The Rainforest Café at Woodfield Mall closed on Jan. 1, but the space will soon be inhabited by another group of popular animals.
Children’s television character Peppa Pig and her fellow animated friends are moving in to give Schaumburg residents a new indoor play center. The Peppa Pig World of Play is expected open this spring and feature 14 themed play areas for children to “jump, laugh, imagine and giggle.”
The new attraction is designed for preschool-age children, and according to their site, parents should expect ticket and annual pass information to be available soon.
The move trades one themed experience for another, completing the Rainforest Café’s long circle of life at Woodfield mall.
The restaurant first opened its doors in 1995, but according to a company official, they opted not to renew the lease for another year.
“We are grateful for the support of our community and encourage our guests to visit us at our two other Chicago-area locations,” Landry’s Restaurants VP of Operations Don Hart said in a statement.
The company says it is working to relocate employees to other restaurants in the Chicago-area, including the Rainforest Café location in downtown Chicago and in Gurnee Mills. Morton’s The Steakhouse, McCormick and Schmick’s, Bill’s Bar and Burger, and Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. are also managed by Landry’s.
Local
While the company did not indicate that it is exploring shutting down the other Rainforest Café locations, the landlord of the downtown location told the Chicago Tribune late last year that he is preparing a “new use for the site” when the current lease expires for the restaurant.
The site could be developed for a new retail tenant or a high-rise, the property owner told the Tribune.
