A fun sushi restaurant in Frisco has closed its doors: Sushi Marquee, which was home to great sushi, sake bombs, and a lively atmosphere, closed its location at The Star in Frisco at 3625 The Star Blvd. #315 after eight years.

Founder Brad Hawkins called it "a fun ride," thanking staff and customers for all the memories.

"Hate to see it go but that’s how it goes sometimes," he said. "Very proud of what we all accomplished. Too much fun!"

Sushi Marquee debuted in 2017, a concept from Crafted Bar Concepts, a group of operators that included Hawkins, owner of Shakertins, the cocktail bar chain, inspired by a lively sushi place he used to frequent in Los Angeles before moving to DFW.

"I haven't seen other places around here do tasteful sushi but with an exciting live element, something where you walk away and say, 'That was fun,'" Hawkins said at the time it opened.

Sushi Marquee did exactly that, and was thus a revelation when it opened, long before the current explosion of high-end omakase spots that currently dominate the Dallas sushi landscape.

The sushi scene has changed and so has operating a high-end restaurant, Hawkins says.

"We had fun and we had a great run and it's hard to see it close," he says. "But the climate we are in as restaurant and bar owners — it's one of the toughest I've ever seen outside COVID. The cost of goods is higher than it's ever been, and you have to pay people well. Rent is higher than it's ever been, and you can only charge guests so much. We went from being profitable to just breaking even, and I know we're not the only ones. I have so many friends in the industry who are barely getting by."

Hawkins' other concept, the Shakertins bar chain, is doing great, with five locations in The Colony, Midtown Dallas, Allen, Prosper, and Arlington near AT&T Stadium. "It's a little easier doing wings and sandwiches and pizza," he says.

There's also been turnover at The Star, most recently with the closure of City Works — but it's not all gloom and doom.

"The Star has places that come and go, but you have Common Table, Concrete Cowboy, Sidecar Social, and if you look at liquor sales, The Star is doing well," he says. "I think there could be another version of sushi that would do well at The Star."