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Mon-Fri. 5:00 a.m. - 10:00 p.m.
Sat-Sun. 3:30 p.m. - 10:00 p.m.
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What a way to start off my weekend in Austin! Ok, ok, I know the place is in Round Rock, but you get the point. By the time I had made the drive from Dallas, I was famished and a friend suggested a little sushi action might perk me up. Indeed, it did. We stopped in here for a quick bite before heading out for the evening, and I was impressed by this place, which was tucked away in a strip mall. It was a calm, friendly setting with lots of open space and a neat looking bar area.
We were seated immediately, but our waitress didn't seem to notice us for quite some time. Eventually, she made her way over to us & took our drink order, though she looked particularly disappointed when we didn't order alcohol. We were still looking over the sushi menu when she came back with our beverages, so she disappeared again for a while. Once we got the food ordered, it came out quickly, though our waitress was still MIA for most of the meal. Thankfully, one of her co-workers checked up on us a few times & made sure we were all settled.
We dove straight into the sushi - no appetizers or cooked food for us! My friend enjoyed his California roll, but I didn't try any out. I was much more interested in my sashimi order. I liked the salmon sashimi, which was nestled in a lovely setting of garnishes, lemon, and berries. Yea, I got distracted by the pretty things... it happens. The salmon was fresh, slightly cool, and very flavorful. The rainbow roll was topped with generous amounts of salmon, tuna, and yellowtail. I aways worry that places will skimp on that part of the roll, but not here. I'm a fan of a good cherry roll, though I thought this one could have done with a little less special sauce. Don't get me wrong, it was yummy, but I like to be able to savor the fish without it being covered and/or masked by another flavor. Still, it was tasty overall.
About an hour later, we waddled out stuffed to the gills (get it - gills? fish? Yea, I'm hilarious). Price wise, I'd say its on par with most decent places - Not too expensive, but still not cheap. Though, I suppose you get what you pay for when it comes to sushi. Aside from the slight blip with our server, I enjoyed our quiet dinner at Beluga and would be willing to give it another try.
Beluga is definitely a lunch time staple when I am in Round Rock for work. Weekday lunch specials make the sushi extremely affordable, especially for big eaters like my clientele. Beluga offers 2-for-1 sushi, although they do not allow sashimi on this menu. I end up wasting a lot of sushi rice, which is the main reason I am lowering this from a 5 star to 4 star rating. I have tried at least 10 times to explain to the waitstaff and management that if you are going to offer 2-for-1 sushi, you should also do it for non-rice options as well, otherwise there is alot of waste going on!
Also, if you have never been, you should definitely try their tower of tuna. It is wonderful!
Taken there for lunch by a work colleague and was really impressed by the quality in a strip mall place in Round Rock. Weekday lunch is more relaxed and quiet than some of the busier surrounding options and it must be that the lunch specials are a well kept secret. Sashimi is half price and there are also good "lunch box" options for ~$12. The Ahi Tower is a must if you haven't been there before - beautiful presentation before it's all jumbled up at the table. We had a selection of toro and yellowfin sashimi which were all very fresh and tasty.
Atmosphere is modern asian with dark woods and simple decoration on the wall. Great for a work lunch during the week, and I can imagine it's good for dinner too.
Additional plus is you can get dining miles with United and American Airlines - it's one of the only restaurants in the area which offers it.
Happy Hour is from 5-7 pm Monday through Friday and there are some good deals. My favorites are the Crispy Salmon Skin, Mr. Smith Roll and Jalapeno Roll. There are also drink deals during happy hour.
Beluga is a nice restaurant. The staff is very courteous and seem to always remember us when we go there to eat. The spider roll here is really great. If you want some good sushi at affordable prices, Beluga is a great stop.
"If you want high quality oats, then you are going to have to pay for them. If however, you can be satisfied with oats that have already been through the horse then that comes a little cheaper." unknown
So I went here a little while ago and was not only unimpressed but thought I would never go back. However, I heard through the grapevine that Chief Choo moved here and we decided to give it another shot.
