Tokyo Grill in Plainwell is about to get a new name and a bigger buffet spread. The restaurant at 411 Oaks Crossing will close its doors for renovations on Thursday, with plans to reopen under new ownership as MingTen Asian Buffet after roughly two months of work.
The closure notice, posted by the restaurant and reported by WKFR, says the rebrand comes with an ownership change and a significant expansion of the buffet setup. According to the posted note, MingTen Asian Buffet will make room for twelve buffet tables once renovations wrap up. The project is expected to take about two months, though no reopening date has been confirmed.
Tokyo Grill only opened in Plainwell on December 29, 2025, filling a storefront that had previously been a clothing store before being converted into a dining room, per the station's report. The quick turnaround to a new name and new ownership marks a fast pivot for the roughly year-old spot in the Oaks Crossing Mall near Walmart.
What Tokyo Grill Has Offered So Far
Since opening, Tokyo Grill has served lunch and dinner buffets alongside hot dishes, fresh sushi, and hibachi, the same account notes. The lunch buffet has run from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Saturday, priced at $14.99 for customers ages 12 and older, while the dinner buffet has run from 4 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. on those same days.
It is not yet known whether those hours, prices, or menu offerings will carry over once MingTen Asian Buffet takes over the space. The posted note did not address what, if anything, will change beyond the addition of more buffet tables.
The ownership change also has a licensing step: Allegan County says food-service licenses are issued to a specific owner and cannot be transferred to a buyer. A new owner must submit a change-of-ownership application to the local health department, so MingTen will need its own license before serving customers. The county’s guidance makes clear that a change of name alone is not the same as a transfer of the existing restaurant license.
A Familiar Name With Roots In Grand Rapids
The MingTen name isn't entirely new to West Michigan. A Mingten Buffet previously operated in Grand Rapids but appears to have closed sometime in 2021, the same report states. It's unclear how closely the earlier Grand Rapids restaurant is connected to the new Plainwell operation, and the identity of MingTen's new ownership group has not been disclosed.
The planned renovation also falls under local food-facility oversight. Allegan County requires plan review for new construction and remodeling of restaurants; its guidance says plans must be reviewed before construction begins. The county also calls for a pre-opening inspection before a food license and operation are approved. Those requirements apply to the project’s permitting and inspection process, but they do not establish whether MingTen has submitted plans or when it will pass inspection.
Tokyo Grill's arrival last December answered a wait among Plainwell and Otsego residents for a reliable, consistently open Asian-style buffet in the area. Now, with the restaurant undergoing what's being described as a major buffet renovation, those same diners will have to wait out a two-month closure before finding out what MingTen Asian Buffet actually looks like on the other side.
