Hokkaido - Day 2 (Sapporo TV Tower - Odori Park - Susukino Street - Tanukikoji Shopping Street - Pole Town)

My partner has yet to fully recover from his upset stomach. So, on our second day, we decided to take it easy and skipped the hectic sightseeing in Sapporo. It was a sunny day and the temperature was -2℃. We headed out at 11.30am and walked toward Ramen Alley. We walked past Sapporo TV Tower, Odori Park, Tanukikoji Shopping Street and Susukino Street. There was a short queue in front of Ramen Haruka, but we ended up at Teshikaga Ramen since the queue there was shorter. It turns out the shop gives out numbers to customers, allowing them to walk around and return later. Our number was 16, and the wait time was 30 minutes. We decided to take a stroll and come back later.

Sapporo TV Tower

Sapporo TV Tower

Odori Park

Odori Park

Spotted two Uber cars

Tanukikoji Shopping Street

Susukino Street

Teshikaga Ramen

Teshikaga Ramen menu

Nishi 3 Chome-dori

Spotted a long queue outside the Keyaki Ramen

A motorcycle covered in snow

Teshikaga Ramen is a small, cozy shop with only 15 seats. The seats are bar seats arranged around the kitchen, allowing us to watch the chef prepare the ramen right in front of us. Orders are placed and paid via a self-ordering kiosk, which is quick and efficient. There is an English menu as well. My partner ordered char siu miso ramen, while I had their special sauce ramen. My ramen was quite salty at first, and the curly noodles were a little firm, but they softened slightly after a while. His soup base was tastier and came with bean sprouts, charcoal-grilled pork belly, soft-boiled egg, meat and spring onions. Mine had charcoal-grilled pork belly, seaweed, bamboo shoots and soft-boiled egg. Overall, the food was okay, but it didn't quite live up to the hype. At the end of the day, it's worth a try.

(Total bill - ¥ 1,980)

Cold drinking water

Special sauce ramen - ¥800

Char siu miso ramen - ¥1,180

Self-ordering kiosk

Address:

Teshikaga Ramen

3 Chome, Minami 5 Jonishi,

Chuo Ward, Sapporo,

Hokkaido 064-0805,

Japan

After our ramen, we were looking for a soft serve ice cream shop called Milk Mura, but we couldn't find it. We then walked to Tanukikoji shopping street and saw The Soft Cream House. However, since I was having a mild gastric pain, I decided not to eat it. Tanukikoji Shopping Street is a popular covered shopping arcade in Sapporo known for its wide variety of shops, including fashion stores, souvenir shops, a pet shop, restaurants and cafes. Surprisingly, it wasn't very crowded on a Thursday afternoon.

Susukino Street

Susukino Street

A man shoveling snow outside his shop

Tanukikoji Shopping Street

Tanukikoji Shopping Street 

Address:

Tanukikoji Shopping Street

West 1 - West 7 Chome, South 2,

Chuo Ward, Sapporo,

Hokkaido 060-0062,

Japan

From Tanukikoji Shopping Street, you can walk down to Pole Town, which is an underground shopping arcade in Sapporo. It is a popular spot for shopping and dining, especially on cold days. It's a great place to visit if you want to stay warm.

We went to Kinotoya Bake and bought a milk soft ice cream and a custard cream apple pie. The ice cream was soft and creamy, with a rich, strong milky flavour. The apple pie had a slightly crunchy crust and was served at room temperature. It was slightly sweet and would have been better if it had been served warm. The shop has only a few bar seats available for customers.

Pole Town

Pole Town

Kinotoya Bake Pole Town store: milk soft ice cream - ¥450

 Custard cream apple pie - ¥400

Address:

Kinotoya Bake Pole Town store

3 Chome, Minami 2 Jonishi,

Chuo Ward, Sapporo,

Hokkaido 060-0062,

Japan

Opening hours: 10am to 8pm

A few shops away from Kinotoya Bake is Aoki. We bought a medium-sized strawberry banana smoothie. It was slightly sweet, with the fresh taste of strawberry and banana, similar to Boost Juice. We then walked to Mitsukoshi Department Store Sapporo to buy a bottle of mineral water, but I ended up picking up a bottle of sparkling water!