So I have discovered that Sushi is 50% chief, 50% ambiance, and 50% owner/management. (I'm not an idiot I know that is more than 100% but stay with me here ... overlap)
So the 50% chief, Choo is the greatest EVER, I've had a lot of different sushi, and honestly even going to the better ones are kinda like a choice between McDonald's and Chilli's, if they cost the same, which means there really isn't a choice is there?
50% ambiance, it is a really nice place, it is clean, and interesting the bathroom ... yes, yes, I know what you are thinking "Brad, what the hell is your problem? You go to the bathroom everywhere. Well look if they can't keep the crapper clean, think about the kitchen .... yeah, not such a bad idea is it? So the bathroom is clean and well decorated. the waitress was very sweet (Kelly was her name, and she took really good care of us.) The decor was also pretty cool, I don't know what you would call it, "Modern Asian" maybe? Anyway it was cool.
50% management - Jay the owner came out and Choo introduced us, he talked to us for about 10 minutes, and was very pleasant. Now, one important note here is that he allows the chiefs to be themselves, so if a customer decides his chief is cool enough to want to drink with, he is cool with that (Choo is good with Soju(?) or Sake ..... we are sake people so that is what we have together.)
Choo is off on Tuesdays and Saturdays but otherwise you can catch him in :) I'm going back tomorrow. Choo has been the sushi chief that I have admired since we meet about 5 years ago. His presentation is fantastic, he is a true artist. And his station is very clean, you'll be able to tell it as you approach the bar, but just to save you a little time he is farthest from the entrance, and closest to the kitchen, his is the station with all of the fish lined up like a domino freak, and rolled in saran wrap in a way that would boggle the mind of an OCD dude.
The sushi bar is wide enough that you can sit at it comfortably with a fair amount of food and not feel terribly crowded. Although the view to the chief's workspace isn't that great (unless you are 8 feet tall, then it is probably pretty good.) but it is acceptable.
The only thing I'm not thrilled about is the portions, they seem a little small, but then again I am so stuffed I am having a problem walking. It was $100 for my wife and I (including tip) BTW the sushi chief tip jar is way behind the counter so you have to leave the tip on the counter for them (they do not share tips with the waitresses) so be prepared and bring some cash to tip them.
We had (among a lot of other things) the Iidako (which is a few cooked baby octopus on sticks) I thought it was a roll, it wasn't, but it was very good. We also had the Giant Clam (seared?) wow, that was an amazing experiance. the salmon skin roll, was pretty good, though it was cooked, and I'm not a big fan of cooked sushi (cooked raw fish, what?) We also tried the meat sushi, I thought it was great, but my wife has a hard time with raw beef ..... (I like my stakes still making noise, so nothing but a thing for me) The wasabi wasn't very hot, and the wasabi roe sushi was more sweet than spicy (a suprise) the Salmon roe was really fresh (SCORE!) as much as I like flounder though, it seemed like I was eating a fish I like less than salmon for almost twice the price.
anyway fantastic experiance, "Big Money, Big Prizes, I Love it!"
I have been to this sushi place several times now and let me tell you, sushi happy hour may be the best kind of happy hour there is. Well, let's not take it that far, but the happy hour is a good deal. The selection on the happy hour menu is not super extensive but you can get a good spicy tuna roll for $4, spicy salmon $5, shrimp tempura $5 and miso soup for $1. Can't beat it. Mix in some of the more creative rolls from the full menu and you've got a good sushi meal.
Overall, my boyfriend and I ate there last night and had 4 rolls, tempura ice cream (I am a SUCKER for ice cream wrapped in sponge cake, dipped in tempura and deep fried! Does it get better than that???) and 2 beers for under $40. Can't beat it! I'll definitely be back.
Great restaurant and a wonderful dining experience. The Ahi Tower is a must! The rolls were awesome...Mr Smith, Jalapeno Roll...all good. Topped off with a good wine selection or a Sapporo Beer.
