In Monroe, there are a few Japanese restaurants serving sushi that have become favorite hot spots for students at ULM.
Ever since the tsunami and nuclear reactor crises in Japan, people have been concerned about Japanese food exports. It raises the question about Monroe’s sushi and whether it has been affected by radiation or not.
Oliver Jackson, a sophomore kinesiology major from Monroe, is not worried about the tsunami affecting his visits to sushi restaurants.
“I like sushi, and I am still going to eat it. RawZ Café and Samurai are my favorite spots to go, and that’s not going to change,” Jackson said.
Samurai, a sushi-serving Japanese restaurant in Monroe, hasn’t been affected by the tsunami. The food that they serve customers is bought locally, and they recieve fresh fish every day.
Hoi Loc, an assistant manager at Samurai, says the only thing that has changed is the prices of sushi.
Loc said, “The prices go up and down, but nothing else has changed.”
He also said that they don’t have a problem getting any product that is ordered. Their customers still come as if nothing has happened, and business is still good for them.
Senior vocal performance major Allyson Wilson is also not going to let the tsunami affect her eating habits.
“I still eat sushi, and I have been to Samurai after the tsunami. Nothing has changed,” Wilson said. Even though Wilson is concerned for the citizens in Japan, she is not concerned about the quality of her food.
“I order the same thing every time, and I enjoy eating at Samurai,” she said.
The RawZ Café, another sushi restaurant here in Monroe, has also been affected by the price inflation, but the restaurant buys its products locally as well. Nothing is bought internationally.
Goods are bought from a warehouse that supplies all of their food and products. Business is still good for these two restaurants.
The Japanese Sushi Bar Kyoto, on the other hand, is closed. General manager and executive chef, John Mann, was not available for comment.
