You Can Try 40+ Local Restaurants in One Night at Taste of Iowa City 2025

The 17th annual Taste of Iowa City is coming up next week! The event offers attendees the opportunity to sample more than 40 different Downtown Iowa City restaurants over the course of four hours, plus enjoy live entertainment. Here's a rundown of everything you need to know about the 2025 event:

Taste of Iowa City 2025

This year's Taste of Iowa City will be held on Wednesday, August 27th from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. in the downtown district. It's meant to help introduce incoming students and community members to some of the awesome food and drink options in the area. The Downtown Iowa City website reads:

"The 17th Annual Taste of Iowa City celebrates the culinary diversity of Downtown and Northside restaurants and rewards the Iowa City community with sample portions from a diverse range of menus!"

Participating Restaurants

Here are all of this year's participating restaurants, as well as some of the items you'll be able to sample at each business during the event:

• The Airliner - 22 S Clinton St
  • Pizza Slices
• Baroncini Ristorante - 104 S Linn St
  • Focaccia Sandwiches
• Basta - 121 Iowa Ave
  • Pepperoni Pizza
  • Margarita Pizza
  • Pub Style Pizza
• Bread Garden Market & Bakery - 225 S Linn St
  • Cheeseburger Sliders
  • Roasted Potato Salad with Corn
  • Caprese Salad
  • Chocolate Chunk Cookies
  • Tres Leches Cups
• Brix Cheese Shop & Wine Bar - 209 N Linn St
  • Muffuletta and Turkey Pesto Sandwich
• Cactus3 - 114 S Clinton St
• Coa Cantina - 18 1/2 S Clinton St
  • Street Corn
  • Coa Egg Rolls with Poblano Cream
• The Dandy Lion - 111 S Dubuque St
  • Riblet Sliders
  • Southern Style Pierogis
  • Seasonal Toaster Strudel
• Donnelly’s Pub - 110 E College St
  • Boneless Wings
  • Reuben Egg Rolls
• Formosa - 221 E College St
  • Crispy Spring Rolls
  • Fried Dumplings
  • Shrimp Tempura Roll
  • California Roll
  • Spicy Crab Roll
  • Las Vegas Roll
  • Scorpion Roll
• Get Fresh Cafe - 109 Iowa Ave, Iowa City
  • Lemonade
  • Pitaya Lemonade
  • Iced Tea
  • Arnold Palmer
• India Cafe - 227 E Washington St
  • Tandoori Chicken
  • Vegetable Samosas
  • Chicken Tikka Masala
  • Veg Biryani
  • Mango Lassi
  • Naan
• Iowa Chop House - 223 E Washington St
  • Bacon Cheddar Sliders
  • Fainting Cow Sliders
  • Mac & Cheese
• The Java House - 211 1/2 E Washington St
  • Iced Coffee
  • Lemonade
  • Pastries
  • Sweets
• Joe's Place - 115 Iowa Ave
  • Field Day Burger Sliders
  • Field Day Bulgogi Tacos
• Kindred Coffee - 287 N Linn St
  • Peach Shaken Iced Tea
  • Iced Flapjack
  • Lemon Bar Bites
• Mammitas Coffee - 224 S Linn St
  • Street Corn
  • Arroz con Pollo
• Masala Indian Cuisine - 9 S Dubuque St
  • Chicken Tikka Masala
  • Veg Samosas
  • Vegetables Pakoras
  • Vegan Chana Masala
  • Rice
  • Naan
• Mesa Pizza - 114 E Washington St
  • Sample Pizza Slices:
    • Mac & Cheese
    • Penne Pesto
    • Black Bean Burrito
    • Buffalo Chicken
    • Chicken Bacon Ranch
    • Al Pastor Pork
    • Chicken Penne Alfredo
• Micky’s Irish Pub - 11 S Dubuque St
  • Conglomerations
  • Burger Sliders
• Midnight Coffee - 301 E Market St
  • New Craft Latte