The last time I was here, I had sushi mixed with tears. Let me explain. I had just broken up with my boyfriend and while poring over the sushi menu, I poured my heart out to a friend. Needless to say - everything tasted horrible, but it wasn't the restaurant's fault.
I went for lunch yesterday, but on a much happier note. Yay!
I had forgotten how nice the interior decor was. It's actually a pleasant surprise because it's smack dab in a shopping complex.
Pros:
- ahi tower and poke tuna
- convenient lunch spot + free wi-fi
- good variety of dishes for non-sushi eaters and fairly inexpensive omakase
- decent selection for drinkers: sake, beer, wine and house drinks
- flavored teas (made like a mojito with fresh mint)
- fresh fish
Cons:
- volcano roll made me want to hurl
- no bincho, sake toro or toro
- no fresh list of the day
- not impressed with their plating skills
Overall: a lot of specialty rolls, but not a lot of traditional sushi/sashimi choices. comparatively reasonable pricing. good variety on menu, but prefer quality over quantity.
We discovered this awesome Japanese sushi restaurant in Round Rock called Baluga.
You buy a $22 t-shirt, wear it on Sundays and get 50% OFF on the food!!!
You get your money back right after one meal.
It doesn't apply on brevrage... :(:(:(
Order the Mr. Smith roll. Sooooo good!!!
Beluga's honestly feels like our second home. We eat here once or twice a week & anyone that knows us, knows we adore Beluga's. The food is great and the service is fabulous!
Chef Chu is the new head chef and he has brought so many original & delicious additions to the menu. For the carb conscious, look for Chef Chu's new rolls without rice. Beluga's recently expanded their Happy Hour menu to offer a huge selection of things to try at a great price during 5-7pm. (Including some really good drink specials)
And if the food alone doesn't do it for you, the service is always great. We are huge fans of Kelly, Blair, & Tony. If you sit at the sushi bar, you'll watch Chu, Simon, & Teo in action.
My husband & I can't say enough good things about this place. We've celebrated birthday's & anniversaries here as well as rowdy happy hours in the Tatami Room or a quiet night, just the 2 of us.
If you are in the area & craving sushi, this is the very best choice.
My travels to Dell from downtown bring me into the heart of what I've come to think of as the anti-Austin. Round Rock. Suburban sprawl at its very best. But within that suburban sprawl, I have to say I've been to a couple of pretty good restaurants...one of them being Beluga.
I don't necessarily consider myself the consummate sushi connoisseur or anything, seeing that I've only really been eating it for the past 5 years...and only recently have I upgraded my sushi eating habits to sashimi instead of just rolls. However, I like to think that it's fairly easy to tell what is good sushi and what is bad sushi...and Beluga definitely serves up some good sushi, albeit a little pricey to make it a regular lunchtime thing.
One notices upon entry, the environment is clean and swank, with a lot of nice modern design lines in place. Some might call it pretentious...some refined. Either way, I think it's tasteful. The lunch menu is well rounded, serving everything from regular old california rolls to full on chef's choice sushi boxes.
The draw would be their lunch special, which is basically 4 pieces of sashimi for the regular price of two. The yellowtail, salmon, unagi and tuna were all quite good and fresh with absolutely no fishy taste. I've also had an alaskan, a philly, and a rainbow roll, all of which were very good as well.
Most notable was the green tea; they brew it fresh and pretty strong...so if you're normally a drinker of regular ol' bagged green tea, you should be forewarned that this ain't exactly your momma's green tea you'll be drinking.
I don't know why, but both times I've eaten there, I was UNpleasantly surprised by the bill. A co-worker and I ate there and the bill was on the upwards of about 44 bucks. And I didn't feel like we ate all THAT much. Of course, if you think about it, if you order a couple of 5 dollar pieces of the sashimi, one roll of some sort and a drink, that comes anywhere between 15-20 bucks a person...which again is why I don't think this is a feasible daily option.
