Deb sends the all-school email. The clock strikes noon. The mad dash begins. Every Thursday, countless students flee from their E-period class, arriving at the Bathhouse in droves. This is Sushi Live at the Bathhouse.
Any sushi lover's dream, the weekly tradition offers Lawrentians an escape from Tsai’s traditional daily menu for another delicious alternative. Every week the Bathhouse sells a variety of sushi rolls made on-site by Sushi Chef Mike. From fish to vegetarian options, the Bathhouse has a roll for everyone.
But what goes into running Sushi Bathhouse Live? How did Sushi Live come to be? What sushi is truly the best? Campus’s favorite, Deb Miliaresis P’26, gives an inside look into the sushi tradition.
“Gary Giberson, the CEO of Sustainable Fare LLC here on campus, has been friends with Sushi Chef Mike for over twenty years. Together, they launched Sushi Live at the Bathhouse in 2019. We had a brief COVID hiatus but have been going strong ever since,” explains Deb. They have been succeeding, selling around 300 sushi rolls on average every Thursday. Most students will come multiple times during the day to enjoy the Bathhouse’s daily offerings.
Typically the busiest day of the week, Thursdays draw in big crowds and long lines, creating a lively, bustling environment that certainly proves challenging to handle at times. However, the task is not too big for the Bathhouse team. Luisa Aparicio, Angela Aparicio, and Chef Mike work efficiently on Thursdays to quickly serve sushi to students. As Deb puts it, “it is hectic for most of the day, but together we make a great team and support one another.” Making the task a little easier, this year the team uses a microphone to call out orders when it's ready, which expedites the line-moving significantly. “We also now have a better system for the line flow which really helped this past week. The students look forward to having sushi on Thursdays and we work hard to fill your orders and see a smile on your face.”
Precisely on theme, “Deb and the Bathhouse team always put a smile on my face,” says Churan Xu ’25, a frequenter of the Sushi Bathhouse Live. With E free on, she “[looks] forward to beating the line after school meeting to enjoy Salmon Avocado sushi.” Churan and many others alike take advantage of this Thursday schedule to study and enjoy a healthy sushi meal with friends.
“The best part of Sushi Live is that it is another healthy option for the students on campus. Chef Mike puts a lot of love into his art, and we are very proud to be able to do this for our community,” says Deb.
And for the answer we’ve all been waiting for… Deb declares that “spicy crab roll is the best…especially when we add eel sauce to it :)”. Life at Lawrenceville is a constant countdown to taste this fan-favorite sushi each Thursday!