New Restaurant Alert: Mochilero Kitchen in Northern Peoria

Labeled as an inventive Mexican eatery, Mochilero Kitchen is set to open this fall at 67th Avenue and Happy Valley Road in Peoria. The northwest Valley spot will offer an 87-seat modern-industrial dining room, as well as a 28-seater patio.

The core team behind Mochilero Kitchen starts with co-owner and Chef Jorge Cota. He’ll be joined by Head Chef Justin Banauch, who’s worked in well-known restaurants like Chelsea’s Kitchen and The Mission.

Mochilero – meaning backpacker – acts as an inspiration for the menu of Mexican fare.

“It’s a country where you’ll find something completely new and different around every corner, and we’re incorporating those same elements of excitement and surprise into our menu,” Cota says in a press release. “We’re taking the best flavors and freshest ingredients from each region and then taking these things that inspire us and putting our own twist on them.”

For more information, or to keep an eye on that opening date, see the Mochilero Kitchen website.