Inside the Big House Nopporo store, there is a "rice ball specialty store". They use Uonuma Koshihikari rice, which reminded me of the impressive "Uonuma Koshihikari organic rice (sun-dried)" that I experienced in my younger days. However, when I visited, I found out that they were using a different type of rice. The special cultivation rice "Nishinosuke" is a rice that was developed through research by industry, academia, and government, with a different charm compared to Koshihikari rice. I have a skill in judging rice based on my experience, so I was looking forward to it. According to the explanation, this rice has low protein content (the lower, the better) and high stickiness, sweetness, and depth of flavor. The salt rice ball was a bit firm, and I wished for a bit more fluffiness. The saltiness was moderate, and it didn't seem to need any amino acid-based seasoning. The overall quality of the rice ball was 60 points. However, the rice itself was genuine. The thick sweetness that comes after the solid stickiness is not as intense as Niigata Koshihikari, but it has its own depth. The quality of Hokkaido rice has been rapidly improving, and many varieties can now compete with mainland rice, but this Nishinosuke still has a quality that Hokkaido rice cannot match. With its pleasant stickiness, if the skill in making rice balls improves, it will become even more charming.

I realized the good and bad points clearly because it is located inside a supermarket as a tenant. After having a delicious lunch at Hira Sato in Yunni, I felt like something was missing around 3 pm. Yes, rice! Although rice was included in the lunch, the portion was small, and as a rice lover, I felt like having onigiri as a snack. I searched for "onigiri" on Google Maps. "Omusubi-dokoro Azumino" in Ebetsu City came up, which I had never heard of before. Normally, if I want to eat onigiri in Ebetsu, I would go to "Hakodate Omusubi Kantaro" in the food court inside the TSUTAYA bookstore. Is it a new store? The name sounds nice, and the number of reviews on Tabelog is low, so I thought of trying something new! I set the navigation and found out that it's located inside the Big House Nopporo store, which is why I had never heard of it. Upon arrival at the supermarket, I found the store right on the left as soon as I entered. I wondered if I had to order at the register, but there was no one there. I saw pre-made onigiri, bento boxes, and side dish sets lined up on the side of the store. Maybe they don't sell freshly made onigiri at 3 pm? Perhaps they have them during lunchtime? There were no staff around, so I couldn't ask. I picked one onigiri for each of us and went to the register, but there was no one there. Should I take it to the supermarket's register? But there was no barcode on the onigiri. My companion noticed someone at the back! Oh, someone just moved. I called out, and an old lady came out. She rang up the items without any mention of the earlier confusion. "Plum, salmon, sujiko, 830 yen, please." I handed over 1,030 yen and received 200 yen in change. There was an eat-in corner right in front, with a microwave, a water and tea dispenser, and a handwashing area. There was even a vending machine. It's an excellent environment for eating items purchased from the supermarket or this store. The salmon onigiri priced at 300 yen was a bit hard, not rock hard but with a dense texture. The salmon had a simple taste. It didn't taste particularly delicious. They use a rice called "Shin no Suke" from Niigata. The rice was sweet and tasty, but because it had cooled down and lacked fluffiness, I felt somewhat disappointed. Of course, the quality is higher compared to onigiri bought from a supermarket, but for 300 yen, this is it... As for pre-made onigiri, "Omusubi Sengoku-ya" directly connected to Shin-Sapporo stands out. After eating, I went shopping at the supermarket. I found the products I was looking for, and the items I usually buy were cheaper. It was a good supermarket. If freshly made onigiri were available for 300 yen, it might be worth it.

