Lin’s Grand Buffet is preparing its first restaurant in Gilbert, Arizona, with an opening expected in late 2026 or early 2027. The planned buffet would become the chain’s ninth Arizona location.
Phoenix Business Journal reported October 19 that Lin’s has taken over the former Fiesta Mexicana restaurant at 1017 East Baseline Road, in the Shoppes at Gilbert Commons near Stapley and Baseline. The project reuses a freestanding restaurant building of roughly 9,000 square feet.
Plans call for seating for up to 275 people and approximately 80 to 100 employees, according to the report. The proposed lineup includes American Chinese dishes, sushi, a Mongolian grill, Cajun seafood boil and a steak station.
That is a substantial dining room and an ambitious collection of stations. Anyone who usually begins with the Mongolian grill may want to take a reconnaissance lap first.
Texas roots and a growing Arizona map
Lin’s traces its beginnings to southern Texas in 2002. Its official website now lists restaurants across Texas, Arizona and California, while Phoenix Business Journal puts the current company count at 19.
The brand’s Arizona directory lists eight existing restaurants, spread across Phoenix, Tucson, Mesa, Casa Grande and Yuma. Gilbert would add a new town to that list rather than simply another Phoenix address.
Across its established restaurants, Lin’s describes a buffet built around Chinese and American dishes, sushi, seafood, a live Mongolian grill and desserts. Its company materials also name barbecue ribs among the selections. Those descriptions establish the broader concept; Gilbert’s final menu and prices have not yet been announced.
The Baseline Road address already has restaurant infrastructure and a dining history. An older Fiesta Mexicana ordering page identifies the same Gilbert site, and commercial property material describes a freestanding restaurant with parking around it.
The opening window remains an estimate, with no firm first-service date announced. Gilbert’s local lunch and dinner prices, hours and final station lineup are also still to come.
