Smitty's Tenderloin Shop

Des Moines’s Best Restaurants, According to 2020 Campaign Operatives | Eater

"The Des Moines version of LA’s Sepulveda Boulevard In-N-Out: Take a quick left on Army Post Road after you exit the airport and visit this family-owned sandwich shop that’s been operating since 1967. Its staple menu item is the King Loin, which is recognized as the best sandwich in Iowa. It’s a lot of pork to handle — the ones I ate and photographed measured 9 inches long by 7 inches wide. Shop owner Ben Smith says that they were put on the map by New York Times national correspondent Jonathan Martin a decade ago, when his laptop ran out of power and he had to file a story from Smitty’s while charging up. Martin began sending his media buddies over, and several favorable articles and TV hits later, Smitty’s is now a must-visit restaurant." - Gary He