Sapporo Revolving Sushi brings conveyor-belt concept in Las Vegas

Las Vegas got its first conveyor-belt restaurant in 2016 with the arrival of Chubby Cattle, a Chinese hotpot spot on South Jones Boulevard.

Sapporo Revolving Sushi, which opened Dec. 4 on Spring Mountain Road, brings sushi to the conveyor-belt concept.

It’s the seventh eatery in restaurateur Freddy Hwang’s Las Vegas portfolio. Hwang owns all four Sweet Poke locations, Samurai Japanese Steakhouse & Sushi and Ichi Ramen House.

Sapporo took three years of planning and six months of construction, Hwang said.

“I had a hard time during the subprime mortgage (crisis) like anybody else … but I hung in there,” he said. “Now I feel like the economy is going up, the Raiders are coming and I’ve learned a lot from my mistakes.”

Hwang took inspiration from Japan, where the trend originated. The concept has spread to other Asian countries, he said.

“People have limited time, so they grab and go,” Hwang said.

The conveyor belt travels by every table in the nearly 3,500-square-foot space and has two tracks. The bottom track features the regularly rotating dishes ( $2.50 apiece), while the top track delivers items ordered via an iPad on the table.

Each plate has a radio frequency identification tag to track how long it has been on the conveyor belt and to ensure it’s fresh.

The restaurant has specialty cocktails as well as a sake and soju menu with bottles ranging from $14-$65. Beer selections include American domestics and Japanese and Chinese brands such as Asahi, Kirin and Tsingtao.

Appetizers include marinated soft pork belly ($5), cheese tonkatsu ($5), steamed mussels ($6) and sauteed softshell crab ($5). Those are delivered to the table by the top conveyor belt.

Entrees include rib-eye steak with sweet wasabi sauce ($11), striped bass with mango salsa ($9) and grilled cod, scallop and shrimp dishes ($8-$11).

Desserts include green tea cake ($7), strawberry shortcake ($7), tiramisu ($7) and ice cream ($3).

Hwang plans to open a Korean barbecue restaurant near South Durango Drive and the 215 Beltway. He also plans a second Sapporo near Town Square Las Vegas this year.

Contact Madelyn Reese at mreese@viewnews.com or 702-383-0497. Follow @MadelynGReese on Twitter.