Well, not sure if it's the ownership or just generally crappy service. 1st - We were told the wait would be 10-15 minutes... we waited 25 minutes. Not a big deal, didn't upset us that much. What did upset us... We were seated, then had to wait 20 minutes until our server finally showed up at our table. He showed up, took our order. ONLY 40 minutes later we received our food. 40 minutes! And we didn't see a thing of our server... No "food will be right out," no "sorry, the kitchen is behind." Nothing. When the food arrived it was lukewarm. Yum. After we finished, we had to wait 10-15 mins to receive our bill. Total time in Stella's from the time we entered to the time we exited: 1 hr, 50 mins. Almost 2 hrs just to get lunch. Also of note, the menu has been completely thinned out and only the basic malt/shake flavors are now available. This place used to be really good. Now I would avoid it like the plague.‎

Trying to expand profit margins on low quality food only works if customers enjoy your business. There is nothing to enjoy about the new owners or the way they run their business. It is an exceptionally poor practice to charge customers for coupons and then not honor the agreement.

I am very disappointed in my rating because, if run properly, this would be a very fun place for Des Moines to have. I added a star to my rating because the shakes are still good.

as a former employee of stellas i would stay away from this place

the kitchen is absolutley filthy and they serve old food all the time

My kids LOVE this place! The food is good but nothing spectacular...really we go for the atmosphere and the fun of the juke box and getting a shake "poured" on your head. Although do be careful with that - we did have one incident where my daughter ended up with chocolate milk shake in her hair! All in good fun though, right??

Your typical 50's-style diner - burgers, broasted chicken, fries, and malts. A good family place, but nothing extraordinary.

Cool retro restaurant! If you order a malt you can have it "poured on your head". You just have to go there to believe it! Take your camera!