Armored Gardens - Davenport, IA

BIL is a beer guy, so and I’ve heard him talk about this place in Davenport, IA that has a boatload of taps AND good food. Not sure why I haven't been before this point, but D and I made a point to go check it out when we were in town visiting my family. 

 

The beer menu is extensive. Literally, like 100 beers (maybe just shy when we were there, due to a keg or two running out the previous night). Good craft beers mostly. I was in the mood for beer, but D was in the mood for a fancy cocktail of some sort. She found the first drink on the cocktail menu and didn’t even go past it. Pineapple Tiki Punch, and when she found out they’d serve it in a giant palm tree cup, she had to have it. She’s the best.

 

The food menu is also pretty serious. Think of it like a very advanced snack bar where you order at the window and then they’ll give you a number and run it out to you. D decided we could split a Buffalo Chicken Salad and I have a weakness for fried samplers, so I picked “The Box” – which apparently is the best sampler in the whole world. It’s got 2 pretzels, 3 chicken tenders, 5 mini corn dogs, 2 chicken philly eggrolls, and French fries. More brown food, yes, thank you.

 

We headed outside to the beautiful patio (along with a ton of other folks who had just gotten done with a practice run for the local big-deal race we have in the Quad Cities each year – the Bix 7), and our food showed up pretty quickly after that. Meanwhile, people were walking past and taking pictures and asking about the giant palm tree glass that D was drinking from. 

 

The Buffalo Chicken Salad was pretty immense. TONs of buffalo chicken on top or lettuce, bacon, tomato, fried onions, and blue cheese dressing. We were both eating it and both really enjoyed this option. It ALMOST felt like we were eating something healthy, what with the lettuce and all.

The Box was really the killer item, though. It comes out in a pizza type box with the words “The Box” on it, so it’s hard to mistake it. We opened it up pretty quickly, so our crispy stuff didn’t get steamed and soggy and we must have done it right, since everything was really delicious and crispy. The pretzels were fantastic and came with dipping sauces. In fact, we weren’t exactly sure which sauces went with which items, so we just improvised and figured out what worked best for us. The chicken strips were super meaty and crispy. The corn dogs were really fun. The chicken philly eggrolls were really damn good, and the fries were also still crispy. 

 

This place tends to draw the younger crowd, which makes it fun and energetic. There’s a lot nearby in downtown Davenport, so I know we’ll be close enough to pop by again really soon. Even better food and beer selection than I expected, so now I’m all fired up about going back there!

Armored Gardens