Review of Sonny's Bistro by Andy Lyons

Introducing an occasional new voice on Wini's Food Stories: A man with a legendary appetite and a great nose for terrific restaurants.

Hello friends! Have I got a treat for you. Today, I’m introducing an occasional dining column by Andy Lyons, a veteran food photographer in town. Andy’s shot thousands of food photos over the years, many for the Better Homes and Gardens family of books, magazines, etc. He and I often crossed paths in our work at Meredith, and when we did, the conversation invariably turned to subject of local restaurants. I always loved his observations. Not only does he know great food when he sees it (!), he adores the Des Moines food scene and has a lot to say about it.

And I mean a lot! I originally invited Andy to write a roundup of five of his favorite restaurants, and he gave me about 2,000 words on just one restaurant! So that idea blossomed into having him write up some of his faves in separate columns for the full Andy effect.

By the way, dude can write—he’s a journalist by training, though he breaks the rules in very fun ways. You’ll see!

Here’s Andy’s first column. Note that these occasional …