Savor Scout › Cities › Iowa › Ames, IA
Where to eat in Ames, IA
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A few places to eat in Ames
- Cake First Then Cardio Bakery · 0.3 miles
1311 Kellogg Ave, Ames - Mucky Duck Pub Ll · 0.5 miles
1415 Duff Ave, Ames - Aunt Maude's American · 0.7 miles
547 Main St, Ames - Hickory Park Restaurant Barbecue · 0.7 miles
413 Kellogg Ave Ste 4, Ames - Bar La Tosca Bistro · 0.7 miles
400 Main St, Ames
The closest few by distance from central Ames, not a ranking — local places listed ahead of chains. Listings from Overture Maps open data (September 2026); hours and openings change, so check before you go. Want one picked for what you're craving instead? Ask Savor Scout in Ames.
The food scene in Ames
Open listings put 186 places to eat within 2 miles of central Ames, 3 within a ten-minute walk (half a mile). The most common: pizza (24), Mexican (19) and sandwiches (16). 15 are fast-food counters; the rest are sit-down restaurants, cafés, bakeries and takeaway spots.
What stands out in Ames is buffet and Mediterranean — types that are listed here at 2 to 4 times the national rate.
By type of food — tap one for what to order and how to spot a good one:
Pizza 24 Mexican 19 Sandwiches 16 Coffee 10 American 7 Burgers 7 Bakery 7 Chinese 6 Bar & grill 5 Barbecue 4
The food in Ames
Ames does not have infinite options, and that brings its own problem: you have been to most of them, and picking again is somehow still hard.
Savor Scout picks one restaurant in Ames and tells you why it picked it. Say what you're craving and it reads menus and reviews for that specific dish, rather than sorting places by overall star rating. Free, runs in the browser, and one search needs no account.
Eating out in Ames
Ames has a population of about 61,792. Somewhere this size rewards knowing which places are actually worth the trip. Savor Scout searches up to 35 miles around Ames, so places just outside the city are still on the table when they are worth the drive.
How many places to eat are there in Ames?
Ames sits in Story County, where the Census counts 66 full-service restaurants, 83 limited-service places, 30 cafés and snack bars and 20 bars — 199 places to eat or drink in all. Ames makes up about 63% of the county's population.
That works out at 20.2 per 10,000 residents, which is about level with the national median of 19.4 — a normal amount of choice, and a normal amount of indecision. Counter service edges out sit-down, which is the national norm.
County-level counts from the US Census (2022) — how we got these numbers.
What are you craving in Ames?
- tacos in Ames — what separates a good one from an average one
- pizza in Ames — what separates a good one from an average one
- sushi in Ames — what separates a good one from an average one
- burgers in Ames — what separates a good one from an average one
- ramen in Ames — what separates a good one from an average one
- wings in Ames — what separates a good one from an average one
- chinese food in Ames — what separates a good one from an average one
- italian food in Ames — what separates a good one from an average one
- thai food in Ames — what separates a good one from an average one
- mexican food in Ames — what separates a good one from an average one
- barbecue in Ames — what separates a good one from an average one
- seafood in Ames — what separates a good one from an average one
- brunch in Ames — what separates a good one from an average one
- indian food in Ames — what separates a good one from an average one
- sandwiches in Ames — what separates a good one from an average one
- noodles in Ames — what separates a good one from an average one
Near Ames
- Ankeny, IA — about 21 miles away
- Urbandale, IA — about 29 miles away
- Des Moines, IA — about 30 miles away
- West Des Moines, IA — about 32 miles away
- Cedar Falls, IA — about 69 miles away
- Waterloo, IA — about 73 miles away
Campuses in and near Ames
Each has its own page: what is within walking distance and a few places to start with.
How this differs from Google Maps and Yelp
Maps and Yelp are directories: they rank everything nearby and leave the deciding to you. Savor Scout makes the call and shows its reasoning — the match score, what it beat, and the evidence behind the pick. The underlying place data comes from the same public sources, so the difference is the selection, not the data.
Guides
- What to eat when… — 30 guides by situation, from a first date to a hangover to a group of twelve.
- Food guides — what separates a good taco, ramen or pizza from an average one.
- Eating out with a restriction — allergies, halal, kosher, vegan and more.
- Near a campus? — food around 637 US universities.