sandwich. This one makes room for two meat choices.

If you aren't the sandwich type, you can have your smoked meats piled up on a plate and served with Texas toast and two side dishes. A meal with either 1 or 2 smoked meats equals a 1/2 pound of deliciousness, and if you want to choose 3 meats, we'll give you a full pound. Now that will definitely warm up your stomach!

The next time you are in the mood for the best smoked meat near Des Moines, get yourself to Wobbly Boots Roadhouse. We've got all of the above selections waiting for you daily, freshly smoked, along with many more. Our smoked meats are only a small portion of an extensive menu full of the best food in Clive.

Don't forget you can take home 16 oz. bottles of

Wobbly Boots House Recipe BBQ Sauce!!

Second Location - Same Incredible BBQ!

Open EVERY DAY at 11:00 AM!

Like us on Facebook!

Wobbly Boots Roadhouse

1301 NW 114th St
Clive IA 50325

(515) 223-5700

Wednesday, October 28, 2015

13 Halloween Fun Facts

Halloween is here! All kinds of spooky fun is to be had everywhere that you look. Wobbly Boots Roadhouse loves the day that we get to dress up and eat candy. The only thing better than candy is BBQ, but we can eat that without guilt every day of the year! Do you realize that Halloween has been around for over 6,000 years? Here are 13 other fun facts about this holiday that are pretty cool to know. (Is it unlucky that we picked 13?)

1. The birthplace of Halloween is Ireland, but both Salem, Massachusetts and Anoka, Minnesota proclaim themselves as the Halloween capitals of the world.

2. The only commercial holiday that tops Halloween as the highest grossing is Christmas.

3. Dressing up for Halloween comes from the Celtic tradition when people disguised themselves to escape the notice of spirits wandering the Earth on Halloween night.

4. Black and orange are considered Halloween colors. Orange symbolizes strength and endurance and is associated with the harvest and Autumn. Black is a symbol of death and darkness. Halloween was once a festival marking the boundaries between life and death, so the color black is a reminder of this.

5. Pumpkins were not originally used to carve jack-o-lanterns. People used to make faces in turnips.

6. The jack-o-lantern got its name from a very stingy man named Jack. Supposedly, he tricked the devil one too many times and was refused entrance into both heaven and hell. This condemned him to wander he Earth, waving a lantern to lead others away from their paths.

7. The word "witch" actually comes from the Old English word "wicce" which means "wise woman."

8. If you spot a spider on Halloween, that is said to mean that the spirit of a loved one is watching over you.

9. In the UK, white cats are considered bad luck rather than black cats.

10. The owl is a favorite image for Halloween for a couple of reasons. In Medieval Europe, people thought that owls were actually witches in disguise. Also, if you heard an owl's call, that meant someone was about to die.

11. Tradition says that if you wear your clothing inside out and walk backwards on Halloween, you will see a witch at midnight.

12. In 1978, the movie "Halloween" had such a tight budget that they picked out the cheapest mask they could find for Michael Meyers to wear. Turns out, it was actually a William Shatner Star Trek mask painted white!

13. Halloween is considered the third biggest day of the year to party. The top two are Super Bowl Sunday and New Year's Eve.

Your favorite BBQ restaurant near Des Moines plans to spend a nice chunk of our Halloween watching Iowa football! The Hawkeyes play at 2:30 pm, and the Cyclones will be on later in the evening at 6:00 pm. Order up a few treats from the kitchen, have a bit or witch's brew (brew = beer), and watch the games with us before heading out for an evening of tricks and treats. Costumes are optional at Wobbly Boots Roadhouse, but they sure make the day a lot more fun!

Don't forget you can take home 16 oz. bottles of

Wobbly Boots House Recipe BBQ Sauce!!

Second Location - Same Incredible BBQ!

Open EVERY DAY at 11:00 AM!

Like us on Facebook!

Wobbly Boots Roadhouse

1301 NW 114th St
Clive IA 50325

(515) 223-5700

Friday, October 23, 2015

Wobbly Boots Harvest Meals

The best BBQ restaurant near Des Moines has a menu full of the most delicious dishes in Iowa. Our incredible Harvest Meals are a big reason why people keep coming back again and again to Wobbly Boots Roadhouse.

These four amazing meals are hearty enough for the hungriest customer, and delicious enough to soothe the pickiest. Paired with our famous signature sides, these are meals that you'll be bragging about for a long time after you're finished eating.

Roadhouse Rib-eye
Our 12 oz. Rib-eye, topped with grilled mushrooms, onions, & Provel cheese.

Breaded Shrimp Dinner
Large gulf coast shrimp hand-breaded to a golden brown. Served with a side of cocktail sauce.

Catfish Dinner
2 delicious southern-fried catfish fillets served with tartar sauce for dipping.

Prime Rib Dinner
(Friday & Saturday only starting at 5 pm)
Slow Smoked, perfectly seasoned, then hand cut and prepared to your requested degree of doneness. 10 oz. or 14 oz. cut

We like to be as helpful as possible here at Wobbly Boots Roadhouse, so our menu offers an informative guide to the cooking temperatures for your steak.

Rare:

cool center

Medium Rare:

warm center

Medium:

hot center

Medium Well:

hot through, juicy

Well Done:

Don't be like that!

All of these delicious dinners are served with Texas toast and your choice of two of our savory signature home style side dishes.

Seasoned Curly Fries
Legendary Baked Beans
Gourment Potato Salad
Creamy Cole Slaw
Green Beans w/ Bacon
Smashed Potatoes & Gravy
Cheesy Corn w/ Ham
Baked Potato
Cup of Mac & Cheese

You can also substitute the following sides for a small additional charge:

Sweet Potato Fries (+$1)
Cup of Soup (+$1)
Boat of Mac & Cheese (+$1)
Garden Salad (+$2)
Bowl of Soup (+$2)
1/2 Order of Onion Rings (+$2)
1/2 Order of Texas Fries (+$2)

This is only one small portion of the best BBQ menu near Des Moines, but it's a section that we are very proud of. These hearty Harvest Meals come out hot, tasty, and are more than enough to satisfy even the biggest hunger. Come in soon and find out which one will be your new favorite. Don't miss out on our juicy Prime Rib Dinner, only available on Friday and Saturday nights. Come in to Wobbly Boots Roadhouse hungry, and leave happy, full, and satisfied.

Don't forget you can take home 16 oz. bottles of

Wobbly Boots House Recipe BBQ Sauce!!

Second Location - Same Incredible BBQ!

Open EVERY DAY at 11:00 AM!

Like us on Facebook!

Wobbly Boots Roadhouse

1301 NW 114th St
Clive IA 50325

(515) 223-5700