Baratta's Restaurant

My wife and I had dinner there last night. She had a seafood pasta which she enjoyed. I ordered the tenderloin and baked potato and was served the "tenderloin Duburgo" which was sitting in a pool of olive oil (is this an Italian version?), topped with sauteed garlic. Instead of a plain tenderloin, which was frustrating because we had asked about it and I clearly told the waitress "nope". The baked potato was like warm. All for $45. Disappointing at best.

I was very disappointed in my meal. I ordered the seafood genovese. It had imitation crab. I was like huh! Imitation Crab! Oof what a disappointment My wife ordered the ravioli dish and the ravioli was overcooked and un-edible. On a good note, the server was very attentive and good.

Service: Excellent. The restaurant was very busy but they got it done. Atmosphere: Well, it's a house. The ceilings are low and the acoustics are what you'd expect. It's loud and you can hear every conversation around you. I only saw two bathrooms but there may be more. Definitely a cozy family vibe, but if you aren't in the mood for a raucous good time, or if you're claustrophobic, go during off-hours or try sitting in the bar area where it's a bit quieter. Food: Hit and miss.

The salad was crisp and cold, the dressing was housemade blue cheese with plenty of chunks. The bread was a bit tough for my tastes, but it had good crumb. My MIL's dish was very good - a sort of lemony shrimp pasta dish with veggies. My husband and I thought the manicotti was a bit bland - if you order it, I'd recommend the red sauce rather than tomato basil. However, it was loaded with tasty browned mozzarella cheese. Didn't try my FIL's dish but he enjoyed it. All in all, I liked this place and will be back. Hopefully next time I can try the eggplant and check out the desserts.

I love this place. Great food, friendly service. They have many great things on the menu. The jalapeno cheese soup is really good. I love the spinach artichoke dip w/crispy garlic toasts. It's a nice family atmosphere.

Big pizza fan and just moved to the South Side. Got a recommendation this was the best in the area and a must try. I honestly have no idea why. The pizza is a 3.8 out of 10. Sauce, Cheese, Ingredients, Crust all under average and very plain and dry flour tasting. Not sure why someone would ever recommend this to be honest. The people working were all friendly and I'm sure there are other items on their menu which can be good as well.

Great Italian restaurant. There were 4 of us and all agreed our meals were awesome. My wife had the chicken Alfredo. Tons of tender chicken with a slightly garlic creamy sauce. I had the manicotti with their Marinara sauce. It had a unique flavor that was very pleasing. I would definitely order it again & try a different pasta dish. They have a great menu with lots of choices.

The service was efficient & very pleasant. The waitress brought out a desert presentation tray to another table. They made their choices, but before she left, 3 other tables saw the 6-8 choices & placed their orders to go. I chose the Carmel, pecan cheesecake. Too full to eat now, but it looked great.

Had a fabulous dinner and evening at Baratta's Southside. We're traveling and looked for an Italian restaurant in Des Moines. Luckily we found Barattas. Our server was Ali and she was amazing. Dinner was Caesar salad and lasagna that was delicious and the Shrimp Amaggio worth licking the bowl over with house Chianti and Bonanza Cabernet. Dessert was a shared delicious tiramisu with coffee.

A wonderful ending to a fabulous meal. If you're looking for an amazing Italian meal with a family atmosphere check them out. We highly recommend and if you're lucky enough to have Ali as your server it will definitely take it over the top.

This is a hidden gem tucked away from the main road and surrounded by residential area. We checked this place out since a co worker suggested it- the staff is friendly and personable! The restaurant is clean and spacious with a bar and private event space. We you enter you only see 4-5 booths along with a bar area. The looks are deceiving because there's a lot more space around the corner and downstairs!

We arrived around 7pm for dinner and were quickly seated at the bar. The drinks were made by Sue! We had a Long Island iced tea and Payton margarita- both delicious. We opted for an appetizer of the cheese sticks and main dishes were pizza. Everything was tasty! We will be back for sure.

Staff is wearing masks. Our server was amazing. The food was delicious! Had a seafood craving so I had salmon and Cajun shrimp appetizer. The kids lasagna was a large portion and my kids loved it! Then they brought the dessert tray! Omg! We chose the lemon cake and we nearly fought over it! This is a great staple of Des Moines and adapting well to the panda mix times with carry out options. Support local!

We seen a Facebook posting advertising Baratta's New Year Eve specials. I called this morning and made us a reservation for 6 pm. We went into our meal knowing they maybe extremely busy tonight, so please keep this in mind when reading our experience. We arrived at 5:50. The parking lot was completely full. We were lucky and got a spot from someone leaving.

We checked in at the door and was taken to our table immediately. Our waitress arrived promptly and introduced herself. We ordered our mushroom appetizer and Long Island Teas. We placed our order promptly when we got our drinks. Both ordered the Prime Rib dinner, baked potato and Salad. The mushrooms and salads were served very timely however our meals took 45 minutes to receive.

