First Hy-Vee Wahlburgers going into Mall of America

Hy-Vee's first entry into the burger joint business won't be in Iowa after all.

The West Des Moines-based grocery store chain announced Tuesday that it will open its first Wahlburgers restaurant in the Mall of America in Bloomington, Minn.

In August, Hy-Vee announced it had partnered with Wahlburgers, a restaurant chain founded by actor Mark Wahlberg and his brothers, to build, own and operate 26 of the restaurants in seven states. The first restaurant initially was to be built in West Des Moines and open in the middle of next year.

A map provided by Hy-Vee at the time also showed a potential future location in Eastern Iowa, but no timeline for its opening.

The company said Tuesday the 5,500-square-foot Mall of America restaurant will open in summer 2018.

'Hy-Vee is excited to launch the first of many new restaurants in partnership with Wahlburgers and to bring a new dining experience to the Twin Cities,” Hy-Vee Chairman, CEO and President Randy Edeker said in a news release.

Hy-Vee said plans for the West Des Moines location to open in 2018 'are underway.”

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