CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa — Sugarfire Smoke House is crossing state lines again, bringing its barbecue empire into Iowa.
Sugarfire will open a restaurant in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, in May. The restaurant will be the 16th Sugarfire location, and first in Iowa. A new location in Dallas was supposed to be the 16th spot, but the Cedar Rapids location is now set to open first.
The bank-building-turned-restaurant will feature an outdoor patio, enough room for 92 diners and a drive-thru, a first for a Sugarfire restaurant.
Work will begin early this month.
Mike Johnson and Charlie Downs of Sugarfire are joining forces with their longtime restaurant insurance provider JD Powers to make the restaurant a reality.
Powers will work with his brother Henry — who operates a small, grass-fed cattle farm — to bring high-quality meat to the new location.
Besides having several locations in the St. Louis area and around Missouri, Sugarfire has restaurants in Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky and Colorado.
