Sushi News

New all-you-can-eat sushi restaurant in Plano has a chubby name

Sushi looks great. It's just that name.

Photo courtesy of Chubby Cattle

There's a new destination to get all the sushi you could ever want. If only it had a different name. It's called Rolls by Chubby Cattle, and it's an all-you-can-eat sushi bar and hot pot restaurant located at 2001 Coit Rd. in Plano.

According to a release, Rolls by Chubby Cattle is actually a makeover of a restaurant called Chubby Cattle, whose name is no better.

Chubby Cattle was previously a hot-pot place. But now you can also get ramen and sushi, delivered to your table via a conveyor belt where the food circulates the dining room on a little train, with dishes trundling past your table.

Chubby Cattle was founded in Las Vegas in 2016 by Haibin Yang, whose family runs a Mongolian restaurant chain called Little Lamb. Conveyer belt-based hotpot proved to be a hit in Vegas, and it's doing well at a second Chubby Cattle in Philadelphia.

But Plano, not so much. So they've switched to all-you-can-eat sushi, ramen, and hot pot for $27.99. There's also a $32.99 version with "premium" beef.

Rolls include the No. 1 Chef Choice with crab, cucumber, spicy tuna, salmon, white tuna, and jalapeno, with spicy garlic ponzu; and a tempura "TNT roll" with tuna, salmon, yellowtail, whitefish, and cream cheese, with spicy mayo and eel sauce.

There's also a ramen bar where you can customize your ingredients.

This is the second location; there's one in Denver, Colorado that pivoted earlier this year from Chubby Cattle to Rolls by Chubby Cattle.

Chubby Cattle owner David Zhao says in a statement that the makeover is about bringing more to the table.

"Our goal was never to completely get rid of hot pot, we just wanted to expand our menu and provide more variety," Zhao says.

Dear Chubby Cattle and Rolls by Chubby Cattle, if you think that only having hot pot was keeping you from drawing more customers, you were mistaken.

The problem is the name. Nobody wants to admit they are eating at a restaurant called Chubby Cattle. Change the name.

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Escargot News

New all-day French bistro in downtown Rockwall is all from scratch

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Belle View Bistro Rockwall

An all-day French bistro has made its debut in Rockwall: Called Belle Vie Bistro, it’s a new mom-and-pop in the charming historic downtown district, at 112 E. Rusk St., the former home of The Fatted Calf restaurant, where it opened its doors on November 12.

Belle Vie is from Luis and Iliana Marquez, a hard-working couple who also own Los Marquez, a popular taco--themed food-truck-turned-restaurant in Rockwall they first debuted in 2019. In May, the couple took over the former Fat Chicken space to open a brick and mortar location of Los Marquez, where they serve well-made Mexican food like tacos, burritos, and quesadillas, but also burgers & fries. They open for breakfast with breakfast tacos, and run a daily lunch special, often creative, always popular, such as birria ramen with choice of beef or lamb for $11.

But the couple had a bigger vision of creating a place where chef Luis could stretch and showcase his skills.

"Luis has a lot of culinary experience, and it’s something that he’s been putting aside,” Iliana says. “We were just waiting on the perfect time to bring this to life.”

"This is something exciting and new for us, it’s something that we always wanted to make,” Luis says.

Like Los Marquez, Belle Vie is open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, serving classics like French onion soup, moules frites, escargot, and duck confit. There are also comforting and American dishes like spinach-artichoke dip, crab cakes, and fish & chips.

Lunch features Cobb salad, a French dip, and chicken & Brie panini, while an extended breakfast -- which runs from 7 am to 4 pm — includes pancakes, waffles, eggs benedict, beignets French toast, and crepes, plus pastries and breads made from scratch.

Mural on the wall at Belle Vie Bistro RockwallFacebook

The bakery counter is a delight, with eclairs, croissants, scones, fruit tarts, and cake slices in flavors like carrot cake and white chocolate raspberry. There's also a serious coffee program with espresso drinks such as lattes.

"We pride ourselves on making everything from scratch," the duo says. "Our bread—whether for sandwiches, paninis, hamburgers or anything listed on our menu is made fresh just for us by our incredibly talented pastry chef and baker. The same care goes into our pastries and desserts ensuring every bite is special and crafted with love."

The dining room is warm and cozy with dark wood chairs and plush booths and a full-wall mural depicting a street in Paris. They also have a full bar, with cocktails and beer on tap. Prices are reasonable, ranging from $9 for a Belgian waffle during breakfast to $45 for prime ribeye at dinner.

For now, they're not taking reservations — it's first come, first serve.