Updated October 1, 2026. Every place below was checked on that day against its own website, ordering page or a current listing for its address and a current menu. The earlier version of this guide listed restaurants that are closed or in other parts of the metro; they've been taken out.
A Highland Park food crawl starts at 6th and Euclid Avenues, where three stops sit within a block of each other: Cha Cha's Hiland Bakery for doughnuts, The Slow Down Coffee Co. for coffee, and Chuck's Restaurant for an Italian-American dinner. For pupusas, drive or walk about ten minutes south on 6th Avenue to El Salvador Del Mundo. For Mexican food, two family restaurants sit east on Euclid Avenue, across the Des Moines River.
About the district
The Highland Park Historic Business District covers about six acres at Euclid and Sixth Avenues, on the border of the Highland Park and Oak Park neighborhoods, roughly three miles north of downtown. Developers platted both neighborhoods in the late 1880s and ran a streetcar line north along Sixth Avenue. The brick commercial buildings date from the 1890s to after World War II, and the district was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1998. For more on the area, see our Highland Park neighborhood guide.
The crawl at a glance
| Stop | Address | Food | Distance from 6th & Euclid |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cha Cha's Hiland Bakery | 3615 6th Ave | Bakery | In the district |
| The Slow Down Coffee Co. | 3613 6th Ave | Coffee | In the district |
| Chuck's Restaurant | 3610 6th Ave | Italian-American | In the district |
| El Salvador Del Mundo | 2901 6th Ave | Salvadoran | About 0.7 mi south |
| El Paisano Mexican Food & Bakery | 901 E Euclid Ave | Mexican, panaderia | About 1.3 mi east |
| Cowboy Mexican Bar & Grill | 1234 E Euclid Ave | Mexican | About 1.6 mi east |
Distances are our estimates.
In the district
Cha Cha's Hiland Bakery
A neighborhood bakery whose family has been baking since 1946. The case includes a maple bacon doughnut, cinnamon rolls and a blueberry donut cheesecake. It opens early (5 am Tuesday-Friday on its own site, closed Monday), but the site also says hours will change soon, so check before you go.
- Where: 3615 6th Ave, Des Moines
- Site: Hiland Bakery (opens in a new tab) | Our listing
The Slow Down Coffee Co.
Next door to the bakery, and one of the few coffee shops in town open until 8 pm on weekdays.
- Where: 3613 6th Ave, Des Moines
- Hours posted: weekdays 6:30 am-8 pm, weekends 7 am-5 pm
- Site: theslowdowndsm.com (opens in a new tab)
Chuck's Restaurant
A long-running Italian-American dinner spot across the street, with chicken parmesan, fettuccine alfredo and its cheese logs.
- Where: 3610 6th Ave, Des Moines
- Hours listed: Tuesday-Saturday 5-9 pm
A short drive south or east
El Salvador Del Mundo
Salvadoran food on the 6th Avenue corridor. Pupusas start at $5.75 on its online ordering page, with shrimp pupusas and fried plantains also on the menu. Closed Tuesdays.
- Where: 2901 6th Ave, Des Moines
El Paisano Mexican Food & Bakery
A family-owned Mexican restaurant with a panaderia, in the building on Euclid that used to house Vientiane. The menu has quesabirria tacos with consomme and grilled mojarra; the bakery case has conchas and tres leches.
- Where: 901 E Euclid Ave, Des Moines
- Hours posted: daily 9 am-9 pm
- Site: elpaisanodsm.com (opens in a new tab)
Cowboy Mexican Bar & Grill
A Mexican bar and grill further east on Euclid. The menu runs from two tacos and a side ($11.99) to a steak fajita ($18.99) and a coctel campechana ($32.99).
- Where: 1234 E Euclid Ave, Des Moines
- Site: cowboygrilldsm.com (opens in a new tab) | Our listing
What changed from the earlier version
- Mi Patria, the Ecuadorian restaurant in the earlier version, is in West Des Moines, not Highland Park.
- Vientiane at 901 E Euclid is gone; El Paisano operates at that address now.
- Alegrias Seafood at 2809 6th Ave is closed.
Sources
Checked October 1, 2026:
- Hiland Bakery (opens in a new tab) and its Restaurantji listing (opens in a new tab)
- The Slow Down Coffee Co. (opens in a new tab)
- Chuck's Restaurant on Restaurantji (opens in a new tab)
- El Salvador Del Mundo online ordering (opens in a new tab) and its Restaurantji listing (opens in a new tab)
- El Paisano Mexican Food & Bakery (opens in a new tab)
- Cowboy Mexican Bar & Grill (opens in a new tab)
- Highland Park Historic Business District at Euclid and Sixth Avenues (opens in a new tab) (Wikipedia, drawing on the National Register nomination)