It looks like something may eventually be in the works for the site of one of the best-known restaurants in New England.
According to a meeting posting from the Town of Saugus, one of the topics this evening was a "preliminary subdivision plan" for 948 Broadway, which happens to be the address for Kowloon Restaurant, while multiple sources have led us to a post from the Boston's Wicked North Shore Facebook group page that says the following:
Representatives [of the restaurant] met with planning board officials tonight to announce the eventual closing of the restaurant and a redevelopment of the property into [multiple] lots for mixed use. Bobby Wong spoke on behalf of Kowloon and stated that there are no dates to close and the closure will not come before a process of getting approvals for the project and initiating the project. Kowloon has no date to close.
A commenter within the thread who reportedly was on the Zoom call goes on to say that "this is just the Wong's being proactive in getting approval for new use of the property, that approval will stand for 8 years..so when Rt1 zoning changes they won't have to worry and already be grandfathered. Either way nothing was approved tonight..it was continued to Jan 21st." In addition, a Wicked Local article states that while Wong says the restaurant is not for sale, he does mention that the restaurant industry is "tough" and that "We are looking at other options we might have with the property" while also indicating that the next generation is apparently not interested in running the dining spot.
We have reached out to both Kowloon and the Town of Saugus for more details, so stay tuned for additional updates.
[January 8 update: An Instagram post from Kowloon confirms some of the information above, saying that "we are not sold or closing soon....We are only planning for the future which will be years not months away....we have just completed our 70th year in business and realize that though rewarding, it's such a demanding life. And there will be an end at some point...just not right now."]
by Marc Hurwitz (Also follow us on Twitter at @hiddenboston)[A related post from our sister site (Boston's Hidden Restaurants): List of Restaurant Closings and Openings in the Boston Area]
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