New custard, burger restaurant coming to northeast Cedar Rapids

Demolition began this week in preparation for construction of a new restaurant in northeast Cedar Rapids.

Freddy's Frozen Custard and Steakburgers will open in the spring of 2015 at 2745 Blairs Ferry Rd. NE. The Wichita, Kan.-based restaurant chain offers a variety of menu items including lean-beef steakburgers, Vienna Beef hot dogs and shoestring fries as well as freshly churned, chocolate or vanilla frozen custard.

Crews are demolishing a building that formerly housed Metro Grill and reconstruction will begin early next month. The newly constructed, free-standing building will feature indoor seating, patio dining and drive-thru service.

Freddy's Frozen Custard and Steakburgers plans to hire a crew of approximately 80 people. The Cedar Rapids location will be Freddy's second in Iowa, joining a location in Council Bluffs.

Freddy's franchisee Mike Young said the Blairs Ferry Road NE location offers a number of prime features, including interstate proximity and a strong mix of retail and family friendly establishments.

'We believe Freddy's will be a great fit for the area,” Young said. 'Our expansion plans include future locations in Waterloo/Cedar Falls, Des Moines, Iowa City, Dubuque and the Quad Cities.”

Freddy's opened its first location in Wichita, Kan. in 2002. Freddy's founders operate 13 locations, with six in the Wichita metro area, six in the Kansas City market, and one in the Dallas market.

One-hundred and fourteen franchise units are located in 23 states from California to Pennsylvania, Virginia and down the East Coast to Florida.