Taco Libre tequila bar and street taco restaurant opens in downtown Rockford
By Kevin Haas
Rock River Current
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ROCKFORD — Taco Libre, a tequila bar and street taco restaurant, has opened for business in the former Vintage 501 space in downtown.
The restaurant at 501 E. State St. quietly opened its doors on Friday and plans to make a formal opening announcement today. It serves a variety of street tacos with chicken, beef and carnitas, as well as some original recipes. There are also margaritas on draft and a selection of tequila, mezcal and whiskey.
“It’s exciting to start a new chapter and I can’t wait to see what the future holds,” owner Matt Idzikowski said. “New places bring on new challenges, and I’m excited to take on those challenges.”
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Taco Libre is designed to have a laid-back bar atmosphere with dart boards and pinball games. Video gambling will be added in the future.
“It’s supposed to be a place you can come and drink huge margaritas and just enjoy life a little bit,” Idzikowski said. “It’s more of a bar with dynamite food, as opposed to Vintage as more of a restaurant with a bar.”
Vintage 501 closed in mid-August after 12 years in business. Idzikowski then revamped the space for the new brand. Part of the new look includes garage doors that can be pulled up for an open-air feel during warmer weather months.
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Idzikowski also owns Prime Italian Steakhouse, 6565 Lexus Drive, and the You’re Bacon Me Crazy food truck. He’s a majority owner of Omakase, about a block west of Taco Libre at 223 E. State St.
About | Taco Libre
Where: 501 E. State St., Rockford
Hours: 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Monday through Thursday; 11 a.m. to midnight Friday and Saturday
Phone: 815-329-6107
On the web: tacolibrerockford.com
On social: facebook.com/tacolibrerockford
This article is by Kevin Haas. Email him at khaas@rockrivercurrent.com or follow him on X at @KevinMHaas or Instagram @thekevinhaas and Threads @thekevinhaas
