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Whiskey House- Ankeny

Cyclones_R_GR8 said:
Omaha had a high end whiskey establishment called Grane that recently closed it's doors. Between the owners mismanaging that and their other establishment (Brix) it isn't surprising. I think the cheapest drink at Grane was about $9.50 and anywhere up to over $300.
While there are people with money I just don't see there being enough demand for such a high priced place. How many people are there that are going to go out and drop a few hundred dollars on a couple of drinks on a regular basis.
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Hello Marjorie! that just opened in the old Des Moines Register building downtown is about to test out the higher priced cocktail market:
Per article below:
Cocktails, $8-$13;

http://www.desmoinesregister.com/st...-cocktail-lounge-reviving-classics/100560686/

A place like this can and will draw from the entire metro however, not to mention out of town business travels and leisure travelers.

A place in Ankeny just doesn't have that luxury.
 
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I've been there 5+ times already. The reason you go there is the selection first and foremost. No one in the metro can give you the selection that this place gives you. The prices can seem a bit high, but we midwesterners always seem to complain about prices. I like the live music they have as well. You can always find it packed on the weekends. For those of you that haven't tried it yet, get the Poutine. I've had it three times and so far so good on the brisket being just right. My wife isn't a bourbon drinker, but she loves their Whiskey Sour and their Ward 8. Will this place make it a few years...who knows....but it won't be because I quit going.
 
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CycloneGamecock said:
I would kill for cocktails to only be 8-13 dollars, thats what a glass of craft beer costs in the northeast.
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I just got back from NYC and didn't pay over $8 for a craft beer the whole time I was there and most were around $6. I was really shocked how cheap they were. I must have been hanging in the slums.

I take that back, I did pay $10 for a can of Alchemist Focal Banger but that's pretty special.
 
dmclone said:
I just got back from NYC and didn't pay over $8 for a craft beer the whole time I was there and most were around $6. I was really shocked how cheap they were. I must have been hanging in the slums.

I take that back, I did pay $10 for a can of Alchemist Focal Banger but that's pretty special.
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You must have been slumming it then. I was in the city at rattle n hum last weekend and the cheapest session ale was around 6. I'm in an area outside of NY which is admittedly more expensive for food and drinks than NY though.
 
capitalcityguy said:
I always thought the Royal Mile selection couldn't be beat. Maybe that is more scotch? (not exactly my area of expertise)
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Royal Mile has a great and probably the biggest selection of scotch, Tonic is right there though. Bubba is king of bourbons but Whiskey House does have the biggest whiskey selection no doubt. Problem I see is I don't know how deep Urijah's (WH owner) pockets go. Certainly cant compare to Full Court Press, Orchestrate, and Riley Drive who all print money. Time will tell.
 
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HogueNation said:
Bartender was 7 shades of ****** up when we were in there this past weekend. Horrible service and very overpriced for the quality of food. Whiskey was good but also overpriced imo. I give it less than 6 months .
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yeah, I think it has made it past the 6 months.... I do agree the service is a bit rough, but the food is great, and selection is untouchable.
 
HogueNation said:
You're wrong about people not going out drinking in Ankeny. The area around Jethro's/Whiskey River/ Fong's has turned into a nice little area for nightlife. I would agree that people not from Ankeny don't come to Ankeny but more and more Ankeny folks are staying in town now that there's more than 1 uber available on Thur/Fri/Sat.
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Horrible Whiskey selection..... That niche is trending up, I believe, they have a great chance, with improvements, they need a patio too as it could be a destination with that over the summer....
 
To me this is a good place to go and discover Whiskey's of all kind that you would probably never buy a bottle of, the one that I found and had to have my friends in Chicago bring some over for me is Koval all the types they do are amazing.
 
dmclone said:
I just got back from NYC and didn't pay over $8 for a craft beer the whole time I was there and most were around $6. I was really shocked how cheap they were. I must have been hanging in the slums.

I take that back, I did pay $10 for a can of Alchemist Focal Banger but that's pretty special.
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Highly OT, but how was the Focal Banger? Have had Heady quite a few times but never this one.
 
I sound like an old man here, but they need to fix the acoustics in there. The band has drowned everything out the couple times I've bee there
 
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AmesHawk said:
Highly OT, but how was the Focal Banger? Have had Heady quite a few times but never this one.
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It was good, nothing life changing. I would put it on par with something like Todd the Axeman. 4.25/5.

The two beers the surprised me were both from Maine Beer company. I had them on my wanted list for the longest time and wasn't really impressed. I had Lunch and Another One.
 
Whiskey House is the smaller one, right? Not the one in the district?

If so I agree with what's been said: we went a couple months ago and it had to have taken a solid 10 minutes before we saw a waiter and another 10-15 minutes before we even got our drinks
 
JY07 said:
Whiskey House is the smaller one, right? Not the one in the district?

If so I agree with what's been said: we went a couple months ago and it had to have taken a solid 10 minutes before we saw a waiter and another 10-15 minutes before we even got our drinks
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Correct, Whiskey River is located across from Jethro's and next to Fong's and District 36. Same owners as Founder's in Bondurant and Whiskey River in Ames. Stoked about their rooftop bar for this summer as well. Only gripe about Whiskey River is they use a system where there's not one set waiter/waitress for each table, so you literally have someone coming up to your table non stop. But it beats the alternative like Whiskey House where the service is down right horrible. Might just be my impatience but why support a place like this.

Another gripe I have....Dairy Queen in Ankeny. If someone could tell me who owns this place, I'll give you non stop Cyfanatic likes on all your posts for a year. That place is always packed on nice days because the ice cream options in Ankeny are really pretty limited. Personally, a Mom and Pop shop would make a killing in Ankeny. I'd support a local place anyday of the week over Sonic, Dairy Queen, Culver's, etc. Back to dairy queen....I feel absolutely horrible for the workers there. They are understaffed every time I've walked in the door and have to deal with some very rude and impatient people who don't realize that the workers are not the issue, it's management.
 
dmclone said:
It was good, nothing life changing. I would put it on par with something like Todd the Axeman. 4.25/5.

The two beers the surprised me were both from Maine Beer company. I had them on my wanted list for the longest time and wasn't really impressed. I had Lunch and Another One.
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Good to know, thanks. I've had Lunch from MBC and really liked it, also their Dinner is pretty good. Have not heard of Another One before, but after looking it up, sounds awesome. i might have to look into a bottle share for that.
 
Speaking of Whiskey River and rooftop patio (which to me really just looks like it just comes off of/is adjacent to the 2nd story of the building...i.e...I didn't think "rooftop patio" when I saw it. Anyway, it looks really sharp but I couldn't help but wonder about the location. It is essentially south facing and thus will be exposed to the hot summer sun for the entire afternoon. Unless they have a way to control that exposure somehow, it will really limit some of the use of the space before later in the evenings on many summer days.
 
capitalcityguy said:
Speaking of Whiskey River and rooftop patio (which to me really just looks like it just comes off of/is adjacent to the 2nd story of the building...i.e...I didn't think "rooftop patio" when I saw it. Anyway, it looks really sharp but I couldn't help but wonder about the location. It is essentially south facing and thus will be exposed to the hot summer sun for the entire afternoon. Unless they have a way to control that exposure somehow, it will really limit some of the use of the space before later in the evenings on many summer days.
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You're exactly right. They had it opened up a couple weeks ago and it was a very mild day out but was pretty warm up there. Not much room for wind or a breeze to move around either.
 
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