ROCKFORD, Ill. (Rockford News First) – A Rockford-area Beef-a-Roo could reopen before the end of the year, two local business owners say.
Tom and Jerry’s owner Robert Grottke and Candy Cloud owner Alex Edwards tell Rockford News First they now control the former Highcrest Beef-a-Roo location at 1670 N. Alpine Road.
“We stuck to our guns that we want Rockford food, Rockford ran and we want to make the decisions locally and that’s where we stand. We were we were not budging on that because we think that’s the right thing to do. We were able to accomplish that and that’s our focus,” said Grottke.
The two have spent months working to revive Beef-a-Roo after several locations closed this summer.
Edwards said their goal throughout the process centered on bringing the brand back in a way that fits the Rockford community.
“We’re going to be the operators. We’re going to be able to run it the way it needs to be done for the Rockford area, bring the right food back and, you know, we got a lot of work to do. We’re hoping to do the brand justice ultimately, and that’s our main focus and goal is to do it right for the Rockford area,” said Edwards.
Grottke and Edwards need to hire employees, clean and refresh the restaurant and secure the products they want to serve. Grottke said even sourcing the right potatoes for Beef-a-Roo’s fries could affect the timeline.
The pair does not yet have a date on when the restaurant could reopen.
In August, the owners announced they hit a roadblock when a Canadian company claimed to own Beef-a-Roo’s intellectual property.
Grottke said the North Alpine building has a different owner than the other seven locations, which allowed that agreement to move forward faster.
The two said they are negotiating the other seven, but they do not want to rush into an agreement that could create financial problems later. They say their ultimate goal is to bring back all eight Rockford-area Beef-a-Roo locations.
“If we take a swallow a pill on a bad economical deal, it’s going to be, we’ll be all right for a year or two, but we could end up in the same situation. We’re really trying to avoid that. So, we’re in it for the long haul,” said Edwards.
Grottke and Edwards said community support helped keep them moving through months of negotiations and setbacks.
“When we thought back to some of the comments where you read where people are like sharing stories of big life events that occurred at Beef-a-Roo and that they’re not going to be able to go back in those restaurants, that’s what kind of kept me and Bob fueled throughout the process is we have that opportunity to bring that back for here,” said Edwards.
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Dining and Cooking