A date has been officially announced for Wagamama to open at Basildon's Festival Leisure Park. 

The Japanese-inspired restaurant will open to the public for the first time on December 2. 

Mexican restaurant Chiquito closed at the Leisure Park on August 18, with the building converted into a Wagamama restaurant. 

Chiquito had been a popular restaurant at Festival Leisure Park for the last 12 years. 

Festival Park bosses have submitted separate plans to convert two empty shops into a new restaurant but have been tight-lipped on which eateries they will be.