Your Guide to Authentic Regional Eats
Some call them taverns, others Maid-Rites, but those hungry for loose-meat sandwiches in Ottumwa are more likely to ask for a canteen instead. Canteen Lunch in the Alley has been around since the 1920s, serving up loose-meat sandwiches, rich milkshakes/malts, and homemade pies to hoards of hungry patrons at noon. Walk in the front door and you are instantly face-to-face with a small group of women chatting around the large meat steamer like folks around a fire. Almost as soon as you answer the question of "how many?," sandwiches wrapped tightly in wax paper (no plates here!) are passed across the counter. Try as you may to keep your sandwich contained within the confines of the paper, this is called a loose-meat sandwich for a reason--the bun is heaped with more crumbled ground beef than it can contain. If you still have room after a canteen or two, allow your gaze to wander to the dessert menu board. With nearly as many homemade pie choices (including both creams and fruits) as you have fingers, it can be hard to choose. I tried the strawberry rhubarb on this particular visit and savored every last tartly sweet bite.
