Buffet coming to Spring Hill Mall

Flaming Grill and Buffet has signed a lease to move into Spring Hill Mall, officials confirmed this week.

The restaurant, which serves more than 250 items, is moving into the space Old Country Buffet occupied for 18 years. It was one of 80 others closed early last year as part of a bankruptcy filing.

The new restaurant will offer Italian, American, Chinese and Japanese food. It will also have a section that lets you cook your food on a hibachi grill. It would be the first place in West Dundee to offer sushi, a mall official said.

“We are excited to add a top dining destination like Flaming Grill and Buffet to Spring Hill Mall, as it expands our food offering and strengthens our already impressive roster of leading brands,” said Amy Prew, the mall’s general manager “It is a great addition and we look forward to their opening.”

A date has not been set for the opening because the eatery is still going through the permitting process with the village of West Dundee, according to owner Jon Lin.

Lin, who lives in New York City, operates the same all-you-can-eat restaurant in Rolling Meadows, Round Lake Beach, Crystal Lake, Forest Park, Elk Grove Village and Niles. There are other locations in New York and New Jersey.

The West Dundee location is expected to seat 324 patrons and to staff between 25 and 35 employees. Interior and exterior renovations are also in the pipeline for the 10,500-square-foot restaurant. Lin is expected to submit his latest plans to West Dundee within the next 10 days.

Lin said the West Dundee location is appealing because of all the people in surrounding communities and because of the mall traffic.

West Dundee officials, meanwhile, are thrilled about finally filling that vacancy at Spring Hill Mall.

“I think it’ll be a good fit for the mall, it’s another dining opportunity which is great,” Community Development Director Cathleen Tymoszenko said. “It is within a reasonable price point for families and people watching the bottom line. It looks like it has a good variety of food to please a big group, so we’re very pleased.”