Jack Plumb misses The Spring Chicken Inn.

He used to stop and buy its popular chicken or a sandwich after boating at Rockport or Echo reservoirs.

The restaurant was family owned during its hey-day when locals reported 700 people dining on summer Sundays and the owners routinely cooked up three-quarters of a ton of chicken a week, Plumb said.

For the past several years it was owned by Realtor Michael Hatz who struggled to keep it afloat during the recession. Plumb purchased the building from a bank this week and plans to fix it up, find a restaurateur to lease it and court those 700 people back.

Plums said he has a track record of success.

“I do real estate in Salt Lake City, mostly renovations,” he said. “I like to purchase buildings that need help, make them better and make a contribution to what the possibility of what that building could be.”

Two derelict buildings he purchased in Salt Lake City are now a popular coffee house and a successful office building.

Plumb said the price on the Spring Chicken Inn was reasonable and the challenge intrigued him.

“Who hasn’t stopped there in years past?” he asked. “It always had a reputation fro the most spectacular chicken. There’s not a person I’ve talked to that doesn’t have the fondest memories of that place.”

Not a restaurateur himself, he said the real challenge will be finding the right tenant, but he aims to.

“I want to bring it back to its old glory, that’s really my intention,” he added.

The structure needs to be updated, but nostalgia will be the driving theme, he explained.

“I want to freshen it up and make it homey, if you will. Next to it there’s a ‘Frosty Freeze’ building that I’m excited to bring back around and offer specialty ice cream and burgers,” he said.

As the only sit-down restaurant for miles between Park City and Coalville, Plumb said he thinks the site could be successful year-round with the right management who understands how to weather the slow seasons.

Plumb said he has no intention of competing with Park City restaurants. The old Spring Chicken Inn enjoyed great business from Salt Lake City people on scenic drives or recreating. If done correctly, that could be true again.

“I think there’s no question about the fact that it could work,” he added.