When it comes to buying ingredients in Hokkaido, it's gotta be "Sato Suisan." Most of my travel companions, when they go to Hokkaido, usually get souvenirs from "Sato Suisan." This time, I bought a bento box from there. It's called "Marugoto Hokkai-don." What a catchy name. But even though the name is impressive, the bento box itself is small. If you plan to have it for lunch or dinner, this bento box might not be enough in terms of quantity. However, the contents are luxurious. The toppings include: Hokkaido snow crab, Rausu kombu-seared salmon, Hokkaido octopus, Okushiri Island sea urchin, and Hokkaido salmon roe. It's like an all-star festival.

In December 2022, I tried "mekabu," which is salted salmon or trout kidney, also known as "chimata." It is carefully prepared by removing the kidneys and aging them in salt and soy sauce. I purchased soy sauce-marinated mekabu. I was hesitant to try the dark dish, but it turned out to be surprisingly delicious with a texture similar to raw liver. I believe this is a perfect snack to enjoy with sake.

Speaking of Sato Suisan, it's like a popular idol at the airport. They offer a variety of seafood souvenirs and bento boxes. Before boarding the flight back to Tokyo, I bought the "Seafood Kamameshi," which comes with separate ingredients and rice for you to assemble yourself. If you assemble it carelessly, it might end up in the dark abyss of your husband's stomach. But it was delicious. My stomach's idol was Sapporo Classic beer.

When I went to York Benimaru, they were doing something called "Famous Bento Box Tour of Various Regions". When Yamazawa holds the "National Ekiben Competition", other supermarkets also do something similar (laughs). I bought the "Zuwai Crab Legs and Two Kinds of Crab Feast". It has vinegar rice topped with shredded crab meat and two Zuwai crab legs. It's delicious, but the size is quite small (laughs).

One popular item at Hokkaido's gateway, New Chitose Airport, is the famous "Sushi of Ishikari" bento. Established in 1948 as a salmon processing company that goes upstream in the Ishikari River, Sato Suisan's sushi department, Sato Suisan Sushi, manufactures and sells this bento. Introduced at Chitose Airport in 1972, it is known as the "originator of airport bento" and the pioneer of airport bento, a long-selling classic. Ishikari Sushi, made with plenty of Hokkaido autumn salmon and crab meat, is a pressed sushi dish arranged in red and white colors. The vinegar rice is made with "Hoshino Yume" from Asahikawa, Hokkaido, and finished with a special vinegar. Currently, a deluxe version of Ishikari Sushi with "salmon roe" added, called "Ikura Ishikari Sushi," is also available and is also popular. It is the second best-selling airport bento at New Chitose Airport, competing with Ishikari Sushi.

After arriving at Chitose Airport, I first had breakfast!! I bought a bento box from a place that caught my eye. The rice was delicious. The sea urchin was rich and creamy, but the appearance was a bit messy. Overall, I could feel the taste of the sea. If I had to say, maybe if it was presented a bit more elegantly, it might have tasted even better. But I guess this place is famous. There were signs everywhere.

When you come to New Chitose Airport, there is a shop called "Sato Suisan" that you just have to visit, regardless of whether you buy anything or not. It's a famous shop specializing in salmon processed products. It's located in the souvenir corner on the 2nd floor of the departure lobby, all the way to the right at the back... It's the location in the 3rd corner when you go around in a clockwise direction. You can't miss it when you come to the airport. I wanted to try something different this time, so I opted for the Hot Smoked Salmon for 1130 yen and the Salmon Butter Flakes for 575 yen. The Hot Smoked Salmon had a generous portion and was great for breakfast or as a snack with drinks. The Salmon Butter Flakes are perfect with hot rice for breakfast, with a hint of butter flavor to give you energy for the day. It was delicious, thank you for the meal. [Rating on Tabelog: 3.48]

After having lunch at "Tokachiketto Ramen New Chitose Airport Store," I had some time before my train, so I decided to stop by. It was around 12:45 pm on a Sunday, and the place was quite crowded with many customers. I purchased my favorite "Salmon Cheese Rolls (5 pieces) for 1,382 yen" and tried something new, "Hitokuchi sakecchi (120g) for 800 yen" (both including tax). They even provided me with a cool pack for the "Salmon Cheese Rolls." I enjoyed the "Salmon Cheese Rolls" later that day around 7 pm at a friend's house, and as always, they were delicious. My friend also loved them. They paired well with white wine. I had the "Hitokuchi sakecchi" after returning to Niigata. It had a visual appearance similar to salmon roe, but the taste was completely different. It seemed to be a mixture of salmon paste and cheese, shaped into sticks. It had a soft texture, easy to eat, with the flavor of salmon and the richness of cheese spreading in your mouth. The right amount of saltiness was also perfect. It suited my taste, and I found myself finishing it without realizing it (laughs).

