The Food Store

This is the type of joint you are always looking to find when you visit a new town, but it takes "knowing-a-guy-who-knows-a-guy-who-lives-there" to let you in on the secret only the locals know. Michael has been operating an organic grocery for decades in Dubuque with his incredible family. The food is made fresh to order incorporating the best local, organic ingredients. The attention and craft used in preparation (like hand making the corn tortillas) is something you rarely experience outside of a home-cooked meal. Instead of imagining that you are going to a restaurant, imagine you are visiting your eccentric uncle's down-town store and he's going to whip you up something fresh for dinner. Embrace the quirks as a feature, not a bug and you will enjoy every minute!

This is definitely a bit of a throwback as far and as most Shoppers would be concerned but if you're used to anything like a local co-op or small local organic store this is right up your alley. You'll find very small batch orders of fresh mostly local produce and goods to meet your needs. They also have a newly renovated kitchen area inside where they do food-service using those goods.