The waitress stopped by a few times and apologized for the wait. We were enjoying our conversation and will chalk this set back due to the full restaurant and many to go orders going out the door. Once we got our meals they were delicious! The Prime Rib is served on a plate of aujus with a side of horseradish. The Prime Rib was full of flavor and so tender.

We never mention or complained about the length of time it took to get our meals however the waitress insisted we get dessert on the house! We have a piece of Carrott cake as well as a lemon cake to enjoy tomorrow. We will definitely be back to try again however it won't be on another holiday or heavy celebrated day.

The typical Italian restaurant that is a disservice to Italian food and culture everywhere. Cheese and oil and heartburn. At least they are a DSM establishment. Many people apparently like this food.

What a very pleasant surprise. When there just because it was so convenient being located in the Iowa History Museum, but what a treat. Very good pannine and pasta salad. Great service.

Friday night during Lent and I was looking for something different than the norm! There's a TV commercial about people who have a hard time finding the place, but I grew up on the south side, so no problem there. BUT I think it's comical because the inside of the place is a maze! Several levels, many rooms all decorated to match the others.

We ordered 2 meals to eat there and one to take home to mom, and onion rings for the appetizer. All meals include their yummy bread, and a salad, I LOVE THEIR HOUSE CREAMY PARMESAN DRESSING! They had a good variety of choices for those of us that can't eat meat on Fridays during Lent! My son ordered the shrimp scampi on linguini. I thought it was great, but he thought it had too much lemon.

I had the spinach and cheese tortellini in the white sauce. The sauce was a little bland but I had such a great garlic taste from the salad dressing, that I just added some parmesan cheese to please me. We took home the broiled salmon, with sauteed veggies and a salad. She was very pleased! Our waitress forgot to put in our appetizer order so she gave us free dessert. The orange colored lemon cake with lemon buttercream frosting and a lemon curd was OMG GOOD! My son had chocolate cake with white buttercream frosting. I'll go again!

Located on top of the State Historical Museum a great view of Downtown is assured. We were at the museum with our 7 & 10 yr. old niece and nephew and needed lunch. Cafe Barratta turned out t be an excellent choice. Good food, relatively cheap, decent kids menu and the lunch special is a bargain. The service was very good. I do think they should rethink the pictures in the Cafe: there's a series of an old guy getting some sort of massage therapy that are not pleasant to look at over a meal. We will definitely eat here on future visits to the museum.

Great food. Had a retirement luncheon here and enjoyed everything. The table ordered spinach artichoke dip, bruschetta and onion rings. I had the chicken amagio sandwich. Service was a little slow but we had 9 people. The bread served with the apps was also very good and there were different textures. I especially liked the fried pita bread served with the spinach artichoke dip.

It's another frigid and snowy night in Des Moines, so I decided to order in dinner instead of going out. After scrolling through the options on Grubhub, Baratta's caught my attention. I love Italian food and there were a few vegan items on the menu that looked really good to me so I ordered and hungrily waited for my doorbell to ring. When the food arrived, it was neatly packaged and free from spills.

I unpacked and opened everything up. I was pretty underwhelmed by what I saw. $17 vegan pasta was mainly large chunks of zucchini. I tasted it and was shocked by the blandness. I've honestly had hospital food with more zip and zing to it. I immediately raided my spice cabinet and after the pasta was properly seasoned, it was edible. I moved on to the bruschetta.

It was a watery, disgusting mess. It tasted nothing like any bruschetta I've ever had. Took a few bites and threw it out. The hummus and pita were fine. That's the only thing I ate. I spent close to 50 dollars to eat pita and hummus. I won't make that mistake again!

I order the chicken strips for lunch and they are terrible! No flavor and they were cold. Really disappointed since I have heard great things about this place

One of my favorites in Des Moines. The Hand made cheese sticks are a-mazing especially with their ranch which is super midwest but so much better than other places. The service is always good and I even like ordering foos from home and having it delivered. Tonight they customized a dish for me off menu and it was again. So delicious. Will be back again and again.

I ordered Manicotti with white sauce. If you love cheese, then this is where it's at! Use their bread to sop up the extra white sauce. Leave nothing on the plate and reach a stasis so satisfying you will never need to eat again. My wife ordered Cavatelli with meatballs and Italian sausage. It had a marinara sauce on it. She was very happy. We ordered via DoorDash. Both entrees were generous sized portions that came with a side salad. The creamy garlic dressing is amazing. Thank you guys for making our night.

Went their for a Christmas party. Our waitress was amazing! Their spinach artichoke dip was one of the bests I've ever ate. I ordered the chicken amagio. It was not quite what expected but it was okay. Next time I will stick with a red sauces pasta. The onion rings were also very good. They take your plate and package up your leftovers nicely. I'd definitely go again.

Baratta's is one of the remaining Italian family restaurants in Des Moines, tucked away in a south-side neighborhood in an old house. They've been there for years and have a loyal following. The place is setup using several rooms in the house, walking into a bar area at the front door, with other dining rooms around the corner or up the stairs.

