Visiting the Rockford area in 2024? Here are 10 new restaurants and bars to check out
Several new restaurants and bars are expected to join Rockford's hospitality scene in 2024.
Here are 10 that have already opened, are in the process of opening or plan to open later this year.
Disco Chicken
Rockford restauranteur Paul Sletten, who owns the Disco Chicken food truck, is set to open a brick-and-mortar restaurant for the brand this spring at 212 E State St., the former site of 212 Grindhouse and Taco Betty's. It will include the core food truck menu of fried chicken sandwiches, tenders, loaded tots and Bad Humor Ice Cream, another of Sletten's brands.
The Music Box
Musical couple Miles Nielsen and Kelly Steward and partners are planning to open The Music Box at 218 E. State St., in downtown Rockford by Valentine's Day. The venue is expected to draw local, regional and national acts.
Sheila's Daiquiri Lounge
Sheila's Daiquiri Lounge is coming to the downtown corner of West State and South Main streets this year. The club will feature a full selection of daiquiris, live music and food in the space formerly occupied by Kryptonite Bar and the Capital House restaurant. Owners Sheila and Derek Black hope to open by Valentine's Day, March 1 at the latest.
Buona Beef/The Original Rainbow Cone
Construction is on schedule at the corner of East Riverside Boulevard and Galleria Drive in Loves Park on a two-unit restaurant that will house Buona Beef and The Original Rainbow Cone, two popular Chicago-area chains. They're expected to open sometime this year.
Capri Restaurant
The owners of Capri plan to have their carryout operation up and running early this year at 6480 E. Riverside Blvd., as they renovate the former Shell station to serve as the Italian eatery's new location. The restaurant decided to move to Loves Park in 2023, a year after a fire gutted its downtown establishment, where it operated for 60 years.
27 ALUNA
On Jan. 3, restaurant owner Patrick Alberto announced plans to turn downtown Rockford's Octane into 27 Aluna, which will primarily focus on Filipino cuisine. Alberto, who was raised in Manila, Philippines, was head chef at Octane in 2019 when he bought the restaurant and began introducing Filipino dishes to the menu. New hours and daily Filipino brunch starts Jan. 10.
The Olive Branch at Carlson Ice Arena
With The Olive Branch food truck closed for winter, owners Bob and Michelle Christidis have opened their first physical location inside the Carlson Ice Arena, 4150 N. Perryville Road, Loves Park.
Velvet Robot Coffee Lab Roscoe
Owner Justin Carner announced last November that he was moving his Velvet Robot downtown Rockford location to Roscoe while keeping his location at 1292 S. Alpine Road open. Carner hopes to be up and running at 10514 Main St. in Roscoe by the end of January.
Ripe Life Juice Company
Founded in 2021 inside Stewart Square in downtown Rockford, Ripe Life Juice Co. moved a few blocks east to 333 E. State St. late last year and is expected to reopen by mid-January. The menu includes fresh juices and smoothies.
Culture Crunch
Though not a restaurant, Culture Crunch is a specialty grocery store that sells exotic snacks at 5846 E. State St. in Rockford and is expected to open this year. The store will sell snack foods from Japan, Thailand, Germany and other countries.
Jim Hagerty covers business, growth and development and other general news topics for the Rockford Register Star. Email him at jhagerty@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Rockford Register Star: New Rockford-area bars, eateries, on tap in new year
