El Bajio expanding with second location

Aug. 23, 2022 6:15 am

CEDAR RAPIDS — Several years after it opened at 555 Gateway Place SW, El Bajio Mexican Restaurant is expanding with a second location in Cedar Rapids.

This molcajete, shown at El Bajio in southwest Cedar Rapids in 2016, features a mixture of carne asada, adobada (marinated pork), chicken, shrimp, queso fresco, nopales (cactus), avocado, jalapeno, and salsa de molacjete. Side dishes include tortillas, beans and rice. The restaurant's second location is slated to open in September in northeast Cedar Rapids. (The Gazette)

Owner Javier Garcia and management hope to open by early September, according to general manager Barb Nichols.

The new location at 1140 Blairs Ferry Rd. NE will feature more entertainment with a bar-forward concept, Nichols said. Most of the menu will carry over from its original location, but the second location also will feature more burgers and food to fit the new atmosphere.

El Bajio first secured a permit from the City of Cedar Rapids in April to finish building out its new location.

The restaurant’s completion makes it the last of three tenants to move into the new building, after Dunn Brothers Coffee and The Good Feet Store.

Comments: (319) 398-8340; elijah.decious@thegazette.com