The overcast November mornings in downtown Plano remind Chip Stroup of home back in Rhode Island.

Stroup started his career in the food industry washing dishes when he was a teenager. Growing up in a rough part of a town in Rhode Island, Stroup said he decided to pack his bags at age 18 and leave for Texas to avoid getting mixed up in the trouble.

After moving up through the ranks of the Dallas and Plano restaurant scene over the span of 30 years, he now owns Plano Kitchen & Bar.

Stroup purchased the restaurant, formerly known as Angela’s at the Crosswalk, after a four-year stint as the director of operations at Gas Monkey in Dallas.

“We were able to bring that from nothing to a high-volume brand. It was the first time that I actually went out and had the autonomy to do what I wanted,” Stroup said.

Although under a different name and new ownership, Stroup said he plans on keeping some of the original menu items that Angela’s at the Crosswalk was known for.

“We did keep some of the staples that Angela’s had, like the chicken-fried steak, her chicken and waffles, and we also integrated the pies as well, rather than come up with a dessert menu,” Stroup said.

While contacting leasing brokers of local restaurants, Stroup said he knew the downtown Plano storefront was fitting for the type of restaurant he planned on opening.

“This particular area is very involved not only with its own business but with everybody else’s businesses,” Stroup said. “As long as you are giving, people give back in this area.”

Stroup said because his work in the food industry and the Plano community has been so beneficial for him, he hopes his new business can be a platform so he himself can give back.

And it is in the interconnected restaurant scene that Stroup said his strengths are best put to use.

“You work 80 hours a week because you feel relevant,” Stroup said. “You feel part of something.”

Plano Kitchen & Bar
1010 E. 15th St.
Hours: Open for lunch and dinner seven days a week. Brunch is available on Saturdays and Sundays.
www.facebook.com/planokb
972-633-9500