Entry No. 41 — the Des Moines file — filed under: speakeasy
Cellar 626
“no sign, no street presence, and no reason to exist — except that it absolutely does”
Tucked behind the beer cooler at Cyclone Liquors on Lincoln Way, Cellar 626 has no sign, no street presence, and no reason to exist — except that it absolutely does. You walk through a working cooler door to find a 30-seat bar where the drinks are named after liquor store employees and the Smoked Stan (a smoke-finished Old Fashioned) is the kind of thing you'll describe to people for years. It started in 2015 when Cyclone Liquors needed a bigger tasting room and ended up accidentally inventing one of Iowa's best bars. Word has gotten out just enough to earn a USA Today "coolest bar in the state" nod and a 4.5-star Yelp rating — but it's still a secret to most of central Iowa, and there's still no sign to tip off the uninitiated.
The move: Walk into Cyclone Liquors like you're buying wine, drift past the craft beer wall, and slip through the cooler door in back — then order something off the house cocktail list and let your date figure out how you knew where to go.
📍 Before you go This is the back room of Cyclone Liquors, a strip-mall package store on Lincoln Way in south Ames — there's no separate entrance and no signage, so park in the store lot or grab free street parking, walk in like a normal customer, and head for the cooler door at the rear past the beer wall. It's a small, weekend-evening operation (think Thursday through Saturday nights), so arrive early if you want one of the few seats — walk-ins are welcome, but it fills up. You're a short hop from Iowa State and Campustown, so it folds easily into a longer night out. Confirm the current days and times before making the drive.
- 📍 Ames
- 💸 $$
- ⚡ Up for anything
- 🌗 Indoors
Where: 626 Lincoln Way, Ames, IA 50010
Hours: Added 2026-06-09 — confirm current hours before you go.
Plan a visit & invite your people →
Further reading: Yelp · cellar-626.wheree.com · irock935.com · restaurantji.com
last checked: 2026-06-09