Time flies and it’s almost time for my Hokkaido trip. To be honest, i have the feeling it will be anticlimatic in comparison to my Europe trip, but nevertheless, there is food and tranquility to look forward to, not to mention the extremely hot weather in Singapore that i’m so so happy to leave behind.
I spent much of the past week working out the final details, such as the shortlisted places to visit, the restaurants to visit for every single meal, and the corresponding GPS coordinates of all these places (the nearest parking lot). Having done these, i have some extra travel tips to offer for those of you travelling to Hokkaido.
For trip research, i found a lot of useful information from the website good-hokkaido.info. It is apparently written by a single local blogger. The information is very comprehensive and not biased (in contrast to content written by tourists).
Here are the restaurants i have shortlisted:
Enroute to Otaru from New Chitose Airport: Salmon Ramen Menshouka Matsu
Otaru: Naruto Fried Chicken
Otaru breakfast: LeTao (double frommage cheesecake)
Niseko, enroute to Hakodate: Niseko Milk Kobo
Hakodate: Uni Murakami (Bafun-uni sea urchin rice bowl)
Hakodate breakfast: Seafood at the morning market
Lake Toya: Wakasaimo, Ippontei (Michellin recommended Soy Ramen)
Obihiro: Panchou (Butadon)
Kushiro: Aburiya あぶり家 (Seafood Izakaya)
Shiretoko: ウトロ漁協婦人部食堂 (Seafood rice bowl)
Abishiri: Yakiniku Abashiri Beer (Biru) Kan (Grilled beef)
Soundkyo: Beer Grill Canyon (for lack of better choice in a very touristic area)
Asahikawa: New Home Run or Nihomuran Ramen (decided to avoid the nothing-special Asahikawa Ramen Village)
Asahikawa: Jingisukan Daikokuya (Jingisukan is the Mongolian BBQ found all over Hokkaido, and one should probably try it at least once. Grilled mutton is the specialty dish, which we are not so fond of, and we will opt for beef instead)
Furano: Teuchi Soba Mansaku まん作 (Michellin recommended buckwheat noodles)
Furano: Popura Farm ポプラファーム本店 (mostly to try the melon)
Sapporo: Gurumanzuitou (Tabelog highly rated grilled beef)
Sapporo: Kaiyoutei (Seafood and crab)
Sapporo: Kinzushi (My policy is to have sushi once and only once every time i’m in Japan, due to the prohibitive cost)
Sapporo: Enishiya 縁や (The original Ebisoba or prawn ramen. It may not be the best by now, but even if so, i think the shortfall wouldn’t be obvious anyway and it’s more significant to try the very original bowl)
Sapporo: Aji-no-Sanpei (The original Miso ramen. As with the prawn ramen, it may not be the best by now, but even if so, i think the shortfall wouldn’t be obvious anyway and it’s more significant to try the very original bowl)
Sapporo: Snaffle’s and Kinotoya Bake, conveniently located in the Pole Town underground mall. Even though these shops are also found in Singapore, i don’t bother to try them when in Singapore because of the cost, and also because they are “probably lower in quality”.
GPS Coordinates that may be useful:
Takino Suzuran Hillside National Park Central Car Park 42.919709, 141.384533
Hakodate Sanbashi Car Park (Morning market) 41.773003, 140.724124
Obihiro Panchou (Nearby basement car park) 42.918992, 143.202588
Zerebu Hill 43.605887, 142.469822
Shinei-no-Oka Observatory Park 43.557710, 142.459831
Kanno Farm 43.542856, 142.438758
Shinkisai-no-oka 43.529526, 142.464115
Teuchi Soba Mansaku まん作 43.461935, 142.460299
Blue Pond 43.490354, 142.613038
Shirahige Waterfall 43.474591, 142.638351
Popura Farm 43.426193, 142.445075
