Miya’s Sushi

BUN LAI

Bun is especially passionate about sustainable food practices. His restaurant is the first and only sustainable sushi restaurant in the North East (one of four in America) with the largest vegetarian sushi menu in the world. Bun was, recently, featured in a cover story in the business section of the New York Times for his work on sustainability with the WeShop Network.

In 1982, mama opened New Haven county’s first sushi bar. The restaurant was named Miya, after her baby daughter. This restaurant was the culmination of her life’s ambition.

In my cuisine, I use the technique of sushi as a medium to explore what it is to be human. I see our work at Miya’s Sushi as the logical progression of sushi as it inevitably evolves into food that is cross-cultural, and more expressive of a human race that is educated enough to both respect each other’s differences, and to appreciate that, in spite of those differences we are, in the end, family. In every recipe of mine, cultures harmonize in ways that the people of the world have not yet figured out how to accomplish.

There is no religion where food is not used as an expression of the holy. Food brings people together. Food is a way to communicate that transcends language. Food helps us aspire to be more. Food must be idealistic and romantic. And that is why man cannot live on rice alone.

We are aware that the restaurant industry has a very harmful impact on the environment; in particular, the traditional cuisine of sushi is destroying our oceans. Therefore, we try to maintain a restaurant in as ecologically responsible manner as possible. We do our best to not use ingredients that are either overfished or that in their production have a negative impact on the environment. As a result, half of our vast menu is vegetable-centered; the other half does not utilize traditional sushi ingredients such as Toro, Bluefin Tuna, Big Eye Tuna, certain Yellowfin, Unagi, Red Snapper, Maine Sea Urchin, Octopus, and so on. Instead, we’ve created dishes that include unconventional sushi ingredients such as Catfish, which, unlike the farming of many farmed fish, are grown in confined ponds that make it virtually impossible to cross-contaminate other species or destroy the aquatic ecosystem around them.

Miya’s Sushi appeals to a growing population of sushi lovers who care enough about our planet to change the way they eat; they realize that consumerism, along with our zeal for exotic seafood, is sucking the breath out of our oceans. Together with our customers, we strive to eat in such a way that is nourishing for our bodies, our planet, and our souls.

miya’s sushi reveiw