BBQ Restaurant Moves Into Old Cajun Jack's Location in Elizabeth

On my ride back to my father's house, I always found my eyes catching Cajun Jack's on Highway 20 in Elizabeth, IL. It was a colorful, Cajun-themed restaurant with gator statues and imagery fixed all over the property. Alas, after the building sat dormant following Cajun Jack's closure in 2024, it's about to reopen as a new barbeque restaurant for the area.

Driving back to Dubuque yesterday afternoon, I noticed a plethora of flags waving in the wind outside that very location, at 1336 US Highway 20 West. Signage around the building boasted that Eager Beaver BBQ was coming soon. Turns out, "soon" is actually today (May 26th)!

A New BBQ Joint Comes to Elizabeth, IL:

Outside quaint little downtown Elizabeth sits Eager Beaver BBQ, "the ultimate BBQ lodge," according to their Facebook page. The new owners showed love to their team, who has been "working their dam tails off" to transform this massive space into a welcoming new BBQ restaurant for the community:

The hard hats are gone, the dust has settled, and our new dam is finally built. We’re firing up the smoker and bringing you a loaded menu packed with our signature smoked meats, Gourmet Hand-Tossed Pizza, stacked sandwiches, and killer desserts. It almost killed us, but we built a dam good restaurant - per Eager Beaver BBQ's Facebook page

Eager Beaver BBQ Opens on May 26th:

Eager Beaver BBQ opens today (May 26th) at 11am. As of this writing, their official website still bills a countdown clock as opposed to any photos or menus, but that is likely to come in very short order. On their Facebook page, you can find mentions of Texas-style brisket, ribs, and pulled pork, as well as teaser photos mentioning various sauces, including: "Mango Beaver Fever," "Sloppy Beaver," and a pineapple brown sugar BBQ sauce known as "Lei Beaver." When Catherine and I have date night there very soon, I'm torn between "Lei Beaver" and "Beaver Blastin'," their "hot house moppin' BBQ sauce."

Another post on their Facebook page teases a full bar, live music, and year-round operation.

Time will tell what Eager Beaver BBQ has to offer Elizabeth and the surrounding Tri-State area. In the meantime, stay up to date with the restaurant on their website and their Facebook page.