2022/4 First visit during Golden Week to pick up my daughter returning home. I arrived at the airport earlier than the scheduled time, so I decided to take a short stroll. Airports are usually geared towards souvenirs, so the prices are high and there isn't much to buy. When it comes to salmon, "Satoh Suisan" is the best choice. Whether it's their products from the factory in Ishikari or their store at Sapporo Station, you can never go wrong with their processed goods. After retiring as a professor at Tokyo University of Agriculture and becoming famous for his gourmet essays, Professor Takeo Koizumi also set up a residence in Sapporo and was involved in product development for the same company. I can confidently recommend their products to tourists from Honshu as well. The "Salmon Pate" for 470 yen is especially delicious when spread on a baguette with cream cheese. The "Soft-boiled Herring" for 290 yen is essentially a sweet simmered dish. You can eat it whole, bones and all, without any worry about small bones. While items like salmon roe and ikura may be a bit pricey and out of reach, these products are definitely worth the cost.

A bento shop that offers the best of Hokkaido seafood with salmon, ikura, and crab. The taste, portion size, and cost performance are all excellent! The famous seafood processing company in Hokkaido, "Sato Suisan". For visitors to Hokkaido, the giant rice balls with various fillings are well known. They also offer bento boxes centered around seafood, and among them, the sushi bento series is a product limited to the Chitose Airport store. (Recently, it seems you can also purchase it at Haneda Airport!) I decided to buy a bento before heading back to Tokyo since there wasn't much time left. I was torn between various options, but I finally settled on the 2nd most popular item at Sato Suisan, the "Ikura Ishikari Sushi"! Luckily, there was an empty seat next to me, so I could enjoy the view and meal leisurely! Once the plane was over the Pacific Ocean, the seatbelt sign went off, and I lowered the table on the seat to place the bento. The package had images of ikura, salmon, and crab, reflecting the contents of the bento, giving it an orthodox look. The box was made to look like wooden construction, adding a luxurious feel. Surprisingly, the box was made of paper, not foam. The Sato Suisan logo shines! Then, in the airspace over the Tsugaru Strait, it was time for the "unveiling ceremony"! The ikura, salmon, and crab bento was overall pink in color. The visual presentation was surprisingly elegant! Recently, there have been many bentos with a brown base, so this looked fresh. The ikura and salmon were not as salty as expected, which was quite good. The standout was the crab. It was a bit dry, but it was a touching experience to have crab after a long time. Even without the accompanying soy sauce, it was still delicious. I finished it in no time! It was so tasty!

I stopped by during souvenir time... I always rely on Chitose when using it. I even have a point card... I always use home delivery. I just recently found out that there is a store at Haneda too!! It's a silly story, the selection is different though.

I've never been to Hokkaido! I want to go! I was shouting that I wanted to go, and then I received a souvenir of "Ruibe" from a business trip. It's perfect for drinking! The taste is just right, not too strong or too weak. When things settle down, I'll go to Hokkaido♪

The catchphrase "Aokiri's carefully selected sea urchin and salmon rice, cooked in 1500 seawater kettles, has a texture similar to fresh sea urchin" is interesting. The fluffy texture is unique and delicious. It's different from the mushy sea urchin at cheap sushi restaurants or the dry sea urchin in bento boxes. The rice with salmon and soy sauce is good. This bento is worth trying!

On this day, I visited the souvenir shop "Sato Suisan New Chitose Airport Store" at New Chitose Airport. It was the last day of my business trip to Hokkaido, and everything went smoothly, arriving at the airport earlier than expected. I changed my flight to an earlier one at the counter and decided to buy souvenirs here. This shop has been a favorite of mine at New Chitose Airport. The menu includes ikura (salmon roe) marinated in white soy sauce and salted shrimp. I enjoyed them with freshly cooked "Yamakoshi Tanada Rice Koshihikari" at home this month. Thank you for the delicious meal.

