Hedlund scaling back plans for Weymouth Landing restaurant

State Sen. Robert Hedlund is scaling back plans for his second restaurant in Weymouth Landing in response to safety concerns raised by Braintree officials.

Hedlund, already a part owner of Four Square Bar and Restaurant on Commercial Street, earned town approval Tuesday for a restaurant called Trio that he plans to open in a former salon across the street from his other restaurant. The Weymouth Republican had initially sought approval for a 87-seat restaurant with an outdoor patio, but he cut the number of seats back to 67 after Braintrees planning board raised concerns about the patio.

Its a locally owned restaurant that we think will benefit the neighborhood, said Hedlunds attorney, James Baldassini. That area does need some fresh blood.

Trio is Hedlunds second joint venture with chef Marko Piro Fani, coming three years after the partners opened Four Square in an empty restaurant space originally built in the 1930s. Hedlund said the modern kitchen planned for Trio will allow Fani to craft a more varied menu of casual American cuisine.

The restaurant, which will open at 7 a.m. seven days a week, will also offer a more upscale breakfast menu compared to other restaurants in the area, Hedlund said. Four Square opens at 11:30 a.m. most days and does not serve breakfast.

Hedlund said his plans for Trio had been pushed back by a longer-than-expected town approval process. He said he would like to begin construction immediately, but he doesnt know when hell be able to open for business.

I thought wed be open by now, he said.

Hedlund said he would eventually like to build the planned patio, which he called the centerpiece of his original proposal, but the project could be complicated by restrictions on the liquor license approved by Braintrees licensing board Tuesday. The board approved a special license that can only be used for restaurants with 75 seats or fewer because it had approved its last all-alcohol license earlier in the meeting for a sports bar proposed for South Shore Plaza.

The restaurant, called Buffalo Wild Wings, is slated to include a total of 268 seats in part of the space previously occupied by Crate and Barrel. The restaurant would be sealed off from the interior of the mall and would have doors that open to the parking lot.

Buffalo Wild Wings has more than 900 locations across the United States and Canada.

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Hedlund scaling back plans for Weymouth Landing restaurant