Recent visits to Ankeny

Warm mini-donuts, left, at Porch Light Coffeehouse. Shaken in the bag with choice of flavored sugar. Salted Caramel is delicious! Other flavors offered are Cinnamon Sugar and Apple Cider. Six for $3 or a dozen for $5.50. A small Piper[oni], right, at Leaning Tower of Pizza. Double pepperoni, banana pepper, mozzarella and cheddar cheeses. Not too spicy, but more briny than what most may care for on a pizza. More for me!

Bright, refreshing Hydrant pale ale, left, at Firetrucker Brewery. Enough maltiness for character. 4.9% ABV, 38 IBU. Lift your leg for one! Oppressively hot, humid days in Iowa require refreshment. Such as Firetrucker's Cat In A Tree ginger beer, right. At 4.0% ABV, you can quaff freely without feeling heavy in the process.

Unique corned beef, left, at The (Iowa) Original Pancake House, here served with fried eggs on top. Minced quite fine so lacking texture, but onion boosts the overall flavor. Potato pancakes, center, are as close to hash browns as you'll get on the menu. I could do a plate of these with eggs on top, plus bacon. George (Nicholson) spotted me and again brought out a tasty lagniappe. This time a cherry Kijafa crepe, right. Oh boy!