  • Cold Brew
  • Matcha
  • Housemade Lemonade
• Nodo Downtown - 5 S Dubuque St
  • Blueberry Lemonade
• NutriSport & Smoothie -  201 S Clinton St
  • Chicken Bacon Ranch Wrap
  • Caesar Wrap
  • Baja Rice Bowl (chicken or vegan)
  • Peanut Butter Blaster Smoothie
  • Starburst Smoothie
• Oasis Falafel - 206 N Linn St
  • Falafel and/or Gyro Served on Pita Wedges with Hummus
• Pancheros Mexican Grill - 32 S Clinton St
  • Chips and Queso
• Paper Crane Ramen Shop & Cocktail Lounge - 121 N Linn St
  • Corn Fried Rice with Edamame and Local Sweet Corn
  • Gyoza with Pork, Cabbage, and Sweet Soy Sauce Drizzle
• Pop’s BBQ - 130 N Dubuque St
  • Pulled Pork Sliders
  • Cornbread
• Pullman Bar & Diner - 17 S Dubuque St
  • Smoked peach and heirloom tomato, pickled snack peppers, burrata, and Local Crumb croutons
• Quinton’s Bar & Deli - 215 E Washington St
  • Jalepeño Poppers
  • Wings
• ReUnion Brewery - 113 E College St
  • Bird Dogs (fried chicken tenderloin in a brioche bun, with choice of hot honey, buffalo, or original with honey mustard)
• Scout’s Honor - 219 Iowa Ave
  • Pizza Slices
• SpareMe Bowl & Arcade - 404 E College St
  • Cheese and Crackers
  • Sausage and Rotkohl
  • Kali Ma N/A Beverage
• St. Burch Tavern - 127 Iowa Ave
  • Lobster and Gulf Shrimp Mini Sliders
• The Stuffed Olive - 121 E College St
  • Crab Rangoon Flatbread
  • Sweet & Spicy Flatbread
  • Med Caprese Flatbread
• Sumo Sushi - 122 E Washington St
• Teamo Tea - 121 E Washington St
  • Bubble Tea
• Tspoons Cafe and Treats - 125 S Dubuque St
  • Dubai Chocolate Covered Strawberries
  • Peach Mango Refresher
  • Cold Brew
  • Chocolate Covered Potato Chips
• Vue Rooftop - 328 S Clinton St
  • Caramelized Onion Naan Flatbread
• The Wedge Pizzeria - 113 Iowa Ave
  • Pizza
  • Dessert
• Wild Culture - 210 N Linn St
  • Kombucha
  • Cold Brew Latte
  • BLT
• Wilder - 210 S Dubuque St
  • Steak Skewers
  • Waygu Beef Sliders
• Yotopia - 132 S Clinton St
  • Froyo Cones
  • Vegan Popsicles
  • Mini Mashups
  • All-You-Can-Fill Froyo
• Z’Mariks Noodle Cafe - 19 S Dubuque St
  • Mac & Cheese Bar
  • Scotcharoos

Live Music

There will be two areas with live music during Taste of Iowa City:

• Weatherdance Stage
  • 4 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. - Dirty Blonde
  • 6 p.m. to 7:15 p.m. - Anthony Worden & the Illiterati
• Northside
  • 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. - Joel Worford
  • 6:15 p.m. to 8 p.m. - The Feralings

Tickets

Tickets for samples at Taste of Iowa City are $1 each and sold in strips of five. The website says that most samples cost between two and four tickets per item. There will be six ticket booths on-site during the event where you can buy them, but they can also be purchased online HERE, and then picked up at the Iowa City Downtown District Office. Another in-person option is to get them before the event at MidWestOne Bank on Clinton Street.

If you're a UI student, the University of Iowa will be giving away a limited number of free tickets at the University of Iowa booth on the Pentacrest. All you have to do is show your student ID!

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READ MORE: A Giant List of August 2025 Events in Eastern Iowa