Since she was a kid, Karen Cabrera has been serving restaurant customers in West Liberty.
Now in her 50’s, she plans to continue that phase of her life as the owner of La Chiva Loka II with her husband, Jose, as they’ve remodeled and reopened the Mexican/American restaurant at 1100 N. Columbus Street, across the street from Giri BP, which opened Friday.
“I grew up here,” said Karen, whose mom, Sylvia Sexton, used to run the “Country Cone Factory” and later operated “Cookies,” a second ice cream restaurant across the street. As a 10-year-old and 10th of a dozen children, Karen would come in to help out, waiting on tables and doing whatever needed to be done.
So when her husband, Jose, saw the building for sale earlier this year, the couple decided to open their second Mexican restaurant after taking on the first La Chiva Loka in Riverside, a highly successful 40-table venture they opened in April of 2019.
It took them months to figure out exactly what they wanted to do to the place to update and remodel and they’ve installed a new handicap accessible entrance, flooring, the kitchen, bar area and more, utilizing their talents from a previous construction business the couple had for about 40 years.
“I have a lot of good memories of this place,” says Karen, who said she remembers the soft serve ice cream machine, although it’s something the restaurant today won’t offer. “We just don’t have enough room – but maybe someday,” she said.
Although she’s lived in West Liberty most of her life, the couple moved to Iowa City 11 years ago. The Cabrera’s have three grown children and four grandchildren.
Karen says she likes to work the service end of the business, leaving the cooking and chef duties to her husband of 31 years who she said didn’t know how to cook an egg 30 years ago. “I love waitressing tables and giving customers service,” she said. “I want them to have a great experience.”
Not only might customers gain a great experience, but also the restaurant’s menu offers a wide variety of items, including serving a “minimal Hispanic-type breakfast” on weekends, when La Chiva Loka will be open from 9 a.m.-9 p.m. on Saturdays and from 9 a.m.-4 p.m. on Sundays. Closed on Monday, the restaurant is open from 11 a.m.- 9 p.m. weekdays.
Jose may have started with learning how to cook an egg, but Karen says he takes cooking very seriously and has become one of the best chefs around, including creating many of his own dishes. “He’ll watch a You Tube video on a recipe, refine it and make it his own,” says Karen, noting his specialty is soups like Menudo and Birria.
She said the restaurant is different from others in the area because it also offers Mexican seafood dishes that might include shrimp, scallops or octopus. Many of the traditional dishes also have their own unique spin.
Karen says there is no lunch menu, but there will be daily specials. Karen said every dish is made from scratch and noted there is no “warmers,” like some restaurants like to use.
La Chiva Loka means “The Crazy Goat” in Spanish and with Jose growing up in Spain, the couple have adopted the theme and even had a Mexican artist paint their logo. The Cabrera’s say they love Mexico and visit their daughter there quite often.
The restaurant is small, with just eight tables of four, so come early or call ahead at 319-627-2482 for carryout orders.