If you ever get a chance to go to Hokkaido (Japan’s Northern-most island), there’s a strong possibility that people will tell you of all the foods you need to try when you get there. Before I traveled to Japan, I was sure to research what foods were popular in each city we were visiting. Japan is known for having amazing food, and Hokkaido is famous for having the best dishes and freshest items. From some of the most succulent seafood, rich soup curries, creamy dairy, and fresh meats, Hokkaido has something for everyone to enjoy.
SOUP CURRY
When we arrived in Sapporo, we were not only excited to see the powdery snow falling, but to fill our stomachs with something hearty and delicious. After grabbing some coffee, we were on the hunt for a soup curry restaurant. Soup curry is a light curry flavored soup, loaded with lots a vegetables and a type of protein like chicken, beef, or lamb. It is also served with a side of rice.
At Soup Curry Soul Store, we ordered the Hokkaido stewed beef curry with gobo and maitake mushroom tempura. I got the mild option, but my boyfriend and his friend ordered the spicy option. The beef was sooo incredibly tender, and the curry was complex with many flavors coming through. The tempura batter was light yet crispy, and held its integrity as it sat in the soup curry. I’d say the consistency of the soup curry is not thick like a chowder, but more like a tonkotsu pork broth. Maybe it could be considered like a curry stew? We also ordered a mixed berry lassi. The two items complimented each other so well! It hit the spot after walking around in the snow. All together, the meal for each person was about $15.00 USD.
SAPPORO BEER – Sapporo Exclusive drinks and beers!
Another item that’s a “must try” in Hokkaido is Sapporo Beer. During our first day in Sapporo we also made time to stop by the Sapporo Beer Museum. They have guided tours, a tasting room, a self-led tour, and beer garden. We did a quick walk through of the beer museum, learning about the history of the company and beer in Hokkaido. There is a strong influence of German brew tactics in the history of Sapporo Beer. At the end of the tour is a tasting room, but when we went the line was 2 hours long. We decided to go to their beer garden gift shop outside of the museum to do our own little tasting.
We had Sapporo Hefeweizen and the Sapporo’s exclusive Ribbon Napolin fizzy drink, and other beers from the gift shop’s vending machine. Each beer is only offered in Sapporo and tasted very different from each other. They were about ¥600 each ($4.50 USD). As an amateur beer-drinker, even I enjoyed the differences between each offering. The beer garden gift shop also sold Sapporo/Hokkaido souvenirs and ice cream. Because we just filled up on soup curry, we were only there to try the special beers. As people from Hawaii, we enjoyed our beers outside in the snow. Beer tastes the best ice-cold, anyway!
DONBURI – Rice bowls with fresh seafood toppings
Our hotel in Sapporo was close to Tanukikoji Shopping Street, and at the end of that is a seafood market called Nijo Market. We had a lot of fun walking through the vendor stalls and admiring the crabs, scallops, unusual fish, and other specialties. With all the seafood around, we had to get a donburi. All of the donburi restaurants had at least a 45-minute wait with lines of 15+ people so I was feeling a little discouraged. As we were walking back to the train station, I decided to turn down a small hallway in the building and we found a donburi restaurant with no wait!
I ordered a donburi with salmon sashimi, ikura (salmon roe), and Hokkaido scallop (hotate) sashimi. I usually don’t like hotate, but I decided to try it because we were in the place that it’s famous in. I LOVED it. Even my boyfriend who is particular with his seafood really enjoyed it. It had a light scallop flavor with a slight sweetness and the texture was melt-in-your-mouth like chuutoro (fatty tuna). The slices of salmon sashimi I had were from the belly area so that was deliciously rich and also melted in my mouth. It was probably the best salmon sashimi I’ve ever had. The rice was also delicious and perfectly seasoned to compliment the seafood.
My boyfriend ordered a kani (snow crab) donburi which had fresh snow crab shreds over the same sushi rice. The crab was sweet, light, and so fresh. The donburi was also served with hot soup. We both enjoyed our donburi and were ready to start our day. As we were walking out there was a long line outside of the restaurant that led down the hallway to the street. We were so grateful that we got to try that spot with no wait. The mini donburi were around ¥2000 each, which is about $14.71 USD.
GENGHIS KHAN BBQ – “JINGIS KAN“
Another dish that is popular in Japan is Genghis Khan BBQ. It is lamb yakiniku (grilled meat) that has a sweet and savory sukiyaki-like marinade on it. At the restaurant we went to we chose a set with four cuts of lamb, vegetables, soup, and rice. The set was ¥2000, which is equivalent to about $14.71 USD. The set came with prime lamb, lamb, mutton, and lamb heart. Each cut was seasoned with the same marinade and the lamb was only a little gamey. I was a little apprehensive about eating lamb heart, but I’m glad I gave it a try. It ended up tasting like a tender piece of lamb that was a bit iron-y. I think the marinade helped cover the gamey taste. It tasted great with the lemon sour cocktail we ordered! Overall, a great experience. I’m glad we gave it a try even though we don’t typically eat those cuts of meat.
Sapporo was freezing cold (at 11 degrees F), a little scary to walk around because of the ice on the ground, yet so beautiful. I had to split my walking time with looking at the ground to make sure that I didn’t fall, and also looking around at the beauty that Sapporo has to offer. I’ve only experienced Tokyo before this, and I really enjoyed the slower pace of Hokkaido. Although Sapporo is the “city” of Hokkaido, it wasn’t too densely populated with big crowds, which was a nice way to kick off our trip. The food we enjoyed here was so delicious and fresh! I bought some curry mixes to bring home and try to recreate for my family. I hope to return one day and enjoy all the yummy food again!
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