Hello Hokkaido! Osyokujidokoro Misaki お食事処 みさき @ Shakotan Peninsula (West of Otaru) June 2016 - Uni don

Hello Hokkaido! Osyokujidokoro Misaki  お食事処 みさき @ Shakotan Peninsula (West of Otaru) June 2016 - Uni don

As I reviewed the blog after a hiatus of a year, I realised that I mentioned Shakotan Peninsula under the Uni Murakami entry (http://garysyayornay.blogspot.sg/2016/06/uni-murakami-hakodate-honten-6-june-2016.html). However, I have never actually blogged about Shakotan, so I felt it was a little unfair for my readers. Hence, I decided to make up for it by digging through my old photos and introducing the Shakotan Peninsula Uni restaurant.

To be honest, Shakotan Peninsula is a beautiful coast west of Otaru, however, people don't go all the way there for the view. It is famous for uni - especially freshly caught uni from the coast. You need to take note which season you go though, there are times when the uni harvest has ended and they have nothing to serve you.

Use this website (and google translate) to get the latest news on the stock of uni:

http://osyokujidokoromisaki.com/

No use travelling all the way there and out of stock!

We drove all the way to the end of the coast in search of the restaurant.

Voila! This is the facade of the restaurant. It says in hiragana - Misaki (みさき). We chose the wrong day to come - it was a Sunday and there was a big crowd. The Japanese knew where to go for good food too.

As there was a crowd in front, the servers were busy and we did not know what to do. Shall we include our names in a book or what? It was a little scary as we did not feel welcome - everyone was hungry!

We saw many newly arrived guests peering into a book and writing into it....

I looked at the book... it must be a reservation book. Apparently we should write into it, I assume?
However, it's all in Japanese! Luckily, a lady who wrote in the book helped us. She asked for our names and helped us write in katakana. She then told us she will inform us when she gets a table - meaning it would be our turn soon! Japanese are really kind!

Qi Le Boneless Chicken Rice and Soup 祺乐起骨鸡饭 @ S11 Blk 744 Yishun Street 72 (Next to Yishun MRT) - 26 June 2016

Qi Le Boneless Chicken Rice and Soup 祺乐起骨鸡饭 @ S11 Blk 744 Yishun Street 72 (Next to Yishun MRT)

Recently, I moved to Yishun and had the time to explore the area. I came across this interesting chicken rice stall in Yishun chicken rice stall which is next to the MRT.

If you google chicken rice Yishun, you would be overwhelmed by 925 Chicken Rice – there are few blogs out there which actually showcase this stall, but it is definitely worth a try.

After you exit the MRT towards the HDB side, you can’t miss Blk 744.

You also can’t miss the S11 signboard next to the coffeeshop (kopitiam) either.

This coffeeshop is always bustling and filled with people. It is 24 hours btw – so there’s always food. There’s a Muslim stall there as well.

Closer view of the kopitiam – nearly every table is taken.

There’s already a long queue in front of the stall. Note the stall next to it quite free ah?

Hello Hokkaido! Légumes Restaurant Asperges Biei レストランアスペルジュ13 June 2016

Hello Hokkaido! Légumes Restaurant Asperges Biei レストランアスペルジュ13 June 2016

Légumes Restaurant Asperges is basically a French restaurant located in Biei, Hokkaido. We were wondering if we should try eating French food in Japan but were tempted immediately after reading so much positive reviews on this exceptional restaurant and knowing that it is awarded 1-Star Michelin. The restaurant is helmed by Chef Kato Kazunori and part of the group which includes Moliere Cafe (3 Michelin Star) in Sapporo.

We arrived at about 7 pm and was greeted by a delightful building in the heart of quiet Biei. It looked pretty expensive.

 

The interior was equally stunning. 

Hello Hokkaido! Uni Murakami Hakodate Honten うに むらかみ函館本店 – 6 June 2016

Uni Murakami Hakodate Honten うに むらかみ函館本店 – 6 June 2016

Before the Hokkaido trip, we saw lots of wonderful uni-don reviews on the internet about Hokkaido, and we knew it was a must-try to eat uni in Hokkaido. We are sea-urchin aka uni fans in Singapore, but it is often too expensive and the serving size is pathetic. Therefore, we must get our uni fix this round.

