If that specialty is an Iowa signature, the sense of community at Smitty’s is characteristic of Midwestern hospitality. Ben Smith, part of the third generation of his family to helm the deep fryers, greets customers by name, and the customers often know one another as well. The interlocking relationships are what draw the presidential hopefuls and their aides: They know the voters they greet will pass the word about which candidates came in to other regulars who weren’t there. Those people, in turn, will tell their family and friends.

“These are the places where people meet: This is where you’re going to get the scoop,” said Grant Young, an Iowa Republican strategist who is something of a culinary ambassador for the out-of-staters who move to Iowa to work on campaigns. “It’s where your grandpa has been going forever and they talk about the local high school football team, corn prices and, oh, yeah, I don’t know about this Trump guy.”

Yet just as the Iowa caucuses cannot fairly be covered entirely from Des Moines, Iowa’s food scene cannot be fully appreciated without leaving the capital. Some of its most rewarding restaurants are in smaller places where their identities are closely woven with their communities’.

Mention Decorah, a village in northeastern Iowa near the Minnesota border, to any political type and you’ll hear an enthusiastic “Mabe’s!” That is the beloved pizza parlor that some people will drive miles out of their way to visit if they happen to be in that corner of the state.

Outside of pork tenderloin sandwiches, no other dish may be as closely associated with Iowa as the loose-meat sandwich (think sloppy Joe, sans sauce). The best-known source of this chopped hamburger on a bun is Taylor’s Maid-Rite, whose roots in the central Iowa town of Marshalltown date from the 1920s.

As a major pork producing state, Iowa has its share of barbecue. Hickory Park in Ames, home to Iowa State University, packs them in for its solid ribs.