Of course, I guess if you really wanted to eat affordable sushi on a daily basis, you'd probably just go to Zen....which isn't bad...but you get what you pay for. I think the quality of the food combined with the good atmosphere makes it worth a visit to Beluga.
Oh yeah...and they have free wi-fi, so when you're sitting there waiting for your next meeting in a series of 40 billion of them during the day, you can actually potentially do some work. Or play World of Warcraft. Not that I'd do that. I'm just saying...
So when I was living in SF, I had so many little japanese restaurants within walking distance of my house or work, bento boxes, donburi, and ramen became pretty regular for me, so being new to austin this was my first jap restaurant to try, plus it's right across the street from my office.
It's a little cheeseball-trendy in here, especially for lunch. I don't know what it's like at night but I can't see myself saying "Hey I feel like listening to some chill lounge music and doing sake bombs...let's go to Round Rock!"
So I ordered an unagi bento box. I usually eat japanese when I want something 'light', but I forgot this is TX and portions are huge. So they give me this big portion of unagi and the skin was left fatty instead of crispy (not bad, actually) and they had some monster tempura veggies. I ate way more than I wanted to, and left in a slight food coma and was late for a meeting. From freakin' japanese food. the california roll was nothing special, but I'd try their sushi next time....
I've been to many sushi places, but my experience at Beluga is, without a doubt, the worst I can recall. The only reason why I didn't give them only one star was that our party was huge and they were under staffed that day (even though we had made reservations). But we waited over an hour for our bill AFTER we asked for it. UNACCEPTABLE.
The food, as far as I can recall, was alright - nothing was spectacular.
Three reasons to seriously think about trying this place:
ichi - (1). Bento Box lunch specials. For example, try the Sushi Bento for about 12 1/2 clams. It includes miso soup, salad, fruit, tempura, sushi rolls, wasabi and an assortment of sushi that will impress you. I wonder why other restaurants don't use a concept like this? It is a fun way to try out a sampling of interesting foodstuffs. What exactly is a Bento Box, you might ask? Think of it as a Japanese version of the lunch box you carried on the short bus to school without the cool pictures of Kermit the Frog, Spongebob or the Powerpuff Girls on the front.
ni - (2). Fun seating options. This includes the bar area when you first walk into the restaurant, the seating area where most normal people would choose to dine, the sushi bar where the adventurous will sit and watch the sushi chefs at work and the special rooms set aside for Japanese style dining. How do you get into one of these special rooms I wonder? I am guessing this would be the sort of place to entertain your rock and roll entourage when out and about in Round Rock?
san - (3). Specials, specials, specials. Every day of the week has a new special to think about. 2 for 1 sushi special at lunchtime during the week. Half price on some wines on Monday night for all you winos out there. 2 dollar Saketinis on Tuesday night. Don't know what these are, but they sound very tempting. 2 dollar draft beers on Wednesday nights with Kirin Ichiban on draft! 2 dollar house saki on Thursday nights. I am beginning to see a trend here which is encouraging me to go and drink on school nights. Half price premium saki on Friday nights (As if I would know the difference between the house stuff and the really good stuff). And my favorite special which I really, really need to try on some Sunday would be the one where you get 1/2 off of your food bill if you wear your Beluga t-shirt or other Beluga gear.
OK. If this list of three reasons to try Beluga doesn't get you over there, then I give up. Keep on eating your peanut butter and banana sandwiches at home on the sofa.
We went here awhile back and while the food was very tasty, the portions are ridiculously small. We found the rolls had better prices so I ordered a salmon roll and 4 extra pieces of tuna. Then my husband and I split one of the fish entrees (red snapper I believe).
The entree for almost 30 dollars was shockingly small. Also it didn't come with any side dishes. The fish tasted delicious and was arranged nicely on the plate but needless to say, we left hungry. There was barely any meat on the fish, mostly bone that you had to pick around. I'm a light eater as well, so I expected 7 pieces of sushi and half of a fish entree to fill me up.
No bueno.
