Kids roll out the fun with Cowfish’s sushi rolling night

Most kids, Jen Brantley said, are hesitant about trying sushi.

Brantley, the director of communications for The Cowfish Sushi Burger Bar, said involving them in the process of making sushi and learning about the history of it has made them more willing to eat something new. 

“We’ve just become such a family spot there at the Summit,” she said.

The sushi rolling activity for kids is free each week on Wednesday night from 5 to 7 p.m. The idea to teach kids to roll sushi, Brantley said, originated when they tried the activity at birthday parties for kids at the restaurant, and the kids and their families loved it. Some schools do sushi rolling for fundraisers, too.

“I thought this is really cute, and it’s kind of different, so we just gave it a shot,” she said. 

At first, the free sushi rolling night was just offered intermittently at the restaurant.

“We thought, you know what, kids are obviously our thing,” she said, so in April they expanded the sushi rolling event to be every week. Brantley said parents are required to be there at the restaurant during the event. 

Due to allergies, Brantley added, the kids make veggie rolls made of rice, seaweed wrappers, English cucumbers and asparagus. A roll of sushi is generally cut into six pieces, all of which the kids eat after making the roll. Wednesday is also half-price wine night for adults.

“It worked out really well because people are staying and eating, and then they take advantage of wine night while their kids are busy,” Brantley said. 

Brantley said the event has really taken off, and they’ve had a couple dozen kids show up and cycle through the line to make their own sushi. Some kids even go through the line more than once.

“We had a kid last week that tried it for the first time, and he came back to the table twice, and his mom was like, ‘He doesn’t even eat vegetables,’ and I was like, ‘I know, he does now though,’” Brantley laughed.

Sometimes the chefs will bring out seaweed salad for the kids to try, and even kids who don’t usually eat greens will try it because of the fun and playful situation. 

“It’s funny when you get the guy in the white coat serving it, it’s totally different, and when he’s explaining what goes into it, how to make it, I mean, it’s just more hands-on, and they’re more interested,” Brantley said. “It’s a great way to introduce them to sushi.”

 Plus, she added, their chefs love to come out and talk to customers and interact with the kids. Some weeks, Brantley said, they even offer face painting by some of the employees, which the kids also love. Usually, they paint sea creatures and similar themes.

To learn more about The Cowfish Sushi Burger Bar, go to thecowfish.com. To book a party, email them at feedback@thecowfish.com.