Today we’d like to introduce you to David Zhao.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
I started my digital advertising business straight out of high school; creating ads for the early social media days for restaurants in New York. This freelancing gig led me to start NXT Factor and NU Media (digital marketing agencies) ultimately leading to the Chubby Cattle International Restaurant Group. My partners and I started our first restaurant venture with Chubby Cattle in Las Vegas, expanding to 10 locations as of today (eight years). Chubby Cattle then ventured out to The X Pot in The Venetian, providing a high-end experiential hot pot restaurant with robot servers and 4D screens. With every new restaurant concept we open, we strive to bridge the gap between various cultures through our globally-inspired food so that we can bring people closer together.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Absolutely not! Like any startup, especially in the food & beverage space, there were major challenges. From COVID to the adoption of Hot Pot in the mainstream community, we have been through it all in the past 8 years. We started at 20 years old so it was difficult to convince landlords and investors alike for our projects. Through these challenges, we have learned valuable lessons to build impactful and profitable ventures. We’re excited to continue to expand our concepts to 50 locations in the next 3-5 years.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
Chubby Cattle International specializes in creating and operating technology-enabled food and beverage ventures. Since opening its first restaurant in 2015, Chubby Cattle International has scaled to ten locations across the U.S. Founders Haibin Yang and David Zhao have been featured in Forbes’ 30 Under 30 – Food &; Drink List and are on track to see $50 Million in revenue this year.
As the group that opened the first restaurant in the world to provide the finest hot pot from Asia on a refrigerated conveyor belt, Chubby Cattle International is driven by vision and a commitment to bring communities together. Always innovating, the restaurant group works endlessly to provide customers with the most unique restaurant experience. Brands under Chubby Cattle Intl Hospitality Group include: The X Pot (Las Vegas & Chicago), Wagyu House by The X Pot (Rowland Heights), Chubby Cattle (in 5 states and counting), Xtra Sweet (Las Vegas) and NikuX (Los Angeles). The group is looking to expand its footprint to a total of 50 locations by 2025.
I want to highlight our newest venture, Niku X. This is our first collaboration with a Michelin-Starred Chef, Shin Thompson. Niku X just opened to the public in Downtown Los Angeles at the Wilshire Grand Center/Intercontinental DTLA Hotel.
Do you have any memories from childhood that you can share with us?
Eating hotpot with friends and family during Thanksgiving when my mom and I moved to the U.S. every year. Through hot pot, we would cook for each other and show love and appreciation for our friends and family. I had no idea 10 years later, I would be in the food and beverage industry serving hot pot and BBQ (traditional asian cuisine) to thousands of guests from around the world every day.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://nikux.com
- Instagram: @nikuxla, @chubbycattle, @xpotlv
Image Credits
Niku X Chubby Cattle International