We were tempted to go next door to Happy Dragon Chinese Bistro since they serve massive portions but opted for dessert someplace else instead.
The special is interesting in that it is NOT half price. That is, if you order tuna @ $4.95, normally you would get 2 pieces. Under this happy hour special you get 4 pieces. But you can't order 2 of this and 2 of that. No matter, for me, as I have favorites that make this work for me.
I go for the Wednesday night special before 7:00 PM.
Wednesday $2 drafts (Widmer Hefeweisen, Kirin, Sapporo) and 2-for-1 special on sushi only (not on rolls).
Rolls are never on special. I agree that this should be clearly stated somewhere. I would be mega-peeved i I got caught in that one.
The sushi was fresh, the bar serves fairly well and there are 4 or 5 TVs if you are dining alone. The restaurant is tastefully done with American music in the background (sometimes a little loud). Outdoor seating is available if the weather is not Seattle-minor or a Mojave Desert-substitute.
On Wednesday night you can have 8 pieces of sushi, 2 beers and still get out for less than $20 with a very generous tip. All in all, the best bargain for a good sushi experience that can be found.
There are other fine choices such as Origami in Round Rock - but I have yet to leave there for less than $45. If I was going to have rolls at Beluga I would also consider going to Origami as they have some fantastic habanero sauce and the Bob Marley Roll. Mmmm.
I reccomend the Yellowtail Heaven for the appertizer.
I know the Ahi tower is a big deal there and I was going to order this but I saw it had like 2 pieces of tuna and way to much rice so I wasnt sure it was worth it.
The Cherry roll and Crunch-Munch roll is yummy!
Worth going back.
When my boyfriend came back from a business dinner proclaiming that he'd had the best sushi he'd had in his life, I was skeptical. When he told me that it was in Round Rock, I demanded to see it for myself. Sure, it's quite a drive and the idea of going to Round Rock for sushi may make you twitch, but Beluga is well worth it.
If it's your first time, start with the Ahi Tower, the dish that proves presentation isn't everything. Your server will bring out a gorgeous tower of tuna tar-tar, snow crab, cucumber, and rice that they will then proceed to turn into mush. But it will be the best tasting mush you have ever eaten. Like the Ahi Tower, the sushi here is all about creativity and presentation. Even the standard rolls such as shrimp tempura and spicy tuna are given a unique flair. The real adventure is in Beluga's special rolls. Try the cherry roll or the spicy Jen-Jen, or get really ambitious and go for the Blue Goose.
For now, Beluga is Round Rock's best-kept secret, but it won't be for long. Hurry up and go while you can still get a seat.
Such a nice restaurant hidden nearby the HEB of Louis Henna Blvd! It's a little pricey, especially for lunch, for the dishes are rather fresh and creative!
I had the daily special grilled mackerel from the dinner menu and it was definitely a head turner.
Lunch is quite crowded. It's a good sign.
my boyfriend and i went here on friday for an impromptu sushi date night. nothing like raw fish to get you in the mood, right?!
beluga is so much more. we were nervous about the service because some reviews we'd read had said it was awful, but our waitress was friendly, helpful and amazingly good at keeping our water glasses full without interrupting our conversation. we sat at the sushi bar to get a front row seat to the artistry taking place behind the counter.
the two sushi chefs in front of us were an absolute delight to watch. they took such care and deliberation in creating these food masterpieces that it was like watching an artist. if you've never paid attention to the preparation of sushi, i highly recommend it. if you get a sushi chef that truly cares about the food, it's a treat to watch them put together such beautiful dishes.
every single thing we ate was delicious. the ahi tower is a MUST. we also had the spicy jen-jen and dragon rolls along with some salmon and yellowtail sushi. for dessert we had the banana tempura ice cream. it was pricey, yes, but the quality of the food was definitely worth it.
we stayed for awhile longer to admire the sushi chefs, who were really funny and didn't mind us hanging out to watch them work. i'm seriously considering becoming a regular. a sushi groupie, if you will. :)
I went with friends for dinner Friday night. We are sushi newbies, so we ordered a variety of things. Everything was good. We got several rolls, the Blue Goose and the tower thing. One fellow diner who does not eat seafood got a spicy pork stirfry and it was excellent, too. The server was very attentive and brought things out as they were ready. It was a lot of fun and we sat for a long time just enjoying the plates and sharing as they came out. I will definintely be back.
