Regardless of what season you visit Charles City, Iowa, you’ll find so much to do…from history to art, delicious eats, and more!
Charles City Restaurants
When bloggers gather, you can almost guarantee that there will be food. Lots and lots of delicious food! These Charles City restaurants didn’t disappoint either! This community offers several selections of delicious restaurants and food establishments
The Pub on the Cedar
Lunch one day was at The Pub on the Cedar! The atmosphere was relaxed and fun! The selections on the menu wide, but my two favorite things were the sweet potato tots…like no other sweet potato item I’ve ever had!
The other favorite was their WIDE selection of local brews! They carried almost two pages of beers and ciders from Iowa breweries! After much pondering, I settled on First Crush from Fishback & Stephenson out of Fairfield, IA. This watermelon and apple hard cider was DELICIOUS! I loved that you could try a variety of brews from locations across the state without having to travel to each one.
Cedar River Pizza Co.
Thankfully, the Charles City restaurants don’t stop there! Cedar River Pizza Co. treated us to pizzas one night and I can’t wait to go back for more! They brought us their bacon cheeseburger, a combination, and mediterranean specialities! While the bacon cheeseburger was good, the Mediterranean was melt in your mouth amazing. Complete with sausage, artichokes, spinach, and tomatoes, the flavors melded together in a way I didn’t know possible! Have I mentioned how delicious their homemade crust is?! Be aware that they are a take-out pizza joint, so you’ll need to plan accordingly, like taking one back to Red Cedar Lodge! 😉 (PS – I’ve heard a new brewery has opened in town and Cedar River Pizza Co will deliver their! That’s a perfect date-night!)
Aroma’s
Time for coffee?! Head to downtown Charles City for a stop at Aroma’s. This locally owned coffee shop has a variety of coffee and non-coffee drinks, along with a few baked goods! My eggnog latte (it was Christmas after all) was perfectly balanced with the espresso and steamed eggnog! I’m ready for another !
Shopping in Charles City, IA
What’s a Winter Glamping trip with several women if there is no shopping?! Thankfully, Charles City was able to help us out! Stroll down their main street district and explore shops like Darbe & Co and The Rustic Corner! While there are several cute shops, you can get lost in time at the Rustic Corner! They have just about something for everyone!
My favorite section was their P.Graham Dunn section with personalized engraving options! I loved seeing all their options and watching the machine at work!
Of course, I admired their bathroom with it’s walls papered in old sheet music as well! I am a music fanatic, so it was fun looking through the music to see if I recognized any! What a unique idea!
Before leaving town, make sure to stop by Otto’s Oasis along the Cedar River to check out their selection of home decor and gifts! I was in awe of their massively decorated Christmas trees as well as all their fun gifts!
Culture in Charles City, IA
To balance out your trip to Charles City, make sure to take in some culture! The bloggers did this by stopping by the Charles City Public Library and checking out the Moony Art Display which includes pieces from Picasso, Rembrandt, and Cezzar, plus others!
Carrie Chapman Catt’s Girlhood Home
We also stopped by Carrie Chapman Catt’s Girlhood Home. Located on the outskirts of Charles City, this is a treasure to not only the area, but our nation and it’s history of women’s right to vote! Inside the well maintained home, you’ll not only learn the history of Carrie Chapman Catt, but also women’s suffrage. Our tour guide was incredibly knowledgeable and it was great to learn so much about the topic! It’s definitely a don’t miss when visiting the area! You can also visit on Labor Day weekend for a family fun weekend of apple picking and events!
Snap Fitness
Calling working out culture might be a stretch, but either none-the-less, Charles City has that to offer as well! Marlow, the owner of Snap Fitness in downtown Charles City invited us to join their gym for the day and partake in their early morning yoga class, so Kylie of Between England and Iowa, and I took her up on it. Snap Fitness is a locally owned franchise in which members get keys that are global and then the members have access to locations all over the US and even internationally! Members have 24 hour access to the gym, which also offers classes and personal training sessions and fitness challenges.
Kylie and I enjoyed our yoga session as well as exploring the rest of the space. The space is full of all sorts of equipment that will fit everyone’s fitness needs. I was especially impressed (and envious) of their “crossfit” training room space! If you’re just in town for the day, don’t worry, Snap Fitness offers day-passes for guests!
Conclusion – A Visit to Charles City is A Must
Iowa is full of all kids of hidden treasures and Charles City, Iowa is definitely one of them! This community has loads of shops, cultural experiences, and locally owned restaurants. Head this direction for a day or make it an entire weekend by staying at Red Cedar Lodge!
Special thanks to Cedar River Pizza Co, The Pub on the Cedar, Carrie Chapman Catt Girlhood Home, and Charles City Chamber for hosting us! All thoughts and opinions are 100% and my own. For full details, please see the Disclosure Tab.
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WATERMELON HARD CIDER?! Oh, I’m 100% sold. I’ve never heard of such a thing, but it sounds so awesome.
It was a hybrid of watermelon and apple, but was smoother and sweeter (without being too sweet) then a straight apple cider.
Pizza is my all time favorite food! And that pizza looks delicious! I’ve never been to Iowa but if I do get there I’ll definitely be checking out these places!
This pizza (especially the Mediterranean) was some of the best I’ve ever had! Iowa is full of all sorts of great food!!
I can finally say “ I’ve been here” I adore Iowa first of all. And how lucky to read a post about a place I have been. I will say it’s been many moons but thank you for being me back. I had such a great experience iowians are such great folk!
Aw, thank you! I think Iowans are pretty great, but always good to hear it from somewhere else! Charles City is kind of in my “backyard” and it’s easy to forget those places! It’s such a fantastic community! Thanks for stopping by!
First Crush sounds amazing. I am always looking for new gluten free options and watermelon and apple cider sounds gluten free all the way. Don’t crush me and tell me it isn’t….
Haha!! I honestly can’t tell you whether or not it is, but it was delicious!!!
Looks like a really wholesome trip! That pizza looks so inviting and I love what they’ve done using sheet music as wallpapers. So creative 🙂 Thank you for sharing!
It was a very well-rounded trip! The music as wallpaper was probably one of highlights! Thanks for stopping by!
I feel like Iowa is one of those underrated states that people dont really know much about. Thanks for sharing more about it!
Absolutely agree!!! We love exploring other places but some of our best finds are right here!!!
The food all looks amazing, and I’m especially intrigued by the eggnog latte. That sounds pretty darn good!
I love Egg Nog lattes and am actually sad you can only get them at Christmas! And those sweet potato tots and the hard cider were top notch!
This sounds like such a fun trip! No trip is complete without lots of good food and drinks….and then of course the gym to make up for it 🙂
Haha! Right?! Definitely need balance!!