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The menu offerings range from appetizers such as calamari and buffalo wings, to full main courses like filet mignon. There is a generous selection of salds, soups and sandwiches as well.

I opted for the Pasta Messina: Gulf shrimp in white wine sauce with tomatoes, garlic, onions and herbs. The pasta, unfortunately, was cooked incorrectly: part of it was stuck in a gluey lump. The sauce as excellent, but it deserved better pasta to showcase it. The bread was piping hot and delicious. Instead of butter, you're offered olive oil mixed with fresk ground pepper and Parmesan cheese - very tasty! There seemed to be a good beer and wine selection. I had to stick with tonic water as I was going out that evening for our photography walk.

Main dish and beverage was well under $20. Service was friendly and efficient; a server refilled my beverage without even asking if I'd wanted a second drink....at no charge. My only remark other than the gluey pasta was that the music level tends to be a bit loud. Undoubtedly they cater to the college crowd, but if you want a quiet romantic spot for dinner, this wouldn't be it.

The menu offers appetizers (nachos, buffalo wings); soups; salds; burgers; and pastas. Breakfast is served on Saturdays and Sundays. I had the Turkey BLT special, which was grilled turkey on a fresh bun, topped with bacon, lettuce and tomato. A first: the mayo was on the side, which I much appreciated. My classmate had the VeggieCheez Burger, which is a burger topped with your choice of cheese, mushrooms, green pepper, sprouts and guacamole. Rene decided to omit the guacamole; it seemed an odd addition to the burger. The service was freiendly, and again, refills were given before we even had a chance to ask for them. Price was about $12 each, including tax and tip.

On Saturday morning, all weekend attendees are invited to gather for breakfast before the orientation. It turned out to be a great time to meet my fellow classmates and find out what had brought others to the workshop. The age range was from 20's on up; and people had come from all over the USA (and even Europe!) to attend.

During orientation, I learned a bit more about the history of the workshop. This was the 15th summer it was offered. In its history, enough Pulitzer Prize-winning authors have walked through its doors to make up a football team.

I'm not quite sure how the "Focus on Photos" workshop that I selected came to be included in a writing festival, but I was glad it was! Michael Lemberger was my instructor, and he's had an award-winning career in photography; primarily newspaper photography. He was a great instructor, and obviously enjoyed his students as much as we enjoyed him. He and his wife (also teaching at the Festival) graciously gave up their Saturday evening to take us for an evening walk through campus and along the river so we could do some night photography.

Housing is available to participants on campus at the dormitory; some of these accomodations even offer full room and board. There is also a hotel on campus, called the Iowa House Hotel, where participants can stay, as well other hotels in Iowa City.

Class size is limited to twelve participants, which enables students time to spend one on one with their instructor. Depending on your course, you will spend at least 8 hours of the weekend in class, as well as possibly having assignments to complete outside of class.

In case anyone is interested, they do offer a travel writing workshop; this year I believe it was a week-long workshop.