Opening Up New Restaurants Food+Drink
Riverside Cafe to Bring Mochi Donuts, Korean Corndogs to E.C.
as Quick Wok exits, Riverside Cafe will reopen at the Water Street spot
A longtime takeout spot on Eau Claire’s Water Street, Quick Wok, announced it would be departing from the downtown scene recently, sharing a Facebook post in search of a buyer in January. Less than a month later Quick Wok found its buyer, and on Feb. 16, it was revealed who the Water Street newcomer would be: Riverside Cafe.
Quick Wok’s final day of operation is Friday, Feb. 16, and the turnaround for a new eatery to begin operating is speedy. Riverside Cafe is shooting for a March 1 grand opening, and a familiar face is leading the way: Xavier Yang of Eau Juicy.
Eau Juicy was a cajun seafood boil eatery that opened up shop at 2106 Claremont Ave. – now home to Casa Margarita’s second Eau Claire location – in the fall of 2021. After about one year, Eau Juicy closed its doors at the end of September 2022, though it found new life less than two hours south of Eau Claire in La Crosse.
Yang reopened Eau Juicy in La Crosse last June to great success, and soon after began offering mochi donuts, Korean corndogs, and a variety of drinks as Sweet Haus in La Crosse. Riverside Cafe will be a sister location to Sweet Haus, also offering refreshing lemonade fizz drinks and unique treats.
Korean corndogs are often hot dogs or mozzarella cheese covered in a batter and topped with unique coatings. Riverside Cafe will be featuring Korean corndogs with either a hot dog, mozzarella, or half-hot-dog-half-mozzarella stick and coated with panko, ramen, potatoes, or Cheetos. Prices will range from $6-$8.
Riverside Cafe will also dish out mochi donuts with six to eight rotating flavors, including Fruity Pebble, Oreos and Cream, Strawberry, Matcha, Taro, and more. The donuts will be priced at three for $9, six for $16, or a dozen for $33. The cafe will also serve customizable lemonade fizzes, which are carbonated, non-caffeinated refreshing beverages that can have popping boba, jelly boba, tapioca pearls, and more added. Pricing for drinks will be around $6, with cold drinks served as 24-ounce cups. With an incredibly mild winter so far, Yang said it’s likely the paint job will be done in April or May, pending a return of wintry weather.
Riverside Cafe’s sweet treats will join with the flavors of Eau Juicy, as Eau Juicy will run as a ghost kitchen available for takeout or Door Dash delivery out of the location. Yang’s seafood boil business idea was one of five selected by the City of Altoona to be part of its future container park, “The Yard,” though the project has been delayed, he said.
The 501 Water St. building will also be getting a makeover in the coming months. Yang plans to repaint the outside, fence in the large pavement on the property to create a pavilion, and add outdoor seating since there isn’t much room on the inside.
As for Riverside Cafe’s namesake and logo, the Yangs’ business journey thus far has taught them a perseverance that is represented in its phoenix imagery. “With Eau Juicy, we had a lot of uphill battles, and the phoenix symbolizes rising above,” Yang said. “Even though we’ve had obstacles, we’re still going to get through it all and rise.” Plus, with the Chippewa River practically in Riverside Cafe’s backyard, it was fitting to include it in its name.
Riverside Cafe is planning a ribbon-cutting ceremony with the Hmong Wisconsin Chamber of Commerce. With a tentative opening of March 1, the new takeout spot will operate Tuesday-Sunday from 10am-6pm. Eau Juicy will operate as a ghost kitchen during the same days but will likely be offered later into the evening, until 8 or 9pm.
Keep up with Riverside Cafe and Eau Juicy on Facebook for future updates.
