Wagyu hot pot chain Chubby Cattle Shabu opened its first Georgia location in Duluth last month.
Chubby Group, the restaurant group behind Chubby Cattle Shabu, is set to open three more eateries around metro Atlanta this year.
Chubby Cattle Shabu opened at 2180 Pleasant Hill Road in April with all-you-can-eat shabu-shabu, a Japanese-style hot pot where diners cook thin slices of wagyu beef and vegetables in broth. During the experience, guests can choose from four pricing tiers that range from $45 to $98 per person and include a 90-minute buffet. Children eat at a discounted price depending on their height.
Guests choose from a list of vegetables, carbs and meats to cook in a soup base of their choice. Meat options include Japanese A5 wagyu brisket, American wagyu chuck ribeye, Australian wagyu and Kurobuta pork.
Credit: Courtesy of Chubby Cattle
Credit: Courtesy of Chubby Cattle
Unlimited sides include seaweed salad, fried gyoza and shrimp tempura, and certain price tiers also offer specialty dishes like sweet shrimp sashimi, wagyu nigiri and wagyu bone marrow. The beverage program includes a variety of sakes.
Chubby Cattle Shabu is around 6,700 square feet with a “modern, contemporary” look and seats about 168 guests, said David Zhao, a founding partner at Chubby Group.
The restaurant group is also set to open Chubby Cattle BBQ, a Japanese barbecue concept, in Duluth and Dunwoody by the end of the year. At Chubby Cattle BBQ, diners cook wagyu and vegetables on a grill at their table. Both barbecue locations will offer unlimited bubble tea and ice cream, Zhao said.
Chubby Cattle BBQ in Dunwoody will be located at 4400 Ashford Dunwoody Road in Perimeter Mall. The Duluth address has not yet been announced.
Finally, Chubby Group plans to open Wagyu House by the X Pot at the Interlock, a mixed-use development in Midtown, in August. The 17,000-square-foot eatery will have an indoor dining room and a rooftop lounge. Because of its large size, Wagyu House will offer barbecue, hot pot, a juice bar and bubble tea.
All of the Chubby concepts incorporate technology into the dining experience, from conveyor belts to robotic servers, Zhao said. The robotic servers take care of more mundane restaurant tasks, like bussing plates, while the human servers focus on creating a good customer experience, he said.
Additionally, the wagyu served in Chubby restaurants comes from Chubby Group’s own ranches and ranch partners in Oregon and California, which allows them to skip “the middleman,” Zhao said, and keep costs low at the restaurant.
Chubby Cattle Shabu. 2180 Pleasant Hill Road, Duluth. 706-588-9999, mikiyashabu.com/project/chubby-cattle-shabu-duluth
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