I visited "Omurice shop Azumino" in Nopporo Big House. The kitchen is run by two older sisters, and I had to wait about 5 minutes for them to open. In addition to onigiri, they also serve soba, udon, and tonjiru. I bought the ikura onigiri for 220 yen and the katsuobushi onigiri for 180 yen. I thought they would make the onigiri for me, but they were pre-made and handed to me in a paper wrapper. I ate them in my car. The size is similar to a typical convenience store onigiri. The ikura had a nice saltiness and good rice-to-filling ratio, while the katsuobushi was slightly sweet for my taste, and I wished it had a stronger soy sauce flavor. The rice is "Koshihikari from Uonuma" and has a slightly sticky and heavy texture. It might be better when freshly made, but it's challenging to maintain the quality over time. The nori had a cherry blossom design, but many people may not notice these details. The quality of Hokkaido rice is so high that the appeal of "Koshihikari from Uonuma" may not be as strong. Onigiri is also sold in the deli section of Big House, so I feel like they need something more unique. I will try their soba next time when I have the chance. Thank you for the meal.

Hello, I stopped by here again today because I didn't have time for lunch. I bought "beef tendon," "salmon," and "kombu" onigiri. It seems like they no longer make the onigiri to order like before, as there were pre-made onigiri displayed at the counter. They also seem to offer side dishes and bento boxes now. The bento box is priced at 680 yen, quite luxurious, huh? How long ago were these onigiri made? 2-3 days ago? They are so hard, almost like the battera sushi from the remaining 6 stores of Koizushi in Hokkaido. I tried the salmon and kombu onigiri, and the ingredients are quite sweet. Do we really need sweetness in the ingredients of onigiri? Shouldn't the flavor of salmon and salt be enough? Well, if you don't like it, you don't have to visit. Convenience store onigiri seems like a better deal in terms of quality and price. I guess I'll only use this place in emergencies.

I was asked by my wife to buy mayonnaise on my way home from work. When I finished paying, I noticed that a store that is usually closed at night was open. So, I decided to buy some onigiri! I purchased a Cheese Okaka onigiri for 220 yen and a Sujiko onigiri for 220 yen. Maybe it's because of the influence of the coronavirus, but it seems like they had leftovers as the nori was damp and the rice was hard. It's understandable since they must have been sitting for a while. The Sujiko onigiri was cheap at 220 yen, and they even gave me a 30% discount. You can't really judge the quality unless you eat freshly made onigiri. I will definitely come back again. Thank you for the meal! (^o^)

Look, there were early reviews from my respected reviewers, Chibatan-san and 3rd Division Chief-san (^^). I remember stopping by at the end of the year, and at that time they said, "We've run out of rice, we're cooking rice now," so I couldn't buy anything. A rice ball shop running out of rice, what's up with that, right? So I thought (^^). And now that the snow has melted, I stopped by again while shopping. Today, are you cooking rice now? I asked with a smile (^^). So, the rice balls I ordered this time were Tuna with Cheese and Bonito Flakes. And I also got one with Cod Roe. It doesn't really matter, I just picked them because they caught my eye. I'll order them to go. And also, I bought an Inari sushi that was at the register. They said, "We'll call you, so please wait here," so should I wait in the eat-in area? Hmm, how long does it take to make three rice balls? I waited a long time, more than 10 minutes, right? They don't make them in advance, they carefully make each one by hand! That's probably the idea. Hmm, is there only one part-time staff member making rice balls where customers can't see? There were a lady and an older man staff member for customer service, but only one person in charge of making rice balls. Hmm (´･ω･`) All the rice balls are tightly packed. They won't crumble easily. They crumble easily (￣◇￣;) The ingredients are nothing special. The seaweed is a bit high-quality looking, but it's not that surprising. And the Inari sushi that looked delicious, well, it had a light sear on the fried tofu. The sweetness of the fried tofu is also mild, and hmm, there's nothing particularly distinctive about it (´･ω･`) A rice ball with filling costs from 180 yen to 240 yen each, which is not exactly affordable. I don't get the feeling that they're packed with high-quality like ants. What's the target audience here? It's hard to say it's aimed at young people or the elderly. It doesn't really feel like it's targeting families either. Do people buy one as a snack on the way home from shopping? I wonder if the company's outlook matches the customer base around here? I started to have some doubts. Well, I hope it becomes established. It was a bit disappointing for my lunch ♫

