Courtlin Visits a Popular New Restaurant in Cedar Rapids [PHOTOS]

Say what you want about Cedar Rapids, but our restaurant game is on point! There are so many great local restaurants to choose from here, but there is always room for something new and different. That's why I was excited to find out that 30hop was making its way to our city.

If you're not familiar with the restaurant, 30hop opened up their first location in Coralville about four years ago. They're known for their craft beer selection, their interesting menu options, and, of course, their awesome rooftop. When Axel's closed earlier this year, lots of people were wondering what would take over the building with the giant rooftop patio at 951 Blairs Ferry Rd NE. I believe they have found the perfect fit.

Last night I visited the brand new 30hop, which officially opened a few weeks ago. I figured if we went on a Wednesday night after 7, we would avoid the dinner rush. We were wrong! When we arrived at about 7:20, we were told there was a 45-minute wait for a table. Now, I know we are spoiled here in Cedar Rapids because we rarely have to wait to be seated at a restaurant, but the wait wasn't that bad. Why? Because while you're waiting for your seat, you can head up to the bar on the rooftop patio and enjoy a beer. There is no food served on the rooftop, but there are plenty of seats and tables. Plus, 30hop will TEXT you when your table is ready, so you don't have to carry around one of those annoying buzzers or listen for your name to be called. There's even an easy way to see how many people are ahead of you, which is pretty awesome.

Now, let's get to the FOOD. For our appetizers, we went with the buffalo cauliflower, edamame, and the pretzel bites. They were all AMAZING, but the buffalo cauliflower is my new favorite thing.

For my main course, I went with the 50/50 Burger, at the recommendation of our server. The patty was infused with bacon!

The veggie mac and the bacon corn chowder were also very popular items at our table.

Overall, we had a great first experience at the new location. Our server was awesome, the food was really good, and we absolutely loved the rooftop patio. Yeah, we had to wait a bit since the place was packed, but that's to be expected from a brand new restaurant. I'll definitely be back soon!