The first order one longtime fan placed at the revived Beef-a-Roo on Lexus Drive was a side of onion rings and an Andes mint milkshake. He told Rock River Current that his family went there when he was a kid, and that the closing had made him sad. The owners planned a quiet soft opening at 6593 Lexus Drive early that week before the Oct. 29 ribbon-cutting with the Greater Rockford Chamber of Commerce. Word got out, and customers came anyway.
The new owners did not plan for Lexus Drive to open first. Their first signed agreement was for the restaurant at North Alpine and Highcrest roads, and in September November was the target for that store. By the time all eight sites were secured, the owners were saying each building needed a different amount of work. If you want to know when your Beef-a-Roo will reopen, the building's repairs matter more than its place in the deal timeline.
Eight Restaurants Closed in Two Days
The shutdown happened fast. On July 1, 2026, some Rockford-area Beef-a-Roos closed early or switched to drive-thru only, and by July 2 all eight local restaurants had closed. The Freeport location stayed open because it is independently owned. Elysian Capital, a Dallas-based private-equity firm, had owned the brand since 2019.
At first the company called it temporary. MyStateline reported that an email to employees said the money needed to run payroll had not been released, and every company location would stay closed until that was fixed. On July 7 a companywide layoff notice cited "severe financial constraints," and corporate-owned stores across the country closed.
This was a brand that started in Rockford in 1967. All eight of its local restaurants closed in one week.
The Deal That Came First
The comeback grew out of a Machesney Park business connection. Bob Grottke owns the four Tom & Jerry's restaurants in the area. Alex and Paityn Edwards founded Candy Cloud, which opened its first drive-thru in June on West Lane Road, just south of Tom & Jerry's. Candy Cloud had bought land from Tom & Jerry's, and the two businesses started working together from there.
By July 15, Grottke was negotiating with Beef-a-Roo's ownership, landlords and vendors to take over the eight local restaurants. He told Rock River Current that his goal was to save the local brand, not to buy the out-of-state intellectual property.
The rights came in one building at a time:
- Sept. 16: an agreement to reopen and run 1680 N. Alpine Road independently. That site went first because it was the only one of the eight with a separate building owner, Greschler Rockford LLC, and it was the first place a lease was signed.
- Oct. 2: rights to Lexus Drive, Rockrose Court and East Riverside, plus the hiring of former Beef-a-Roo CEO Matt Riddle to manage the area restaurants.
- Oct. 23: all eight local locations secured, and Oct. 29 set as the Lexus Drive reopening date.
North Alpine's agreement came 16 days before the Lexus Drive rights. In September, Edwards told Rock River Current the target was November, and said there "could be some unexpected roadblocks." It is also the newest of the eight buildings. It opened in December 2022.
Why the Paperwork Stopped Setting the Pace
Work started at 1680 N. Alpine Road by late September. It was not a gut rehab. The early-October update described cleanup, cosmetic fixes and flooring repairs.
Once all eight locations were secured, the owners described what came next. "Every location needs a different amount of maintenance and love, so they won't all be ready at the same time," they wrote on Facebook, as Rock River Current reported.
A store secured in October can open before one secured in September if its building needs less work. Lexus Drive was one of three sites added on Oct. 2, and it was serving customers 27 days later.
The new owners also run these as independent restaurants rather than franchises of a national chain. Grottke said that independence lets them focus on bringing back the Beef-a-Roo people remember: "Our number one goal from the very first day to today is to bring back a menu that people respect, that they love and that they remember as best as we can do."
Where Your Beef-a-Roo Falls in Line
On Oct. 29, the owners named the next stores in order. Roscoe's restaurant on Rockrose Court was next. Edwards said a crew was already there getting equipment ready and expected it to open within a week or two. South Alpine and North Alpine were set to follow Roscoe.
| Location | Address | Where it stood in the owners' Oct. 29 sequence |
|---|---|---|
| Rockford, east side | 6593 Lexus Drive | Reopened Oct. 29; open 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily |
| Roscoe | 5109 Rockrose Court | Next in line, expected within a week or two of Oct. 29 |
| Rockford, south | 3401 S. Alpine Road | Named to follow Roscoe |
| Rockford, North Alpine at Highcrest | 1680 N. Alpine Road | Named to follow Roscoe |
| Rockford, west side | 2538 Auburn St. | Part of the full reopening by spring 2027 |
| Loves Park | 6116 N. Second St. | Part of the full reopening by spring 2027 |
| Loves Park | 6380 E. Riverside Blvd. | Part of the full reopening by spring 2027 |
| Machesney Park | 4601 Adamson Lane | Part of the full reopening by spring 2027 |
The owners' goal is four or five restaurants open by the end of 2026 and all eight by spring 2027. "We want to launch these the right way with the right food and the right people working," Edwards told Rock River Current, adding that they want to open quickly so people can get their jobs back. The brand's locations page shows the current status of each restaurant, and it is the quickest way to check yours before you drive over.
What's Back at the Counter
Bringing the food back to how people remember it has been just as deliberate. The owners' changes so far:
- Andes mints are back for dine-in customers.
- The original S. Rosen burger buns have returned.
- The classic salt is made in-house again. Riddle says it will also be sold for home use.
- Cheddar fries were back on reopening day, along with some longtime staff.
The current menu lists an Andes Mint shake next to the cheddar fries, and Pumpkin Squares are on it for the season. Before the reopening, the company had posted updates about bringing back longtime employees, the original buns and the mints.
For now, Lexus Drive is the place to go: 6593 Lexus Drive, 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. every day.
Real estate works the same way. Two houses can be on the same street with the same history, and the one that needs less work will sell first. If you want to know what your home's condition means for its value right now, Popula Properties can show you with real local numbers. Get Your Instant Home Valuation.
