I usually do not expect much from a café inside a public garden, which is exactly why this Iowa stop caught me off guard.
Instead of a quick snack counter, I found tall windows overlooking lotus ponds, tropical greenery under glass, and a kitchen making everything from brioche to hummus and ice cream from scratch.
Sunday mornings are when the place comes closest to brunch, and the setting does most of the convincing before the food even arrives. This Iowa café turns a simple late-morning meal into the kind of garden escape that makes you want to linger…