Tanner’s Bar & Grill, a Midwestern chain known for its “Chicken Lips,” will open its first Iowa location in northeast Cedar Rapids this winter.

The Kansas City, Kan., company is expected to begin construction shortly inside one of two locations that overlook the pond at The Fountains, the 19.3-acre mixed-use development at the corner of Edgewood and Blairs Ferry roads NE.

Tanner’s, founded in Lenexa, Kan., in 1985, has locations in Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska and Wisconsin. The chain offers beer, food and large screen televisions filling nearly every wall, according to Dave Castelluccio of Ahmann Companies, the developer of The Fountains.

“We are really excited to be welcoming Tanner’s to The Fountains,” Castelluccio said in a news release. “This side of Cedar Rapids really needs a place where people can go to watch games in a fun atmosphere and have great food at the same time.”

Castelluccio said efforts continue to lease the other “anchor” restaurant space overlooking the pond as well as office and retail space in the complex.

“Our goal is to bring something to Cedar Rapids that’s upscale, unique and has the feel of a development in larger metro areas,” said Joe Ahmann of Ahmann Companies. “We wanted to create a professional but casual atmosphere that we think provides a quality environment for employees with easy access to amenities.”