My husband and I went here for dinner. It wasn't very busy, but our service was still very, very slow. The place is very chic looking and they play techno music in the background, which I didnt mind. I asked a few questions regarding the menu and the waiter didnt seem to know much about the entrees. My husband ordered the duck and I ordered the ribeye which took 45 mins and for the prices we paid, the portions were skimpy and the food was just ok. Neither of us are big sushi eaters, but we ordered the Philly roll which was pretty good. We probably wont return since we've been to better!
My wife and I decided to go out of our way to Beluga recently (we live kinda far) because we read so many good reviews about it. When we arrived, they still had the happy hour so we decided to order from HH menu. We ordered Seafood Tempura, miso soup, nigiris (yellowtail, salmon, spicy scallop, flounder, etc) and their popular Firecracker roll.
To much of our disappointment, the Seafood Tempura was really small (it has ONE and I mean ONE SMALL shrimp tempura, with two even SMALLER pieces of fish). Miso soup was okay, very typical, nothing special and you won't probably remember the taste as soon as you finish drinking it.
Then came the nigiris, spicy scallop was pretty good I must say, but the rest (salmon, yellowtail, etc) was not good. They are very small, fish is not fresh, and lousily prepared as the rice fell apart as soon as we picked it up from the plate, let alone trying to dip it into soy sauce.
Finally, the firecracker roll... and we thought it couldn't get any worse. Wrong! This roll was nothing and certainly didn't live up to its reputation. Rice was too soft, fish again is not fresh, and the roll didn't even look appetizing or artistic or pretty (like many rolls at other sushi restaurants).
The server was pretty nice to us, and that's probably the only reason we didn't just ran out of there.. considering the ordeal and horrible dining experience we just had. But we couldn't get ourselves to try anything else so we turned down dessert even though she was telling us how good it was.
We left that restaurant completely unhappy, unsatisfied and unfull. We stopped by nearby pluckers to have our 'real' dinner instead.
I go to Beluga for lunch quite a bit, it is good but kinda pricey. If you go try the Mr and Mrs. Smith Sushi roll, it is fabulous. The eel (Unagi) is very good and the specialty of the house is BBQ ribs.. they are very good. So many sushi places around so it is hard to stand out, but this place is definitely worth a try.
Truly bad sashimi. If you think day old fish is good, this is your place.
Perhaps the cooked dishes are better, but I have no incentive to return.
We have been going here since it opened and while "Fish" no longer owns it, the current owners still seem to keep up the same great food and atmosphere. While we wish it was in a different location, we make the trek out there because we enjoy it so much.
Located across Dell Computer's Corporate HQ in Round Rock - the sushi here is fresh and melts in your mouth. On Saturday's they even have all you can eat sushi @ 35$ + Sake - the only catch is the entire table must buy in (no sharing for free).
stay away from the fish here. i'm not talking about the food but the pervy balding russian co owner who will defn hit on you if you are a semi-attractive lady esp. when you're with a group of your friends. if you want to compliment the owners on the DELICIOUS food, ask for the other owner, jay. what a nice man. anyway enough about that, the food is delicious. its really easy to get carried away at beluga and keep ordering but the food's so good you don't even care that you went way over on what you intended to spend. it doesnt seem like a sushi restaurant next to an heb and a game stop would have some rave-worthy sushi but beluga is my fave spot for sushi hands down.
Round Rock, TX
Category: Asian Fusion
Round Rock, TX
Category: Japanese
Austin, TX
Category: Vietnamese
Round Rock, TX
Category: Chinese
Neighborhood: Pflugerville
Category: Ethiopian
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