Istanbul Grill Cafe & Bakery brings one of the world’s oldest cuisines to Urbandale

Michelle Kaya was reluctant to leave her Michigan home, where she had family, friends and a teaching career. But her husband Ahmet’s job in executive management necessitated a move to central Iowa. Early in the process, he was staying at a hotel near Jordan Creek Town Center. Michelle came to visit, and she wanted sushi.

“It was about 9 or 10 at night, and as we were entering the restaurant, two groups of girls [were] coming from different directions [from] where the sushi bar was, their obvious meet-up place. They were laughing and enjoying the moment,” Ahmet recalled. “Michelle looked at me and said, ‘That would never happen in Detroit.’ That’s when she quickly fell in love with Iowa.”

Ahmet had 30 years in the restaurant business, and both he and Michelle saw an opportunity to open something special in their new community. Ahmet decided to leave his corporate job. In February 2025, the Kayas launched Istanbul Grill Cafe & Bakery, a halal Turkish restaurant at 3281 100th St in Urbandale.

Little Village: Can you share how you decided to stay in Des Moines and set up your restaurant?

Ahmet Kaya: I was an executive for a growing company, with growing travel demands. Their expansion to the East Coast pushed us to house-shop there. Michelle’s reaction was, “I am absolutely not leaving Iowa for the East Coast.” 

There’s a hospitality in the Midwest, especially in Iowa. On the East Coast you don’t see that. I was traveling so much. Michelle said that I should find something to do local. I had experience and a background in the restaurant business. 

Michelle and I have been married for 27 years. The first time I took her to Turkey, she fell in love with Turkish food. That inspired her to suggest, “Since we love Iowa so much, why don’t we bring something new to the community?”

How did the commitment to open Istanbul Grill happen?

We talked about opening a restaurant. I told Michelle, “I know the food is great, but it’s still risky.” Michelle then said something that really made a lot of sense to me: “Ahmet, don’t you think that [for] 99 percent of the restaurants in Des Moines, you already know what’s on the menu before you even pull into the parking lot? Wouldn’t it be really cool if people said, ‘Hey, let me surprise myself and treat myself to something different’?” I agreed, and that’s how we started the Istanbul Grill. 

Can you talk about Turkish cuisine?

Turkish cuisine is probably one of the oldest cuisines in the world. We have a dish called Iskender Kabob, which is the Alexander Kabob, a dish that was first made for Alexander the Great when he was invading that part of the world. He was passing through the Byzantine Empire, so he asked the local chefs to make him a traditional meal. He really loved it, so they named it after him. That dish has been passed down through the millennia, and we honor its legacy today at Istanbul Grill. 

Another favorite dish is Turkish Döner. Everybody confuses this with gyro, which is made out of the cheapest part of the meat. Our Döner is made from lamb loin, lamb leg and top prime sirloin. 

With Turkish cuisine, you have to make everything fresh. The only frozen item we have is fries. Everything else is made fresh. People ask if our food is spicy. Not really. With Turkish food, you are supposed to taste what you eat — the meat, the vegetables, not the spices or sauces. Our meats, we marinate them at least 18 hours.

Are there any signature dishes at Istanbul Grill?

One is our mixed platter with seven different appetizers: a generous portion of hummus, baba ganoush, ezme, grape leaves, falafel and cheese rolls (sigara boregi). We have unique dishes like Sultan’s Delight (hunkar begendi), a sautéed beef served on eggplant over a creamy smoky eggplant puree. Our Turkish pizza (lahmacun) is flatbread baked with seasoned ground lamb and served with sliced onions, tomatoes and lettuce. 

The Taste of Istanbul plate includes our top sellers: Turkish Dumplings, Sultan’s Delight, Turkish Meatballs, the Döner and the Turkish Pizza on one plate. It’s so big that we now list it as a meal for two. 

Baklava is one of the world’s first desserts. We offer seven kinds.

On its socials, the Istanbul Grill Cafe & Bakery shows a lot of love to its chefs. Can you talk about your culinary team?

Our executive chef [Chef Hasan] has a culinary degree. He has opened several Turkish restaurants in Dubai, France, Europe and England. We brought him here with his team. We’ve added experienced American chefs. We worked with our head chef to design the menu before we opened, doing about two months of testing the menu offerings. 

Mediterranean restaurants

Don’t see you favorite spot on the list? Let us know: editor@littlevillagemag.com

Eastern Iowa

Oasis Falafel, 206 N Linn St, Iowa City; Daily 11 a.m.-8 p.m.

