Get a Look Inside a Unique New Downtown Cedar Rapids Restaurant

Meow!

Just a couple of weeks ago, the Fun Not Fancy Restaurant Group opened a brand new restaurant in Downtown Cedar Rapids. Located at 209 3rd St SE in the former home of The Lost Cuban, Taco Gato is a cool new eatery with a very unique menu. It's not definitely not your typical Mexican restaurant.

The first thing I noticed when I walked into Taco Gato for the first time was just how small the space is. I had never been into The Lost Cuban, so I wasn't sure what to expect. That being said, the small space is packed with all sorts of interesting decor. There are bright yellow walls, colorful umbrellas lined up across the ceiling, unique light fixtures, stained glass windows, rows of afghans, and framed Lucha Libre masks up on the wall. There are cool little details all over the place. We ended up eating at the bar directly under an enormous tumbleweed!

Not only is the decor awesome at Taco Gato, but the food is too! The menu is fairly small, but it offers a variety of items that you've probably never tried before. I ordered a blueberry margarita and my friends and I shared the 'Potato Coins' and the dip appetizer to start. The queso, guacamole, and salsa were all delicious, and the margarita was very strong (but so good!). For my main course, I ended up choosing the fried bone-in pork chop served with gravy, beans, and rice. My friends went with the 'Almost Shrimp & Grits,' the Fried Jalapeno Mac & Cheese, and the Sweet Potato Taco Bento Box. The Bento Box came with two tacos, beans, rice, and fried edamame with chipotle dressing. Unfortunately, we were all too full to try any of the desserts. We actually ended up taking half our meals home!

Overall, I really enjoyed my first visit to Taco Gato. The decor, the drinks, the food, the service... everything was great! I can't wait to go back and try more of the menu. Here our some photos from our experience: