About Blue Tomato Kitchen

Mongolia, Nepal, Beverly Hills, Belgium, the United Kingdom, Switzerland. Chef David Baruthio has diced, seared, and spiced in all these places, pausing only for the occasional Michelin nod. In opening Blue Tomato Kitchen with his family, he finally settles in one place for a while, eagerly treating Des Moines–area foodies to his signature brand of French-influenced Italian food.

His cuisine mirrors his Alsace upbringing, but it also reflects a broader influence: that of nature itself. Throughout all his travels, one thing has remained constant, and it is this hallmark fascination with ingredients' origin stories. And so, peering into the restaurant's open kitchen, visitors to Blue Tomato Kitchen see dishes appear from scratch. Chef Baruthio and team make pasta by hand, and toss pizza dough high in the air before sliding it into a stone oven. Then, these ingredients come together with local cheese, meat, and produce for a gourmet-yet-casual menu of grilled hanger steak, and prosciutto-laden pizzas, to name just a few.