There are few shops at New Chitose Airport that handle "mefun," which is salted salmon blood mixed with salt to concentrate the flavor of salmon. Recently, with the decrease in salmon catches, the number of shops selling mefun has also decreased. Among the two seafood shops at the airport, Sato Suisan offered the most reasonably priced mefun. I also bought my favorite herring kirikomi, which was packaged in a simple sealed pack rather than a bottle and was also reasonably priced. Now it's time for a drink! I poured Nada's famous sake "Kuromatsu Kenbishi" into a sake server, served mefun and kirikomi on a plate, and enjoyed a drink. Since mefun has less salt than before, it was easier to eat and had a fluffy texture. Kirikomi, made with salted herring with added red pepper, had a traditional flavor with a mild and easy-to-eat taste. It pairs well with sake, making it a great snack for sake lovers. Despite concerns about salt content for health reasons, it is a delicious delicacy that complements sake drinkers. It also makes a great gift for sake lovers or a treat for yourself.

When it comes to seafood, Sato Suisan is the place to go - let's buy some soy sauce-marinated salmon roe for those who love ikura. They offer large quantities of ikura by weight, with packages ranging from 200g to 300g for around 4500 yen. The expiration date is 11 days away, so it should be enough. The soy sauce's saltiness is perfect, making it incredibly delicious when served on rice. Thank you for the meal!

<About the shop> A branch of a seafood specialty store founded in 1948. It is said to have been around since the new Chitose Airport terminal building was built, but this is unconfirmed. It reopened on July 15, 2011. They offer a cold pack service. <Products> - Salmon Ikura Marinated in Soy Sauce (110g bottle) ... Price: 947 yen including tax - Ingredients: Salmon (from Hokkaido), salmon roe (ikura) (from Hokkaido), soy sauce (including wheat and soybeans), reduced malt syrup, rice fermented seasoning, salt, salmon fish sauce / acidity regulator, trehalose, antioxidant (vitamin C), seasonings (amino acids, etc.), paprika color, enzyme - Contents: 110g - Expiry date: 11 days from the date of purchase This is a special delicacy marinated in a special soy sauce made with salmon soy sauce, using natural salmon from Hokkaido and ikura only. It is a popular product of Sato Suisan, boasting sales of about 1.8 tons at Hokkaido product exhibitions held in department stores nationwide. Development began in 1998, and after trial and error, it was launched in 2001. In 2010, the product was renewed by adding the salmon soy sauce developed by Sato Suisan as a hidden flavor. "Ruibe" refers to frozen raw salmon for sashimi, meaning "melting (ru)" and "food (ibe)" in Ainu language. The plastic cup version was priced at 1,080 yen for 150g, which was more cost-effective, but I chose the bottled version considering the possibility of leakage when carrying it as hand luggage. The 110g bottle contains sliced salmon and ikura. The salmon has a moist texture due to the protein dissolved by salt, and the ikura has a firm, popping texture. There is also a unique flavor from the salmon fish sauce, making it very delicious. It was well received by my family, and I would like to purchase it again when I visit Hokkaido.

Hokkaido seems to have a lot of people with the last names Sato and Yoshida. Setting that aside, Sato Suisan's salmon roe bento is delicious as always! Besides the ikura and salmon roe, I couldn't quite figure out what else was in it, but both the ikura and salmon roe are tasty! Some people may not like cold bento, but amateurs! Cold dishes, especially those with vinegared rice, are delicious too!

It's a revisit at night. Sato Suisan is a fairly large seafood company. The shop used to be in a prominent location in the terminal building, but after renovations, it became hidden in the back. My favorites here are the "Salmon Roll (with cheese)" for 658 yen and the "Jarocco (with cheese and salmon roe)" for 1180 yen. I bought the Jarocco for my partner's older sister and best friend. The older sister uses it as a topping for canapes as a beer accompaniment. I spread it on French bread and enjoyed it myself. Cheese and salmon roe surprisingly go well together. There seem to be various ways to use it. I also like the Salmon Roll, but it seems like the taste of the salmon has slightly diminished. Regarding the French bread in the image, I will talk about it later.

I bought octopus shabu-shabu as a souvenir from Hokkaido for my family. It was priced at 1,800 yen and said it could also be eaten as sashimi, so we had it as sashimi at home. It came with ponzu sauce, and we dipped the thinly sliced octopus in it to eat. Oh wow, it was incredibly delicious! It may be just octopus, but it was amazing! It had a nice chewy texture, was tender, and we couldn't stop eating it. We were finishing up shopping for various souvenirs at the airport when we saw it, and decided to buy it on a whim. It turned out to be the best purchase. Thank you for the meal. Thank you for the meal.