We were seated in an empty dining room, but on the plus side there was a line-up of servers waiting to, well, serve, so excellent service (and throughout the meal). The room filled up quickly though, with a smattering of large families and couples. An adjacent room (a sun porch I think?) had a boisterous family gathering of some sort, but it just added to the ambiance of the place.

The menu is extensive, focusing on familiar Italian dishes, and lots of different salads. One unique spin here is how they bread the chicken; breaded and broiled. It's good and they do it that way for a few of their dishes. We both had the chicken Amaggio, a specialty of theirs. The servings were plentiful, enough to take home for a second meal.

Try their Sangria too. They make it themselves and it's delicious. As noted the service was superb, food well above average, and the ambiance homey. About $60 bucks for an appetizer, entrees and a couple of glasses of wine. About what you'd pay to eat at Applebee's and SO much better. Go find it (that adventure is worth it alone), and enjoy a real local experience.

They have a limited selection but my meal was well-prepared and served to me quickly. If you've never been here before, check it out, maybe not even so much for the food, but for the view of downtown.

Great place for lunch. Soups, salads, and paninis with smaller portions and prices to match. Service was just right and views of downtown from the third sorry is a great backdrop.

This is definitely one of my favorite, local Italian restaurants in Des Moines! Been in the neighborhood (literally) forever and they have such an amazing relationship with their regulars! It's literally in the middle of a south side neighborhood so this definitely fits the definition of "hidden gem". They have a giant chalk board right when you walk in that has the specials listed. There's also a full bar right around the door!

The building is a little compartmentalized with 3 major dining rooms and a few booths near the bar area. The food is great! Large portions in my opinion (average if you're thinking homemade Italian food). The service is always great and friendly! Their focaccia bread is out of this world! My go-to is the spinach tortellinis. I've literally gotten this every single time I go. I've had them with all the sauces and most recently had them with the pesto cream sauce that also comes with mushrooms and tomatoes. Yum per usual! Highly recommend giving this place a try if you're in the neighborhood!

I think the restaurant is in it's 26th year. From humble beginnings what started as a residence, then sprouted a grocery story, and later in the early 90s the Baratta's we know came to fruition. You can tell as you enter the parking lot there's some history here. It may not be the prettiest building from the outside, but you can see their roots.

A lot of that "home" feel is still in place there on Union. Of course they have continued to grow with Cafe Baratta's, their event and catering business, and partnering with several other metro landmarks. I still remember my first meal at Baratta's years ago. It was the veal parmesan. And I was in love. I always seem to waffle between the veal and the chicken amaggio when I visit for dinner.

Though I really don't think you can go wrong with anything on their menu. Their menu runs the gamut from the Italian classics, pizza, home-style cooking (like steaks, pork chops, fried chicken, etc.), to burgers and sandwiches. I think even the pickiest eater would be hard pressed to not be able to find something they'd like at Baratta's. There's literally something on the menu for everyone.

Yesterday for lunch I ordered the Italian beef/dip sandwich and a side salad with blue cheese dressing. The sandwich came with au jus, their angel ranch sauce, and a nice big chunk of sourdough bread. The sandwich was cooked perfectly. The thinly sliced beef was nice and tender. It had been toasted and the outside of the roll had a nice crunch to it.

It was a good sized portion. They sure don't hold back on the meat. A reasonably priced lunch for $12.75. If you haven't been to Baratta's it's a metro classic that I'd put alongside the rich history of Tumea and Sons, Noah's Ark, Chuck's, Tursi's Latin King, and many of our other local eateries which have withstood the test of time.

Located on south Union (the address on this yelp page says state historical museum which is incorrect) Barrata's is solid Italian. I got the chicken parmigiana which was excellent. My partner got the vegan pasta which she raved about. I also ordered the lemon drop which was pretty good. For dessert I ordered the canniloni. They were very good.

Service was excellent. It's hard to go wrong with anything here as it has been operating for a long time and has perfected the dishes. There is a cafe Baratta's that is located in the state historical museum (not rated by me).

We had a large group of 21 people the service was very good. We ordered off a limited menu of four items each was good

Outstanding food at reasonable prices, even more affordable during their blue plate specials in January. Great views of downtown Des Moines and the capitol. Kinda hard to find the entrance inside the Iowa Historical Museum. Here's a tip: Come in on the north side (backside) of the building on Grand Avenue. Take the elevator to the top. Their lasagna is delicious.

We recently hosted a rehearsal dinner at Cafe Baratta's in The State Historical Museum in Des Moines. It was just what the couple wanted and the staff at Baratta's couldn't have been better to work with! They were gracious with every question we had and treated everyone with such respect it was an absolute pleasure to work with them. The food was excellent and we would highly recommend Baratta's!

Generally nice, good food. We had the Reuben brochette and the salmon plate. Both very good. This place is at the top of the historical museum downtown.