A Mongolian barbecue restaurant will be moving into the building at 1830 J St., with owners saying they will bring cuisine with about 1,000 years of tradition to a spot that has recently seen two businesses close.

Co-owner Jonathan Ng, 24, said Monday that he plans to open Mongo Mongo Mongolian BBQ with three business partners by early December, bringing to Midtown a restaurant type popular in Sacramento’s suburbs.

“Once Garlic Shack fell through, I just jumped at it,” said Ng, who formerly co-owned Tamarind – a Vietnamese restaurant at 25th and J streets – and was a manager at Plum Blossom, the restaurant that occupied the space before Garlic Shack.

Key to making the new business work will be selling quality food at good prices, Ng said, adding that he wants to keep the average meal at less than $10.

Offering a variety of meats, sauces and vegetables, Mongolian barbecue allows patrons to create their own custom meals and then have them cooked on a circular grill by a chef.

Meat choices will include beef, chicken, pork and lamb. Sauces will range from teriyaki to more custom sauces, including some fusion sauces mixing traditional Asian flavors with Italian and Spanish spices and sauces. Another sauce Ng said he anticipates being popular is an orange-flavored sauce similar to that used on orange chicken at some restaurants.

“The sauce makes the meal in Mongolian barbecue,” Ng said. “We’re going to really focus on good food and good service.”

Customers will be able to create their own combinations of items or choose from a prepared menu. Rather than standing in line and waiting for their food to be cooked, diners can sit while a server brings the cooked meals to their table.

The Mongolian barbecue cooking style dates back at least as far as the Middle Ages, when the warlord Genghis Khan led a nomadic army conquering and plundering throughout Asia.

“Cooking on a circular grill comes from the way they would cook their food on their shields,” Ng said. “They’d put whatever vegetables they stole and meat they poached on them and cook it over fires.”

Moving into the space with its newly installed roll-up garage doors fronting J Street presented Ng and his business partners with a problem: Mongolian barbecue restaurants typically have kitchens out where customers can see them, but health code requires kitchens be enclosed, so either the garage doors had to go, or another solution devised.

“We decided to take out the (existing) wall separating the kitchen from the restaurant and make it out of glass with sliding glass doors,” Ng said.

With that plan, customers can still walk in and out of the garage doors onto a patio, and the kitchen is easily seen as the chef cooks the food, moving it over the grill surface with two large chopstick-like tongs.

A separate griddle will allow the restaurant to offer vegetarian and vegan options.

The patio fronting J Street will be accented with plants, and cushioned chairs with low tables will give it a lounge-like feel, Ng said.

Currently, there are no plans to pursue a full liquor license, but Ng said beer and wine will be available. The beer selection will be broad, with some pan-Pacific selections such as Tsing Tao (from China) and Tiger Beer (from Thailand). Sake and the plum wine known as sojo will be served, and they might also find their way into sauces.

The restaurant will focus on lunch and dinner, but hours have not yet been set, Ng said. It will stay open until 3 a.m. for the Thursday through Saturday night crowd, which he said is a top priority.

“We don’t have that many late-night places in Sacramento where you can actually get good food,” he said. “That’s something we need here.”

Matt Burden, a 41-year-old entertainment industry worker, said he agrees with the need for late-night food variety.

“If it’s open late, they’re going to make a fortune,” he said.

Originally from Australia, Burden now lives in Vancouver, Canada, and travels to Sacramento on business.

“Mongolian barbecue is so good,” he said. “I like that you get your bits and your bobs and then have them grill it up. I would do some chicken, soy, teriyaki and peppers. That’ll do well.”

Amanda Moore, a 23-year-old Sacramentan who works for a nearby nonprofit health care organization, said she hopes to see the business do well.

“I wish them the best of luck. I’ve been here since July, and this is the third business that will be in there,” she said. “I hope they can make it work.”

Amber Schmaeling, program director for the Midtown Business Association, said that the area is one of the prime business blocks in Midtown, and while Garlic Shack did not last long – opening in July and closing in September – Plum Blossom lasted “quite a while.”

“In close proximity, you’ve got Starbucks and several nightlife establishments,” she said. “If I was opening a business, I would see that as a key space with a lot of potential.”

Brandon Darnell is a staff reporter for The Sacramento Press. Follow him on Twitter @Brandon_Darnell.