Illinois
New Berlin Mexican restaurant opens first Springfield location
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SPRINGFIELD – A New Berlin Mexican restaurant has opened their first Springfield location on Wabash Avenue where another Mexican restaurant recently closed.
Cuatro Amigos has opened in the space of El Arriero at 4233 Wabash Ave. The restaurant, which translates to four friends in English, is a Mexican bar and grill.
The New Berlin location at 14758 Old Route 54 has been a staple on the road to Springfield for several years now, but owner of Cuatro Amigos, Joseluis Elorza, posted to social media plans in early January to open the restaurant’s first Springfield location.
The restaurant officially opened its Springfield doors on Jan. 26 in a soft opening, serving up all the classics from the New Berlin location, with a handful of new experimental menu options.
“It’s all the same food and menu with just a couple, four to six new dishes,” Elorza said about the opening. “It’s good, I’m happy (about it.)”
Menu options include sizzling steak and shrimp fajitas, coctel de camaron, a cooked shrimp cocktail with tomato sauce mixed with pico de gallo and avocado to chicken and cheese dishes served over tortillas and rice.
Elorza shared he had a large customer base located in Springfield who would drive out to New Berlin for the food, so when El Arriero closed on Nov. 1, the owner reached out to him about the space opening up.
Following the soft opening, business hours are 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. seven days a week. A grand opening with a ribbon cutting will be held closer to March, Elorza said.
“I’m just waiting for the liquor license,” Elorza said. “We can do that in March … when I get the liquor license I will post the grand opening the same weekend.”
Cuatro Amigos in New Berlin is open 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily except for Fridays and Saturdays when the restaurant is open until 10 p.m.
Claire Grant writes about business, growth and development and other news topics for The State Journal-Register. She can be reached at CLGrant@usatodayco.com; and on X (Formerly known as Twitter): @Claire_Granted