Aoki: strawberry banana (medium) - ¥420

Sparkling water - ¥108 from Mitsukoshi Department Store Sapporo

Odori Park is a large scenic park located in the heart of Sapporo, stretching over 1.5km from east to west. The park is completely covered in snow, creating a beautiful winter scene. Many snowmen were being built throughout, and we even tried making one ourselves but failed. It's not easy shaping a snowball, as the snow kept crumbling away. At the eastern end of the park stands the iconic Sapporo TV Tower, a landmark that offers panoramic views of the city from its observation deck.

Sapporo TV Tower

Sapporo TV Tower

Address:

Sapporo TV Tower

1 Chome Odorinishi,

Chuo Ward, Sapporo,

Hokkaido 060-0042,

Japan

Odori Park

Odori Park

Snowman

Odori Park

Odori Park

Odori Park

Odori Park

Odori Park

Spotted Yakult office

A park and street covered in snow

Address:

Odori Park

1~12 Chome Odorinishi,

Chuo Ward, Sapporo,

Hokkaido 060-0042,

Japan

We decided to have our dinner at Wagyu Ishizaki. We arrived at 6.10pm, and although we didn't have a reservation, they offered us a table as long as we finished by 8pm. We ordered the sirloin (extra loin) and Ishizaki course with roast beef set that comes with an appetizer, salad, slice roast raw beef, yaki-shabu 1 piece (rump), steak 40g (rump or ichibo), grilled seafood (prawn, squid and scallops), kimchi, yakiniku 2 kinds (red beef), yaki-suki 1 piece (rump), roast beef sushi, miso soup, dessert and roasted green tea.

The salad included raw beef, which I had never eaten before. The texture was smooth yet slightly chewy. It has this distinct meaty taste that I don't really enjoy. I still prefer cooked meats. Between the rump and sirloin, we prefer the rump steak as it has less marbling, making it leaner and firmer. The yuzu ice cream was very refreshing with a slight sourness and the roast beef sushi was delicious. The service was excellent, and the staff was very friendly. The staff helped us to grill the yaki-shabu and yaki-suki, while the rest of the meat was left to us. We even had our own private room. Overall, we thoroughly enjoyed our dinner. 

(Total bill - ¥16,280)

Wagyu Ishizaki 

Free flow of iced water

Salad

Appetizer

Raw egg for yaki-shabu

Condiments for yaki-shabu

Sliced roast raw beef (we requested it to be fully cooked)

Soy sauce and salt

Yaki-shabu 1 piece (rump)

Yaki-shabu 1 piece (rump)

Yaki-shabu 1 piece (rump)

One piece rump grilled to perfection

Steak 40g (rump or ichibo)

Sirlioin (extra loin) - ¥3,800

Seafood - prawn, squid and scallops

Kimchi and cucumber

Red beef

Yaki-suki 1 piece (rump)

Raw egg for yaki-suki

Roast beef sushi and miso soup

Yuzu ice cream

Roasted green tea

Address:

Wagyu Ishizaki

5 Fourth Fujii Haru 7th Level,

Minami 4 Jonishi,

Chuo Ward, Sapporo,

Hokkaido 064-0804,

Japan

After dinner it started snowing heavily. It was such a beautiful experience walking through the snow, with everything around us blanketed in white. However, the street became slippery when the snow started to melt.

We walked back in the direction of our hotel and stopped by Family Mart to buy some snacks. By the time we reached our hotel, the snow had stopped. We relaxed in our room and ate the snacks that we had bought earlier. The Jagabee was delicious. It's crunchy and slightly salty. Just like eating potato chips in the shape of French fries. The Hokkaido milk was good too. It's creamy and fresh with a smooth texture. However, later that night I woke up with a stomachache. I guess the Hokkaido milk was too rich, and I'm not used to drinking high-fat dairy products.

(Total bill - ¥455)

Heavy snow vs mild snow

A bulldozer pushing ice in front of Family Mart

Snacks from Family Mart: Jagabee - ¥177, mineral water - ¥110, and Hokkaido milk - ¥168

Address:

Family Mart

2 Chome-8 Kita 3 Jonishi,

Chuo Ward, Sapporo,

Hokkaido 060-0003,

Japan