Restaurant located in former Okoboji Grill building
By Pat Shaver
NORTH LIBERTY—Chuck Cathey has worked in food service for most of his career.
He has owned two restaurants, one in Fairfield and another in Agency; he’s worked for Hy- Vee and was the dietary director at the Jefferson County Health Center in Fairfield.
When he moved to the Corridor last year for a job that didn’t end up working out, he was looking for a new venture.
During his time at the Jefferson County Health Center, he worked with a cook, Jeremy Rullman. The two left their jobs there at about the same time and both ended up in the Corridor. They remained in contact and had talked about going into business together.
They reconnected and first focused on starting a food truck business, possibly in Minneapolis.
“We saw this place and the potential was so much more,” he said. “This place came available and we got to talking, and here we are.”
Mr. Cathey and Mr. Rullman, both managing partners of the Rustic Iron Bar & Grill, 1650 Jordan St., North Liberty, opened their restaurant in January. They signed the contract for the building in November and worked on updating the look of the interior, added new equipment and hired a staff before opening on Jan. 28.
“We didn’t want the same thing you can get at the chains. And the location here, oh my gosh, with all of the growth, it’s unreal,” Mr. Cathey said.
Being the first restaurant on Highway 965 when entering North Liberty from the south, as well as future growth and expansion of the area are major benefits to the location, he said.
The Okoboji Grill was open for about 11 months. Mr. Cathey said he had heard the food and service were inconsistent, which could have led to its closing.
Opening a new restaurant in the building where the previous one failed was a major concern, he said.
“That was my biggest fear,” he said. “You don’t want to be known as the one that failed.”
They have focused on making sure everything is consistent and have hired a general manager who will help make that happen.
Mr. Cathey said, they have been busy Thursday through Sunday since opening, with wait times on Friday and Saturday nights.
“We haven’t done any advertising. We’re doing the volume we projected we’d be doing two months down the road,” Mr. Cathey said. “We just opened the door, that’s all we did.”
The restaurant can seat about 300 people and has 38 full-time and part-time employees.
“We don’t have a set theme, we just tried to put things on the menu that both of us like to eat, but we both like different things,” Mr. Cathey said. “You have to offer something for everyone.”
The menu features build-your-own burgers and pasta dishes, sandwiches such as the Cuban Panini with braised pork loin, the Reuben with pastrami, the Rustic Iron salad with spinach, dried cranberries, feta cheese and maple-glazed walnuts, and barbecue smoked ribs. The burgers are made with Iowa Angus beef. The bar features local beers and Iowa wines.
Mr. Cathey said they hope to patent, bottle and sell the restaurant’s homemade sauces and rubs. They plan to add an outdoor seating area and are still considering the food truck idea.
Mr. Cathey and his wife, Linda, own the corporation, Cathey/Rullman Restaurants, LLC. When he’s ready to retire, Mr. Cathey plans to hand ownership over to Mr. Rullman.
The Rustic Iron
www.rustic-iron.com
1650 Jordan St., North Liberty
(319) 626-6080
Kitchen hours: 11 a.m.-9 p.m.
Lounge hours: 11 a.m.-10 p.m.
