Señor Frog's, a big new Waikiki bar and restaurant that's been a party favorite in Mexico and the Caribbean, opened last Saturday at the Royal Hawaiian Shopping Center to lots of eager customers.

Then Señor Frog's was closed by the city on Thursday, general manager Tona Risso said last night.

Risso said the city Building Department issued a notice of violation because the 450-seat restaurant does not have an occupancy permit. He said he did not know when the restaurant would be able to reopen. "Probably Monday," he said.

Risso said he received a verbal assurance that the restaurant could open without its occupancy permit, as the city had not yet conducted its inspection.

"We have a notice of violation because we didn't have a permit," Risso said. "But we were told we can open without it." Risso said that as part of the occupancy permit process, "we send the drawings and they take a look at that. They walk around the restaurant ... and if there's something we need to fix, then we fix it."

Risso said the problem lies somewhere "between the restaurant and shopping center and the contractor.

"So we don't know at this time whose fault (it is)," he said. "The real thing is we're closed."

Risso said the 14,000-square-foot restaurant was serving 800 to 900 dinners a night.

"Of course we're going to lose revenue," he said. "(But) the image is the most important for us. We opened and we are so excited to be here — then we need to close after four days. It's very sad for us because of the image of the restaurant. That's my biggest concern."

Señor Frog's is the first large anchor tenant to open as part of the Royal Hawaiian Shopping Center's two-year, $84 million renovation that is adding new retailers and restaurants to Waikiki's largest mall.

Señor Frog's initially expected to open in May 2006, but delays involving city permitting, construction and planning by mall owner Kamehameha Schools pushed back the timetable more than a year.

A Kamehameha Schools spokeswoman could not be reached for comment last night.

The Waikiki Señor Frog's, operated by Mexico's largest restaurant company, Grupo Anderson's, is a slightly toned-down version of the Señor Frog's in such locations as Cancun, Mexico, and have an almost anything-goes atmosphere.

The chain's $8 million Waikiki restaurant still has three bars, including one where swings have been substituted for chairs, and a 4 a.m. closing time.

The Hawai'i Señor Frog's is part of a strategy by Grupo Anderson's to enter high-volume tourist-based markets in the United States with an expectation to dramatically boost average restaurant sales.

Grupo Anderson's was established in 1963 and operates 68 restaurants under several brands, including El Shrimp Bucket, Carlos 'n Charlie's, Squid Roe and Mama Roma. There are 14 Señor Frog's — the company's flagship brand — mostly in Mexico and the Caribbean.

The company's first U.S. restaurant was a Señor Frog's that opened two years ago in Myrtle Beach, S.C. Hawai'i is the second U.S. Señor Frogs, and a third is planned for Las Vegas next year.

The Hawai'i restaurant is projected to take in $15 million a year.

Reach William Cole at wcole@honoluluadvertiser.com.