Adam Floyd | The Valdosta Daily TimesJohn Lin, owner of Beijing Cafe, smiles in his newly renovated restaurant which officially reopened Monday, three months after a kitchen fire closed the business.

VALDOSTA — Beijing Cafe reopened Monday after the restaurant was remodeled following a small kitchen fire in August.

Beijing Cafe in the Promenade Plaza on Norman Drive sustained approximately $15,000 in damages during a kitchen fire three months ago. Owner John Lin has since been remodeling, putting in a new kitchen, renovating the dining area and adding a tea room with wireless Internet access.

The restaurant opened its doors last week to customers as a sort of test run with the new kitchen equipment to make sure everything was working smoothly, Lin said. During the official reopening Monday, patrons crowded the dining room at lunch.

“People saw the reopen sign and told their friends online,” Lin said.

Lin hopes customers will like the remodeled look and will take advantage of the tea room, which should be open in a few weeks.

Lin said he wants the tea room adjacent to the dining room to be a place for people to come and use their laptops to work while enjoying tea and appetizers. The tea room can also be used for parties, group events and for special tea drinking sessions at an elaborately carved wood table.

“We want people to take their time like a coffee shop,” Lin said.

Beijing Cafe is open seven days a week for lunch and dinner.

Adam Floyd is a crime reporter at the Valdosta Daily Times.