Outback Steakhouse will relocate to former Panera Bread site near Woodfield Mall

Schaumburg trustees on Tuesday approved construction of a new Outback Steakhouse on the northwestern outskirts of Woodfield Mall, allowing the relocation of an existing one farther west on Golf Road.

A 4,936-square foot building at 1140 Plaza Drive will replace the current building, which is 1,596 square feet smaller and previously housed a Panera Bread

Tim Gallagher, whose firm owns the site, said Panera Bread moved a short distance south to 830 N. Meacham Road so it could have a drive-through.

The new Outback Steakhouse won't have a drive-through or patio, but it will have a curbside pickup door on its east side.

The restaurant likely won't be completed until late 2022 or the first quarter of 2023, but Gallagher said the plan is for the existing Outback Steakhouse at 216 E. Golf Road -- just east of Roselle Road -- to remain open until then.

A representative of Outback Steakhouse told the village's zoning board members earlier this month that there is currently an interested party wanting to occupy the site the restaurant will be leaving.

Schaumburg recently approved regulatory changes making restaurants permitted land uses along Golf Road rather than requiring special-use permits.

Gallagher said that while the change didn't happen early enough to have much impact on this Outback Steakhouse proposal, he believes the approval of restaurants along Golf Road will be a much more streamlined process in the future.

The new Outback Steakhouse will share parking with the neighboring Shabu-You Japanese Buffet and the Charles Schwab offices at the southeast corner of Golf and Meacham.

During the zoning board hearing, a representative of the developer testified that parking demand in that shared lot has decreased since the Charles Schwab building recently replaced a Bar Louie restaurant.