The closed Red Lobster at 416 Commerce Center Drive in the Regency area is in review to become Gogi Korean BBQ, where each table has a grill for customers to prepare food.
The city is reviewing plans and a permit application for renovation of the 7,400-square-foot building at an estimated job cost of $180,000.
Plans indicate a renovated bar area and interior and patio dining and a small private dining room. Each table has a grill.
Plans show ISEED Construction Inc. of Great Neck, New York, as the contractor. E-Pro Design Solution is the designer.
Korean BBQ restaurants offer grills on the table along with scissors, tongs and sauce trays for the preparation and cooking.
They offer beef, pork, chicken, seafood, appetizers, vegetables and more, including a dozen or so sauces, and banchan, which are side dishes served at the start of a meal.
Depending on the restaurant, customers may have the choice of having servers grill the food or doing it themselves.
The Regency Red Lobster building sold Sept. 4 for $3.7 million to St. Augustine-based CJC USA LLC, which is managed by Jing Xin Liu. He has not responded to requests for comment.
That building, on 1.8 acres, was constructed in 2003.
Liu is the manager and chef executive member of CJC USA LLC and registered the name with the state in February.
State corporate records show that Liu also is the manager or member of several other LLCs, including Sunrise Center Group. It bought the former O’Charley’s in the Regency area at 410 Commerce Center Drive, next to the former Red Lobster, and opened Cajun Crab Juicy Seafood & Bar.
He also is the president of New Pacific Asian Bistro Inc., which operates the Pacific Asian Bistro at 159 Palencia Village Drive, Suite 111, in St. Augustine.
The Red Lobster chain closed more than 80 restaurants, including three in Jacksonville, in May and filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.
Two Asian buffet restaurants plan to open in the other two former Red Lobster locations in Jacksonville.
Mikata Buffet has plans to open at 8720 Baymeadows Road.
Fushimi Grill & Modern Buffet has a sign saying it will open at 13150 City Station Drive in the River City Marketplace near Jacksonville International Airport.
The remaining Red Lobster in operation in Northeast Florida is at 32 Blanding Blvd. in Orange Park.
Red Lobster announced Sept. 16 it was exiting Chapter 11 under the ownership of RL Investor Holdings LLC. It is part of Fortress Investment Group.
“Our comprehensive and long-term investment plan for Red Lobster includes a commitment of more than $60 million in new funding which will help us to deliver improvements across every aspect of our company. I’m looking forward to working with our 30,000-strong team to bring our plan to life,” new CEO Damola Adamolekun said in a news release.