Sept. 1, 2020

Agua Fresh has expanded to Brookings.

The downtown Sioux Falls restaurant known for its smoothies, juices and healthy, fast-casual food opened today in the Brookings Commercial Kitchen, which is downtown on Main Avenue.

“We’re excited about the community,” managing partner Bilal Akalin said.

The menu will be similar to the offerings in Sioux Falls but not quite as extensive, he said.

Agua Fresh will serve all-day breakfast and lunch items from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. weekdays, 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday and noon to 7 p.m. Sunday.

The founder of Brookings Commercial Kitchen, Dusten Hendrickson, learned about Agua Fresh from his brother-in-law and then recruited the restaurant to join the new venture, Akalin said. Hendrickson renovated the former Ben Franklin retail store and the adjacent space that includes the restaurant, creating a kitchen that’s stocked with equipment and can be rented out by chefs, bakers on anyone in the community. There’s also a dining room that can be rented with the kitchen or separately.

Agua Fresh, which lost its original location in The Empire Mall food court to Cinnabon earlier this year, is looking for other expansion opportunities, Akalin said.

“We are looking for the south and west” sides of Sioux Falls, he said. “These two areas are on our radar at this moment.”

There also are expansion possibilities in Fargo, Pittsburgh and Madison, Wis., he said.

“We are looking for some rapid expansion.”