Playground Pals Ltd director Ange Copson said she was one of a group of Dunedin business people who signed an agreement to lease the railway station from the Dunedin City Council this week. Development work on the 220sq m Cobb & Co restaurant was expected to begin next month.
It was hoped the restaurant would open in February next year.
Mrs Copson, managing director of the Dunedin restaurant, said she was delighted a piece of the city's heritage was being restored.
The city's former Cobb & Co restaurant, situated at the Law Courts Hotel, closed about 10 years ago, she said.
''Dunedin is where it started. I just think, without a doubt, it's great to have a piece of our heritage back.
''We're really excited about this opportunity. We've got our plans in place in terms of the design of the restaurant, and we will be very respectful of the railway station and its heritage listing.''
She said the site was previously used as a Valentine's Restaurant, and it already had a kitchen space.
But the development would be a ''multimillion-dollar'' exercise, she said.
''Obviously it has to be refitted for what we need, and, of course, internally, there's not a lot of structural work we're doing because of the building itself.
''But it will have all the good things that you will remember from the heydays of Cobb & Co restaurants.
''We're a little bit unique in that we'll have the heritage-style Cobb because of where we will be located. There will be a great sense of nostalgia - families around the table to share food.''
Dunedin City Council property manager Kevin Taylor confirmed the agreement to lease the site, and said no businesses now occupying the railway station would be affected by the agreement.
