Tuscany Grill closes Mediterranean restaurant in Cedar Rapids
CEDAR RAPIDS — A Mediterranean grill has closed less than two years after it opened. Tuscany Grill, opened June 2025 at 475 Northland Ave. NE, closed suddenly in early November with signs posted to its door. It was owner Juan Morelo’s first venture in the dining scene. After 21 years of working restaurants in Iowa and the Chicago metro, he opened with a menu of kebabs, salads, pasta and sandwiches. His business filled the brief vacancy left by Edison Pub & Eatery, whose owners retired after running that restaurant for about six years. Morelo helped design the Edison menu as it opened. “The personality of a restaurant is very important. The (menu) they had was very different — pasta, prime rib, sandwiches,” he told The Gazette in 2025. He hoped Tuscany could shift the paradigm to something lighter. With a two-page menu, it offered a Mediterranean focus with a hospitable Midwestern ethos — bacon-wrapped dates, hummus, Tabbouleh with couscous and unique meat seasonings. A reason for the restaurant’s abrupt closure has not been articulated.
