おーんぷ
Enjoy White Ezo beef for less than 3,000 yen♪ This restaurant is run by the popular yakiniku chain, Tokusuke, in Shiraoi. The name KANTO means "heaven" in Ainu language. I tried a set where I could taste Shiraoi beef, and it truly felt like reaching "heaven." I haven't been to Tokusuke, a yakiniku chain with many branches in Sapporo, much. Their lunch set costs over 1,000 yen, giving me the impression that it's a bit pricey. Two years ago, KANTO opened in Shiraoi. It's located along the Shikisai Kaido, and every time I passed by, I was curious. This time, during a one-night trip, I decided to splurge a bit and visit. It was past 9 o'clock. I entered Upopoy for the first time and spent about 3 hours exploring. There's still so much to see that one visit won't be enough, so I'm glad I bought an annual passport (2,000 yen). I plan to visit 1 or 2 more times before winter. I had only seen Upopoy from the outside during previous visits to Shiraoi. I never imagined it would be like this inside. The night before, I researched various restaurants where I could eat Shiraoi beef. Places I've been to, places I haven't. I double-checked the menus of the restaurants I was considering. KANTO was my third choice. While exploring Upopoy, I learned that KANTO means "heaven" in Ainu, which made me want to visit Tokusuke's KANTO. Maybe that was Tokusuke's intention all along (laughs). But that's okay, I'm in the middle of a trip. I drove up the Shikisai Kaido. As I approached, I saw a huge building. It's a road I pass by every time I come from Otaru to Shiraoi, so I'm familiar with it. There were a few cars in the spacious parking lot. I entered and was told it was full (but not really...). I wrote my name down and waited. It was around 12:30, the busiest time. I didn't have any plans after, so I was willing to wait. We were guided to the waiting area after a 7-8 minute wait. I looked at the menu and placed my order around 12:40. Our order: ☆Farm Set B, with extra rice - 2,860 yen ☆Porotora Plate, Hamburger & Shiraoi beef thigh steak - 2,640 yen ☆Porotopork kalbi, single item - 880 yen, with medium rice - 297 yen Total of 6,677 yen for 3 people!! It's more than I would usually spend on lunch, but I'm on a trip. The atmosphere was nice, so I didn't mind the wait. Our food arrived at 13:20. The 40-minute wait felt quite long. It was past 1 o'clock, so I was feeling quite hungry. I started grilling the meat right away. ◎Farm Set B - 2,860 yen I opted for extra rice at no extra cost. It came with salad, wakame soup, kimchi, namul, and more. The meat included Shiraoi beef kalbi, Shiraoi beef loin, and special upper salted tongue (not Shiraoi beef), 60g each. A total of 180g. It's not just about the meat, it's more like a set meal at this price, so it didn't feel too expensive. I put the meat on the grill and had some soup. The wakame soup was really delicious!! I wonder if it tastes the same at other branches? The salad was crunchy. The dressing was light, so I ended up eating the tasteless vegetables towards the end, but in hindsight, it might have been good to try eating it like lettuce. ☆Special Upper Salted Tongue It's not Shiraoi beef, but it was incredibly delicious!!! The flavor was amazing, especially when dipped in salt sauce. The umami spread throughout my mouth and body. I now want to try the upper salted tongue at Tokusuke's branch in Sapporo. I just checked, and it's a single item for 957 yen at the closest Teine branch. If it's around that price, I might give it a try! ☆Shiraoi Beef Lean Loin I dipped this in sauce. It's the kind of meat that lets you truly taste the essence of beef. This is beef! This is meat! This was also very delicious, but the outstanding flavor was only in the first piece. ☆Shiraoi Beef Kalbi This kalbi is out of this world!! It's been a while since I've had such a sweet meat, almost like sugar! I had two out of the three pieces with salt on the table. Salt is the best for delicious kalbi meat. The flavor and sweetness that pierce through your brain. The salt really enhances the taste.