🌟 Good morning, Des Moines!
Your weekly nudge to get out, feel connected, and love where you live.
In this week’s AroundDSM:
🥯 A locally owned bagel spot with legit New York roots and cream cheese worth building your whole order around.
🍯 A botanical garden honey tasting that feels equal parts educational and delicious.
🍄 Des Moines’ most delightfully niche festival is back, and yes, there’s a costume contest.
🍽️ Restaurant Spotlight
5 Borough Bagels | 13435 University Ave., Clive |
Photo: Cold brew with sugar-free vanilla flavor add-on & cream | Emily Johnson
Photo: Astoria on a garlic parmesan bagel (substitute for everything bagel) | Emily Johnson
🥯 Real New York roots, right here in the metro – 5 Borough Bagels started with a craving, a homemade batch of bagels, and one very confident “let’s open a bagel cafe!” from owner Sarah. She and Toney brought that idea from Queens to Iowa. It’s locally owned, full of heart, and the kind of place that clearly came from genuine love for good food and community.
🧀 The cream cheese lineup deserves its own moment – Yes, the bagels are authentic kettle-boiled, but the flavored cream cheeses are part of what makes this spot so fun. Sriracha Bacon, Hot Honey, Scallion, Cucumber Dill, New York Cheesecake, Jalapeño… this is not a plain jane situation. I ordered the Astoria bagel sandwich for lunch - everything bagel, cucumber dill cream cheese, turkey, spinach, tomato, onion, feta. It was as amazing as it sounds!
☕ Breakfast, lunch, coffee, and an easy little “treat yourself” stop – Beyond bagels, they’ve also got breakfast and lunch sandwiches, espresso drinks, flavored lemonades, and decadent dessert lattes, so this works whether you need a quick breakfast, a casual lunch, or just a reason to leave the house for something good. Bonus: with Clive, Urbandale, and Waukee locations, your next bagel fix probably isn’t far away. 👉 View the menu here.
🤝 Partner Spotlight: Cuisinart Portable Gas Grill
Grill. Go. Enjoy.
This Cuisinart portable gas grill makes outdoor cooking feel easy instead of chaotic. The stack-and-go design is simple to carry, the wooden lid doubles as a cutting board, and the whole thing is thoughtfully built to keep setup neat and stress-free. Great for camping, tailgates, or small-space grilling when you want something compact that still grills like the real deal. Check it out on Amazon! #ad
🎉 Top 5 Things to Do
The best bets handpicked for your week:
🍯 Honey Tasting | Greater Des Moines Botanical Garden
This sounds like one of those quietly lovely weeknight events that ends up feeling extra special. You’ll taste a variety of unifloral honeys while learning from Katie Flinn, a trained honey sommelier, about the botanicals behind each one.
A sweet pick for food lovers, curious gardeners, or anyone who enjoys learning something new with a sample in hand.| Thursday, May 28th | 5:30–7 pm | Registration Required |
🦸 Des Moines Con | Iowa Events Center
If your happy place includes comics, anime, gaming, cosplay, movies, or just a very enthusiastic crowd in excellent costumes, Des Moines Con is calling. This is their fifth year, and it sounds packed with programming, performances, and enough fandom energy to carry you through the whole weekend.
Great for friend groups, families with older kids, and anyone ready to fully commit to the bit.| Friday, May 29th–Sunday, May 31st | Tickets Required
🌱 Native Plant Sale | Iowa Food Cooperative, 4944 Franklin Ave. Suite G |
This is a very good excuse to finally become the kind of person who knows what should actually be planted in their yard. Prairie Landscapes of Iowa will be on site to help shoppers choose native plants that support pollinators and thrive here, which makes this both practical and feel-good.
Stop by for the plants, then reward yourself by shopping local food inside.| Friday, May 29th | 4–7 pm | Free to Attend
🎙️ Tell It Like It Is: Iowa Storytellers Project “Search & Rescue” | Hoyt Sherman Place
There’s something special about a night built entirely around real local people telling real stories, and this lineup sounds especially strong. With themes of grief, discovery, love, mystery, and rescue, this feels like the kind of event that will make you laugh a little, feel a lot, and leave thinking about it on the drive home.
| Tuesday, June 2nd | 7 pm | Tickets Required
🍄 Des Moines Mushroom Festival 2026 | Captain Roy’s, 1900 Saylor Road, Des Moines
This may be the most AroundDSM-coded event of the week: a little quirky, very community-minded, and surprisingly packed with things to do. Expect vendors, workshops, music, speaker sessions, a foraging walk, forest bathing, and a costume contest, all designed for everyone from serious mushroom people to the mushroom-curious.
Honestly, even if you know almost nothing about fungi, the vibe alone will be worth checking out.| Sunday, May 31st | 12–7 pm | Varies by activity
🐾 Pet Pick-Me-Up
Now get out there, Des Moines!
With local love,
Emily
AroundDSM
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