I visited a cafe nearby where they offer all-you-can-eat pudding. After eating too many sweet things and having my blood sugar levels spike, I was craving something salty, so I decided to visit this place. They offer onigiri with a choice of salt or soy sauce, so I ordered the "tarako butter" with salt and the "okaka cheese" with soy sauce. My companion ordered the cold soba noodles. We enjoyed our meal at the free rest area in the super big house. They also provide free self-service tea and water. It took about 15 minutes before our food was ready, which was longer than expected. The onigiri with soy sauce seemed to have the soy sauce poured on after it was made, rather than being mixed in. The rice was shiny and slightly firm, which was delicious, but it lacked stickiness and fell apart easily. The onigiri had plenty of fillings, but it was difficult to eat without it falling apart. The soba noodles were just average, without much aroma or sweetness. It felt more like standing soba noodles. It would have been nice if the prices were a bit lower. Thank you, "Azumino," for the meal.

Opened in a shop inside Big House near JR Nopporo Station, this place offers tarako butter for 240 yen, salmon for 220 yen, and pork miso soup for 250 yen. It is possible to eat in at this location, which may seem a bit lonely. The onigiri prices range from 130 to 240 yen, with options like bonito or kombu for 180 yen, and salmon roe for 220 yen, which is only a 40 yen difference. The reviewer found the pricing a bit strange. They ordered tarako butter and salmon, along with pork miso soup. The onigiri was tightly packed with rice, but unfortunately, the taste of the rice was not very noticeable. The reviewer chose soy sauce for the tarako butter, and although the presentation was a bit sloppy, the meal was average overall. The salmon was overcooked and tough. However, the pork miso soup was delicious, with plenty of ingredients and a rich flavor from the pork belly fat. The reviewer appreciated that they were asked about adding ginger to the soup.

This is a place in Eniwa City, on the first floor of Big House Nopporo in Higashinopporo Honcho, south of JR Nopporo Station. As always, please check the exact location on the map on Tabelog. I saw on Tabelog's new store information that the place that used to be a curry restaurant has now changed to a rice ball, soba, and udon shop, so I decided to visit the shop. I arrived at Big House, parked my car in the spacious parking lot, entered the building, and found the shop near the entrance. I ordered the "Tentama Soba" at the register, paid quickly, and waited at a table next to the shop. I was called after about 10 minutes, received the Tentama Soba, sprinkled a little shichimi togarashi at the pick-up area, and brought it to the table. First, I had the soba soup, which was lukewarm, so the egg white remained transparent. I then enjoyed the tempura with the soba soup. The soba noodles were pre-cooked and lacked firmness. Since rice balls are the main product here, it might be better to offer soups like miso soup or pork soup that can't be taken out.

It seems like the curry shop has changed into an onigiri shop. I got hungry, so I decided to eat. Tempura soba for 480 yen, red salmon onigiri for 220 yen, and salted salmon roe onigiri for 220 yen, totaling 920 yen. The soba is decent quality, the noodles may be pre-cooked or frozen as they have a good texture. The dipping sauce is of commercial quality. The tempura is surprisingly good with small squid and shrimp pieces. It's not like the typical hard tempura bits. However, the noodles are a bit too slippery and could use a hotter dipping sauce. The onigiri comes in salted and soy sauce flavors. The salted salmon roe onigiri is good, not fishy, and easy to eat. The red salmon onigiri is also tasty with fatty salmon. The rice is high-quality Koshihikari from Uonuma. The onigiri is made using a mold, and despite being a bit crumbly, it tastes good. The seaweed is average. The onigiri is a bit pricey at 220 yen each, so it might be better to offer miso soup or pork soup at a more reasonable price. Overall, the shop had decent customers, so it may have a chance at lasting long.

I went in the early afternoon on a weekday. I ordered a red salmon rice ball for 220 yen. Next to the register, there were rice balls in packs already, and it seems you choose from there. It was already past lunchtime, but there were only a few rice balls left. The rice used was Shin no Koku from Niigata. When I got home and ate it, the rice ball was tightly packed, which is rare these days. The saltiness was just right. There was a sign saying they are closed on Mondays. Thank you for the meal.