The thirty minutes allotted for lunchtime often limits students’ choices. Although Rochester and Rochester Hills themselves offer a wide variety of cuisines, there never seems to be enough time to drive to certain restaurants, order, eat, and drive back to RHS. We taste tested a classic eel and avocado roll at three places near RHS where students can grab some sushi on the go without breaking the bank.

Kroger- price $7.99

Although Kroger is not a place known for its ready-made food, RHS students have been known to pop in for affordable lunch choices. However, at around $8.00, Kroger’s sushi prices are on par with other restaurants, as opposed to being the cheaper choice. The eel and avocado roll did not meet sushi standards. There was too much rice, which was a little mushy and undercooked. The eel itself wasn’t bad, but there wasn’t a lot of it. The avocado was also mushy and tasted a little older. The packaging itself wasn’t anything to write home about, but there was noticeably not a lot of ginger. Our particular package only had one piece.

Nino: 2.5/5
Amanda: 2/5

Shogun- price $9.25 (labeled as Annalisa Roll)

According to their website, Shogun opens at 11:00 a.m., which might make it an unattainable choice for students who have first lunch. We ordered an eel and avocado roll, which they labeled an Annalisa Roll, after school and were told that the wait would be 10 minutes. The sushi was conveniently packaged, and instead of having packets of soy sauce, there was a small, capped, plastic container. The taste of the seaweed was very prominent, although that might have something to do with the fact that there was not as much rice. However, the rice that was there was slightly overcooked. The avocado in the roll was plentiful, with multiple slices decorating the top of the roll. Shogun was the most expensive of the rolls we tried, however, we were able to order using a coupon, which brought the price down to around $7.00.

Nino: 3.5/5
Amanda: 4/5
Take Sushi- price: $6.00

Although Take Sushi claims to open at 11:00 a.m., we were able to call in to order a little earlier than that. It’s not a guarantee that this happens every day, but if you’re a student in first lunch, it’s highly likely that if you order a sushi as soon as third hour ends, you will be able to pick it up with enough time to eat before lunch actually ends. The wait time is usually estimated at 10-15 minutes, but if it’s not busy, you’re likely to get it with a lot of time to pare. The wasabi and the ginger were wrapped in plastic within the actually package, which may be helpful for those who tend to forego these condiments. There was an abundant amount of avocado, which tasted fresh. In terms of the rice, we would say that Take had the best quality. The rice wasn’t too sticky or undercooked. The eel flavor was strong, and the chunks of eel were visible within the filling upon first glance. The sauce leaned a little towards the sweet side, but it was a great complement to the overall roll. Take Sushi had even more affordable prices than Kroger, and it was the best tasting.

Nino: 5/5
Amanda: 5/5