KANDAKA Mediterranean, 1800 Boyrum St, Iowa City; Sat-Thurs 12-8 p.m.; Fri 1:30-8 p.m.

Le Crave, 14 S Clinton St, Iowa City; Sun 10 a.m.-6 p.m.; Mon-Thurs 8 a.m.-8 p.m.; Fri and Sat 8 a.m.-10 p.m.

Baklava N More Bakery, 401 IA-1, Iowa City; Sun 10 a.m.-8 p.m.; Mon-Sat 9 a.m.-8 p.m.

Saj Grill, 23 S Dubuque St, Iowa City; Daily 11 a.m.-10 p.m.; 925 25th Ave, Coralville; Daily 11 a.m.-9 p.m.

Mr. Shawerma, Coral Ridge Mall food court, Coralville; Sun 11 a.m.-6 p.m.; Mon-Thurs 11 a.m.-7 p.m.; Fri and Sat 11 a.m.-8 p.m.

The Halal Guys, 3220 Redhawk St, Coralville; Sun-Tues 10:30 a.m.-9:30 p.m.; Wed and Thurs 10:30 a.m.-10 p.m.; Fri and Sat 10:30 a.m.-11 p.m.

Pita Kabab, 3100 6th St SW, Cedar Rapids; Daily 10 a.m.-10 p.m.

O’s Grill, 3911 Center Point Rd NE, Cedar Rapids; Sun 10 a.m.-3 p.m.; Mon-Thurs 11 a.m.-8 p.m.; Fri and Sat 11 a.m.-9 p.m.

Pita’z Mediterranean and American Cuisine, 1057 N Center Point Rd, Hiawatha; Closed Sun; Mon-Fri 10 a.m.-8 p.m.; Sat 10 a.m.-7 p.m.

Plus Saporis Mediterranean Latin Cuisine, 4808 Forest Grove Dr, Bettendorf; Closed Sun; Mon and Tues 4:30-8:30 p.m.; Wed and Thurs 4:30-9 p.m.; Fri and Sat 11 a.m.-2:30 p.m. and 4:30-9 p.m.

Olive Tree Cafe, 2513 53rd Ave, Bettendorf; Closed Sun; Mon-Thurs 11 a.m.-2 p.m. and 5-8 p.m.; Fri and Sat 11 a.m.-2 p.m. and 5-9 p.m.

L&B Gyros, 5009 Competition Dr, Bettendorf; Sun-Thurs 11 a.m.-7:45 p.m. (Closed Mon); Fri and Sat 11 a.m.-8:45 p.m.

Gyro 600, 600 E Le Claire Rd Ste 3, Elridge; Sun 11 a.m.-7 p.m.; Mon-Sat 11 a.m.-8 p.m.

Central Iowa

The Green Olive, 524 SW 9th St Suite 116 and 4221 Fleur Dr, Des Moines; Sun 8:30 a.m.-8 p.m.; 1960 Grand Ave, West Des Moines; Mon-Sun 8 a.m.-9 p.m.

Open Sesame, 313 E Locust St, Des Moines; Closed Sun-Mon; Tues-Thurs 11 a.m.-2 p.m. and 5:30-8 p.m.; Fri and Sat 11 a.m.-2 p.m. and 5:30-9 p.m.

Olympic Flame Restaurant, 514 E Grand Ave, Des Moines; Closed Sun-Mon; Tues-Sat 11 a.m.-9 p.m.

Tarboosh Lebanese Kitchen Food Truck, 208 5th St, Des Moines; Thurs 4 p.m.-8 p.m.; 310 Court Ave, Des Moines; Sat 7 a.m.-12 p.m.

Mo’z Mediterranean Grill, 5954 Ashworth Rd, West Des Moines; Daily 10:30 a.m.-8 p.m.

Istanbul Grill Cafe & Bakery, 3281 100th St, Urbandale; Daily 11 a.m.-10 p.m.

Flavory Bistro, 1450 SW Main St, Ankeny; Closed Sun-Mon; Tues-Sat 11 a.m.-3 p.m. and 5-8:30 p.m.

Darna by Ghadeer, 1310 S Duff Ave #105, Ames; Closed Sun; Mon-Sat 11 a.m.-8 p.m. 

Omar’s Gyro Ames, 122 Welch Ave, Ames; Closed Sun; Mon 6 p.m.-12:30 a.m.; Tues-Sat 6 p.m.-2:30 a.m.

This article was originally published in Little Village’s August 2026 issue.