As mentioned in my post where i had my first bite of king crab in Japan, it was only in day six that i actively pursued the partaking of fresh seafood iconic to Hokkaido; by visiting a seafood wholesale centre known as curb market!
I actually wonder if the word "curb" was with reference to the word "crab" and i couldn't quite find any direct references to it. Anyway, my main objective was to have king crab and we were excited also because it's weird for us to have planned for such a luxury meal so early in the morning.
Market was already in full force even though the crowd was manageable with more staff from the stores than customers mingling around in search of a good deal.
Quite a number of reviewers had indicated curb market is for the tourists and i can't really comment as the customers i walked past and chanced upon were a mix of locals (with their fluent Japanese) and foreigners.
Whatever the case, it was interesting to walk past the tanks of live seafood, especially the crabs that came in forms other than the signature king crab!
Many were chilled on ice though; now, i love to eat and have no deep set knowledge about the crabs to make a good judgment call on whether the quality / species would be worth the price and there were so many stores to choose from!
We decided to walk around the estate first before making a decision; it was said that the market has 60 stores and our focus was on the stores lining the side of the main soen hassamu dori road.
In addition to crabs, you can also find fish roes, sea urchin (thankfully, i don't really know how to appreciate it), dried seafood, corn, vegetables, cherries, grapes and the expensive yubari melons!
Combo deals were available and put in a packaging that would allow you to bring them back home to share with your family! I am so glad i put in an overnight transit at Bangkok on my return flight as it's so tempting for me to get some for my mum who loves crabs.
Do note that all prices are subject to consumption tax of 8%. Unless the taxes fluctuate every month, i always feel that it's better for any company to include the tax in their price reflections.
Again, tempted to get a slice of yubari melon! There are many things to love about Japan and one of them is the high emphasis for quality; sadly, that corresponds to an increase in price too! I must control my desire....
Dining outlets for us to indulge at; being skeptical and spoilt for choices, i reined in my growling tummy and depended on fate to make the decision (for breakfast) for us.
Across the road.
Crossing the road where a gigantic crab was waiting for us to do some photo-taking! Didn't materialize for reasons i can't remember.
Pity i was more attracted by the wide array of seafood. Strangely, i didn't see many fishes and most stores had displays of nothing but only crabs!
Dried / preserved seafood; i wouldn't mind buying but without any samples, it's hard for me to part with my hard earned money! When i was younger, i used to fork out money for snacks that looked interesting or appetizing but experience had taught me that having an interesting / appetizing appearance doesn't mean they taste even half as decent.
Scallops are usually the safer ones that taste not too bad and that's the one that people travelling to Hokkaido would buy! And yes, i did notice some of the products offered sampling!
Woah. S$40 for a whole box of uni!?
Cute bear holding on to a salmon!
I am too lazy to comment more since i can't recognize most of the seafood and don't have an understanding of the Japanese language; hence, please feel free to view the pictures as above.
Across the road from across the road; not sure if you know what i mean. Haha.
Do keep in mind that cheap doesn't mean you are getting the same deal; for the above case, it's 3 scallops for 500 yen but they were a lot smaller than the big one i got for 550 yen! I believe they were also of a different species.
500 grams of sea cucumber at an eye-popping 259,200 yen (about S$3,200)! Supposed to be of the best quality although i am so happy i didn't have a liking to it since young.
Sampling for Yubari melon!
We had a piece from the 2,200 yen one and yes, Alex almost got one! I had to dissuade him by saying we could never finish so much between the both of us; we had no knife in the our hotel and there's no way we can haul it back to Singapore! Heng he bought my reasoning!
Oh my god, a sampling platter of king crabs at Kyoei! We couldn't resist; took a bite and decided it's fate for us to buy the king crab from the same store! There's a dining area behind and for more pictures on the king crab (and scallop) we had, click here.
Don't they look like cooked prawns?! Yet they were swimmingly like live prawns in the tanks! That seriously piqued my curiosity although i should have seen them before as sashimi in Japanese restaurants.
6,900 yen for 300 grams?! Did i read that right? For almost S$80 (as converted), i can get a few kilograms of tiger prawns in Singapore!
Last few photographs before i end the post!
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Location
2-3 North 11, West 21, Chuo-ku, Sapporo,
Hokkaido 060-0011, Japan
Nearest Subway Station
Nijuyonken Station
Operating Hours
Typically from 6am till 5pm.
Website
For my 8 days, 7 nights Hokkaido itinerary in summer, click here.
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