Uni Murakami うに むらかみ was a popular name that came up when you google uni in Hokkaido. They have 3 branches actually – 1 is the main branch in Hakodate, and 2 in Sapporo. Apparently, the Sapporo branches gets their stock from Hakodate, therefore we made a reservation (a week before) for the Hakodate branch well in advance to make sure we get our uni fix.

The location isn’t hard to find, as it is located right beside the Hakodate Morning Fish market. The whole place was deserted when we arrived (around 7 pm) apart from some restaurants.

Left of the restaurant – quiet

Equally quiet – right of the restaurant

Rating system thus far.......

Rating System

This blog has existed for a few years already. I thought I should clarify what I meant by the yays and nays….

Basically, this blog uses a simple 8 point rating system.

Legend:

YAY – 👍👍👍👍 8/8

YAy – 👍👍👍 7/8

Yay – 👍👍 6/8

yay – 👍 5/8

nay – 👎 4/8

Nay – 👎👎 3/8

NAy – 👎👎👎 2/8

NAY – 👎👎👎👎 1/8

Essentially, the number of capital letters indicate how strong the ‘yay’ or ‘nay’ is (Yay means Good and nay means Bad – for those who don’t know their meaning)…

I know you will wonder why can’t I just utilize an easier more intuitive system?

Hey, this is my blog and I want to differentiate from the rest! Give me some space to showcase my artistic freedom!!! ^_^

Hello Hokkaido! Hotel La Vista Hakodate 函馆湾多美迎酒店 / ラビスタ函館ベイ 7 and 8 June 2016

Hello Hokkaido! Hotel La Vista Hakodate 函馆湾多美迎酒店 / ラビスタ函館ベイ  7 and 8 June 2016

One activity you cannot miss in Hakodate is to savour its fresh seafood. Many will head to the world famous Hakodate Morning Market to satisfy their appetite. Another alternative is to stay in a hotel such as La Vista Hakodate which we did for 2 nights.
The website of the hotel: 

http://www.hotespa.net/hotels/lahakodate/

We decided to stay there because of its famed buffet spread. Being big eaters, we can chomp down everything we want and get a good night stay in this top ranked hotel and its famous rotenburo. In fact, La Vista Hakodate's buffet is ranked #2 in the entire Japan as ranked by rocketnews:

http://en.rocketnews24.com/2016/05/05/japans-top-10-hotel-breakfasts-2016-kobe-hotel-dominates-list-once-again/

This is their secret weapon: 

Free flow of their kaisen don - yum!! We just scooped plenty of their kaisen (seafood) such as ika, ikura and salmon and went for more at least 2 more rounds of their free flow kaisen don.

Hello Hokkaido! Coffee Mori no Tokei 珈琲 森の時計 and Ningle Terrace ニングルテラスin Furano – 14 June 2016

Coffee Mori no Tokei 珈琲 森の時計 and Ningle Terrace ニングルテラスin Furano – 14 June 2016

I am a fan of unique coffee houses, so when I was in Furano, this place was highly recommended by the Tourist Guidebook. It was also highly raved by bloggers.

When we arrived at Furano, it was dark and drizzling – putting our plans for a Farm Tomita into disarray. We did not want to check in or hotel as well – so I suggested a visit to this café to seek refuge from the rainy day. Imagine how nice it is to enjoy a warm cup of freshly grounded coffee while the rain drizzles outside – warm and safe in the café…… ^_^

Referencing from websites and maps, the café was said to be located in the forests below New Prince Hotel Furano. We were worried whether we could find it in all that rain, but I decided to brave a trip anyway.

After we parked, I found Ningle Terrace instead:

I would advise visitors to park next to Ningle Terrace. I found a sign next to the Terrace:

That means we are on the right track! Follow the route the sign says.

It led us into the route just next to Ningle Terrace. I was a little worried then, as I was not sure whether it was too deep inside, and it was raining. Nevertheless, I decided to go in still.

Eventually, after a few minutes of walking, the sight wasn’t too welcoming.