Today's selection of fresh fish at the Hokkai Market was amazing. While octopus and octopus sashimi are always available, they also had mackerel, sardines, horse mackerel, and herring for sashimi. Looking at the local fish, they had flounder, Pacific saury, conger eel, turbot, and rainbow trout for sashimi. Additionally, they had tilefish, octopus sashimi, Japanese halibut, and yellowtail for sashimi. It feels like the selection of fresh fish is particularly good today. So, I decided to get sashimi of both mackerel from Nagasaki and horse mackerel from Sanriku. They were beautifully colored and tasted great. The fish from the Nagasaki route at the Hokkai Market is really good. The whale bacon I bought on a whim was surprisingly light in fat. It's nice to see such variety available.

On September 6th, during a major earthquake, my computer experienced malfunctions due to infection by three viruses. Although the computer was damaged, some of the data was recovered. It was still functioning but encountered frequent issues. I may not be able to review as promptly as usual, but this is not due to hospitalization. Likes and comments may be delayed, but I will address them as soon as possible. In October 2018, I visited "Hokkai Ichiba" in Sapporo, a market known for its affordable prices. The "Wakadori no Hanshinage" (half-fried young chicken) caught my attention. The market also offered a variety of fresh fish and fruits. The chicken was juicy and flavorful, and the pears were delicious. The prices were reasonable, making it a great place for budget-friendly shopping. Overall, Hokkai Ichiba in Sapporo is a great spot for affordable and quality food items, with the "Wakadori no Hanshinage" being a standout dish.

Due to the Bon holiday, the fish at the Nishi-machi store of Kitamai Market was not so fresh, so I decided to go to the Hassamu store today. Finally, after the Bon holiday, fishing has resumed and there was a wide variety of fish available. Not only were there octopus legs, but also eggs in the heads. The white fish, Hokkaido flatfish, was on special offer, and there was also matsukawa available, but the flatfish looked better today. Blue mackerel and willow leaf fish were also available, which have become very popular recently. It is rare to see willow leaf fish served raw as sashimi. This one was from Otaru and was small, costing 380 yen for 2 pieces. In the shellfish corner, there were boiled female shakos from Ishikari, so I got 6 of them. The flatfish was soft and slightly watery. The willow leaf fish, which I tried for the first time, had a firm texture due to its small size. The shakos, which I missed out on during the spring season, were delicious with plenty of eggs inside.

I visited the newly opened Hassamu store at Hokkai Market. The fresh fish section had neatly packed items, not as extravagant as the Nishi-machi store, but very clean and visually appealing. There were various fish from Honshu, competing with Hokkaido fish. I decided to buy the fugu today, which looked great. From Hokkaido, there were various white fish options like matsukawa and ishigarei, with matsukawa being my choice. I also bought some herring sashimi, which seemed to be in season. I sliced them up for dinner and they were all delicious with a good texture. It's great to be able to buy such fresh sashimi. In December 2016, I visited Hokkai Market again, which had a large fresh fish section. I bought sashimi-grade fresh mackerel from Nagasaki, which was a bit pricey but worth it. I also bought frozen Russian clams and fatty tuna toro from Nagasaki. The fresh mackerel looked beautiful and tasted amazing. The size was around 30 cm with just the right amount of fat. The clams were big and a great deal. The fatty tuna toro was delicious as expected. Nagasaki's fish are truly tasty, and it's impressive how advanced refrigeration technology has made it possible to enjoy such quality fish in Sapporo.