The Top Cedar Rapids Area Restaurants in 2026 From CommunityVotes

The website CommunityVotes has posted all of their winning Cedar Rapids businesses for 2026! Let's take a look at some of the honorees in the Food and Drink categories.

Before we get into this year's winners, Here's a quick rundown of how CommunityVotes works:

• Stage 1: Members of the community can nominate their favorite local businesses during the 'Nomination Period,' which runs from mid-December through mid-April (you can submit nominations in each category once per day during the Nomination Period)
• Stage 2: The businesses in each category that received the most nominations are selected as finalists, and the public is able to vote on their favorites during the 'Voting Period' which runs from mid-April to mid-May (you are limited to one vote per finalist in each category during the Voting Period)
• Stage 3: The winners are announced in May, and the rankings are:
  • Platinum (1st place - the most votes)
  • Gold (2nd place)
  • Silver (3rd place)
  • Bronze (4th place)
  • Other finalists are listed as "Top Pick"

A quick note: I'm not sure how much oversight this contest has, but there are a few noticeable errors. For example, some of the businesses that won are listed under two different names (like Need Pizza in first and Need Pizzeria in second in the Pizza category) and some businesses are no longer open (Bari Italian). But, if you want to read more about the terms and conditions of the contest, you can click HERE.

Here are the 2026 platinum and gold winners in some of the Food and Drink categories from CommunityVotes:

All Restaurants

• Rio Burritos, Cedar Rapids
• Salsa Guy Cafe, Cedar Rapids
• Tornado's Grub and Pub, Cedar Rapids

Asian Restaurants

• Mandarin Spice, Marion
• Anh's Bread Therapy, Cedar Rapids

Bakeries

• The Cheesecake Lady (no storefront)
• Main Street Bakery and Cafe, Keystone

BBQ Restaurants

• CR Midnight Smoker BBQ, Cedar Rapids
• Willie Ray's Q Shack, Cedar Rapids

Breakfast Restaurant

• Lucky's on 16th, Cedar Rapids
• Oscar's Restaurant, Hiawatha
• Morning Story, Marion

Brunch

• The Pedaler's Fork, Cedar Rapids
• Granite City Food & Brewery, Cedar Rapids
• Lucky's on 16th, Cedar Rapids

Burgers

• Tornado's Grub and Pub, Cedar Rapids
• Starlite Room, Cedar Rapids

Cafes/Coffee Shops

• Cafe St. Pio, Cedar Rapids
• Grind Coffee, Fairfax
• Anh's Bread Therapy, Cedar Rapids
• Uptown Coffee Co., Marion & Cedar Rapids

Fine Dining

• Cobble Hill, Cedar Rapids
• The Class Act Restaurant, Cedar Rapids

Food Trucks

• O's Grill
• Willie Ray's Q Shack
• The Street Food Fighter

Fries

• Frydae, Marion
• Tornado's Grub and Pub, Cedar Rapids

Ice Cream

• Dan & Debbie's Creamery, Ely
• The Freeze, Marion

Indian Restaurants

• Delhicacy, Cedar Rapids

Japanese Restaurants

• Oyama Sushi & Japanese Steakhouse, Cedar Rapids
• Coyle's Hibachi Chef, Cedar Rapids

Mexican Restaurants

• Hacienda Las Glorias, Cedar Rapids
• Rio Burritos, Cedar Rapids

Middle Eastern Restaurants

• O's Grill, Cedar Rapids
• Pita'z Mediterranean and American Cuisine, Hiawatha
• Vytyl (market), Cedar Rapids

Pasta

• Napoli's Italian Restaurant, Cedar Rapids & Marion
• Via Sofia's, Cedar Rapids
• Biaggi's Ristorante Italiano, Cedar Rapids

Pizza

• Need Pizza, Cedar Rapids
• Zoey's Pizzeria, Marion

Sushi

• Sushi House, Cedar Rapids
• Oyama Sushi & Japanese Steakhouse, Cedar Rapids

Vietnamese Restaurants

• Yummy Banh Mi, Hiawatha
• Mai Pho, Cedar Rapids

You can check out the CommunityVotes winners for ALL the 2026 categories HERE.

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READ MORE: Eastern Iowa’s Highest-Rated Ice Cream Shops [GALLERY]