Capri cuts the ribbon on Loves Park restaurant, culminating effort to reopen after fire

June 16, 2025|By Kevin Haas|In Eat & Drink, News, Rock River Current, 815 News, Business, Loves Park, Top Stories, Restaurants, Featured

Vito Grisanzio cuts the ribbon Monday, June 16, 2025, on the new Capri Restaurant at 6480 E. Riverside Blvd. in Loves Park. (Photo by Kevin Haas/Rock River Current)

By Kevin Haas
Rock River Current
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LOVES PARK — The Grisanzio family on Monday cut the ribbon on the new Capri Restaurant, the culmination of more than two-and-a-half years of work to rebuild the local staple after its original location in downtown Rockford was damaged in a fire.

The new dine-in restaurant, horseshoe bar and outdoor patio at 6480 E. Riverside Blvd. welcomed its first guests a day earlier for Father’s Day. Capri and The Parks Chamber of Commerce held a ribbon-cutting Monday to celebrate the completion of the new space before it opens for its regular hours on Tuesday.

“I am in complete awe of the transformation of this property,” said Julie Altenbernd, chairwoman of The Parks Chamber board. “It was a gas station before and now look at it, it’s probably one of the most stunning restaurants in Rockford here at this point.”

It’s the second ribbon-cutting in about nine months that Capri has had on the site. It opened for carryout service on Sept. 28 in Loves Park as it completed the buildout of the new bar and dining space.

The new space keeps much of the look and feel you’ll remember from the location at 313 E. State St. in downtown Rockford, where Capri started in 1963.

“There’s little details in there that people are recognizing that give a nod to downtown, but with a fresh look,” said Vito Grisanzio Jr., a second-generation owner of the family business. “We don’t point them out, but when they see them and point them out to us that’s kind of cool.”

People start to sit around the bar at Capri Restaurant on Monday, June 16, 2025, after a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the new restaurant in Loves Park. (Photo by Kevin Haas/Rock River Current)

Several of the murals from the restaurant, such as the Roman Empire and grotto paintings by Gene Hall, have been transferred to the new location. Some of those paintings still bear burn marks or smoke damage from the fire.

There are also the original signs, arched stained glass windows, hanging ceiling lights, burgundy booths and tables that have been cleaned or refurbished and brought to Loves Park.

“My favorite thing is the booths from the old Capri. I noticed them right away and I love the vintage feel of that,” Altenbernd said.

Grisanzio Jr. said seeing customers return to the space Sunday was a welcome treat for the family, which is looking forward to getting back into its normal restaurant routine now that construction is complete.

“I was walking through the dining room and seeing a lot of familiar faces and hearing a lot of people saying good things. It’s good to get that positive feedback,” he said. “It validates some of the hard work.”

Choosing Loves Park

The family had initially aimed at rebuilding its original location after the Oct. 27, 2022, fire. However, family members said the cost of rebuilding exceeded what the property would be worth once those renovations were made.

A combination of costs, timing and frustration over delays and disagreements with the city led it to rebuild in Loves Park.

In Loves Park, the city also helped incentivize Capri’s work with the creation of a new business development district, which levies a 1% sales tax on properties within its boundaries along Riverside Boulevard. That money can then be put toward improvement projects in the district.

Tonight, aldermen will vote on a redevelopment deal with the Grisanzio family that will provide a rebate of 10% of those sales taxes for a maximum of $1 million. A separate agreement under consideration would provide the property owner, DJNK Holdings, with a 5% sales tax rebate up to $500,000.

(Update: Aldermen voted unanimously to approve the tax rebates.)

The Rev. David Beauvais stands with the Grisanzio family on Monday, June 16, 2025, as he prepares to bless the new Capri Restaurant in Loves Park. (Photo by Kevin Haas/Rock River Current)

City officials say that incentive was worthwhile to turn a former gas station, which DJNK Holdings purchased for $1.125 million for Capri in November 2023, into a restaurant that draws people to the city.

“You took what I thought was an eyesore and turned it into probably the best-looking restaurant not just in Loves Park but the whole community,” Loves Park Mayor Greg Jury said during the ribbon-cutting ceremony. “I’m looking forward to all the turnout here. I think we might need traffic control.”

Rockford future

The Loves Park restaurant also gives the family some advantages, such as the new patio that can connect with an interior dining room to host indoor-outdoor events such as weddings and graduation parties. It also has parking advantages over downtown Rockford, Grisanzio Jr. said.

The original Capri in downtown was listed for sale for $2.1 million in December.

However, the family still hopes to make use of the property one day.

“We’d like to do something down the road that serves as an extension of this,” Grisanzio Jr. said. “Certainly we have to be on our feet to be able to begin something.”