As a personal chef, Alex Smith wanted to cook for more people. She had the idea to start a meal kit service, in addition to catering, in 2015. Thus, Plated Table was born.
“I wanted to help people eat well at home,” Ms. Smith said. She uses local ingredients in all her creations and said she believes in practicing sustainability in the kitchen.
Plated Table started in Bloomington, Indiana, relocating to Iowa City in 2023 and opening a brick and mortar location the same year.
Plated Table’s downtown location is now home to a wine shop and event space at 625 S. Dubuque St., across from Iowa City’s historic train depot.
“Iowa City has welcomed me so warmly and enthusiastically, and it’s exciting to be investing and expanding my business in a community so engaged and supportive of small businesses,” Ms. Smith said. “I feel really welcomed and supported in this community both by customers and industry.”
The new space allows for more opportunity to host in-house events, it can host seated dinners of up to 30 people, or standing room events of up to 60.
In addition to private events, the new space will also be used for ticketed dinners and wine bar pop-ups.
Ms. Smith said she hopes to host a “rosé block party” in the summer, just outside her business – featuring a bouillabaisse french stew as the main course and multiple samplings of rosé wine. She is currently seeking city approval to close down a section of Wright Street for this event.
Plated Table’s new wine shop is home to a growing selection of bottles, chosen to pair with food. Steve Karanikolas is leading the curation of the wine shop.
Mr. Karanikolas, who previously worked at Blue Hill and Union Square Cafe in New York City, is sourcing unique wines that have not been available in Iowa before. The wine shop also provides an evolving selection of small pantry items including tinned fish.
“You can find approachable lovely bottles for a Tuesday night dinner, as well as wines that are themselves the occasion worth opening for,” Ms. Smith said. “We also enjoy stocking a variety of before and after drinks including sherries and amaros.”
Plated Table’s wine shop is open Tuesday through Saturday from 12-7 p.m. Wine bottles are always available for purchase, but by-the-glass events and ticketed dinners are typically announced on the business’s social media accounts. A list of upcoming events can be found at platedtablecatering.com.
