Michinoeki Boyo Nakayama （望羊中山） | Nakayama Pass | Kimobetsu Town

When you go to Lake Toya area from Sapporo via Nakayama Mountain Pass, I'm sure most of you have a short break at "BoyoNakayama（望羊中山）"; which has rest rooms, a shop, a sweets corner,  a restaurant, and an observatory.

We call this kind of rest area "Michinoeki", which literally means a roadside station. There are a lot of Michinoeki between popular tourist destinations so that drivers and tourists can have a break.
This is a map of Michinoeki in the southwestern part of Hokkaido.

First, look at the asparagus monuments! This Michinoeki is located in Kimobetsu, which is a town to start growing asparagus for the first time in Japan.

As this Michinoeki is on the top of Nakayama Mountain Pass, you can enjoy Mt Yotei (1,893m) from its observatory. The mountain is sometimes dubbed as "Ezo Fuji (Mt. Fuji of Hokkaido)" because it looks like Mt. Fuji. Very beautiful, isn't it??? You can see the snow-capped mountain even in the summer time!!

As the sign says,

This Michinoeki is famous for "Ageimio"(deep fried potatoes)! 

Let's go to eat it!

Looks yummy x 2!!!

It's a kind of potato doughnut!

See!! Local potatoes are covered with doughnut! I really recommend it!

If you like pumpkins better than potatoes, they serve pumpkin version, too!

Personally I like pumpkin, better, but please try both of them and compare with each other!!!

I've found cute steamed pork buns :-)

If you like ice cream, how about this??

They serve several flavors, including seasonal specials. I ordered "Yubari melon" flavor! Sounds very Hokkaido!!!

Except the winter season, they sell local vegetables and mushrooms, which are freshly caught in this area and really delicious!!

You can find famous Hokkaido sweets such as ROYCE chocolate and Shiroi-Koibito (White Lover) chocolate in this shop.

I've found chocolate cream puffs,

"normal" cheese cake and..............

"TOFU" cheese cake!!!!! Please try something very Japanese!!!!

In the winter time, the Michinoeki is covered with a lot of snow like this, but available all the time.

■Where is "Boyo Nakayama（望羊中山）"?

View Larger Map

■Tour guide information■

Do you need a nationally-licensed English-speaking tour guide when you travel to Hokkaido?

I'll guide you! Plz click here!

Hakodate Misuzu （函館 美鈴）| Coffee Shop | Sapporo

It's very hot in Sapporo these days. There are a lot of ice cream shops in the city, but if you like coffee and ice cream, I recommend this shop, "Hakodate Misuzu", which serves coffee ice cream. Sounds perfect for both coffee lovers and ice cream lovers!!

This is a coffee specialized shop and you can buy a lot of kinds of coffee beans or tools here, of course.

But don't forget the ice cream section! They also serve three kinds of soft ice cream; coffee, milk, and latte flavors. What should I order???

After all, I ordered latte flavored ice cream, which is filled with coffee flavor!!! The coffee shop's coffee ice cream is more delicious than I expected!

Do you want to try it??

(Sure!!)

The shop also runs a cafe next to this coffee shop. Please relax, drinking delicious coffee there! 

■Where is "Hakodate Misuzu"?

View Larger Map

■Tour guide information■

Do you need a nationally-licensed English-speaking tour guide when you travel to Hokkaido?

I'll guide you! Plz click here!

Gamusyara （我夢舎楽）| Ramen Restaurant in Naganuma

Naganuma, 30 mins away from Sapporo, is an agricultural town, a lot of whose restaurants use their local delicious vegetable and meat for their menu!

Today, I'll show you "Gamusyara", a delicious ramen restaurant in this town. The shop is so popular that its parking lot is always packed with a lot of cars.

When you enter the restaurant, you will find the atmosphere very unique!!

There are a lot of kinds of tables such as stub-type tables,

and horigotatsu; low, covered tables placed over a hole in the floor, and of course normal tables.

Let's check the menu! The most popular ramen here is salt-flavor ramen. I guess 90% of their costumers order this type of ramen!

I've found another special item here! They recommend their curry ramen, too! I have to order it :-)

This is salt-flavor ramen! Look at the back fat on the soup! Yummy x 2!!!

The noodles are a little bit curly like this↓

Toppings includes a lot of minced naganegi onions, bamboo shoot, boiled egg, and tender pork back ribs like this↓

I really recommend this soup!! They use rock salt for it. The broth is made of a little bit pork bones, and a lot of chickens & vegetables, all of which are local products!

The soup is so delicious that I always drink it up :-)

This is curry ramen.

You can enjoy local delicious vegetables on the top, kinds of which really depend on the season, but this time, we enjoyed pumpkins, green papers, onions, naganegi onions, egg plants, radish sprouts and so on.

A spoonful of rice comes with the ramen, and you can enjoy curry and rice, too! I like this service♪

The original curry soup is super!! The soup well gets caught with the noodles!!! Yummy x 2!

■Where is Gamusyara（我夢舎楽）?

View Larger Map

■Tour guide information■

Do you need a nationally-licensed English-speaking tour guide when you travel to Hokkaido?

I'll guide you! Plz click here!

Kimura Suisan | Fish Store in Ishikari

Ishikari is a coastal town, about 40 mins away from Sapporo.
After visiting a popular bakery, which is famous for stone hearth-baked bread,

we dropped by a small fish shop near the turbines.
(If you're interested in the bakery & pizza restaurant, please refer to my previous post→click!)

"Kimura Suisan" is located in front of the ocean.

I've never seen or eaten "sandfish pickled in salted rice-bran paste"! I instantly liked it and bought it!

How about this?? This is "Atka mackerel pickled in salted rice-bran paste". They have a lot of kinds of fish pickled in rice-bran paste!!!!

This is "herring DEEPLY pickled in salted rice-bran paste". They said this is a little bit salty and should be used for soup and Ocyazuke; a bowl of rice with green tea.

This is "herring LIGHTLY pickled in salted rice-bran paste".  Just grill and eat it! This is one of the most popular fish in this shop!

I like this service. They can keep your products until their closing hour so that we can fully enjoy the  beach nearby without worrying about the fish!!! They also serve free ice cubes!!

Look at the Nameta flounder!!! It's very big! Of course all of the fish is caught in the ocean in front of the shop! I love the dried overnight fish!!

This is (dried overnight) Sohacu flounder!  Look at the price tag! Just 1,000 yen for five flounder!!!

I bought this dried overnight herring. It supposed to be 300 yen for five herring, but they gave me extra two fish! 300yen for seven herring !!! This is a good buy!

After enjoying the shopping in this shop, we went to a big fish market, bought a lot of alive shako (mantis prawn),  and quickly went home.

Immediately arriving at home, I boiled the shako and enjoyed it! Yummy!!!!

Some of it was char-grilled like this↓

We also enjoyed abalone!!

Do you want to join our seafood party??? All of the fish was caught in Ishikari.

■Where is Ishikari?

View Larger Map

■Tour guide information■

Do you need a nationally-licensed English-speaking tour guide when you travel to Hokkaido?

I'll guide you! Plz click here!