Our breakfast at the Hakodate Morning Market

28 and 29 May 2029

On both mornings of our stay in Hakodate, we had fresh seafood breakfast in the Hakodate Morning Market. The Hakodate Morning Market is held daily from 5 AM to 2 PM and is an excellent place to enjoy various types of fresh seafood, such as live crabs (kani), salmon eggs (ikura) and sea urchin (uni), as well as fresh produce such as the famous Hokkaido melons.

It was easy for us to get to the market since it is just a few steps from our hotel located on top of the JR Hakodate Station.

View of our hotel, JR Inn Hakodate, from a street in the market area.

The market area spans about four city blocks. On the first day of our visit, we had plenty of time to spare. So we wandered, explored and check out some of the produce on sale before getting our breakfast.

Manhole cover with squid motifs.

Hakodate is known as the "Squid Capital of Japan" and there were plenty of squid pictures and motifs everywhere.

We saw one stall offered visitors a squid fishing experience where you could try to hook some live squid swimming in a large tank. I find this very gimmicky, so we just stood and observed others. Once caught, the poor squid is quickly sliced into katsu-ika (live squid sashimi) served with ginger soy sauce.

We loved dried cuttlefish or squid, not squid sashimi. We figured that Hakodate would be a good place to buy some to bring home. The ladies manning the dried seafood stalls were very friendly and enthused. They keep stuffing our hands with samples to try. Even before we finished chewing and savouring the first sample, she offered us another. No obligation to buy, just taste and see if you like. We were told the products were freshly made and could be kept for about 2 weeks.

We bought a large selection of dried cuttlefish and scallops from this stall.

We tried almost all of their product offerings.

Their effort paid off as we bought bags of dried scallops and dried squid of various types. Total damage was 6480 JPY! I must say, the products were very tasty and irresistible.

Marinated squid being grilled at the stall.

Some stalls were selling frozen, pre-packed seafood. These were targeted at locals or local tourists.

Incredible giant king crabs from one of the stalls. The crab claws alone cost 17,000 JPY!

After exploring almost the entire market, it was time for our breakfast. I was looking forward to eating Hokkaido’s live King Crab again. Hokkaido boasts 4 types of crabs; the Horsehair crab, Snow crab, Hanasaki crab and the King crab. The King crab is the most expensive and is the undisputed king of seafood so it was worth to splurge a little to enjoy this delicacy while in Hokkaido. 

There are many stalls offering live crabs and other live seafood in the market.

Live snow crabs in tanks. 

Frozen hairy crabs and live squids.

There are many stalls offering live crabs and other live seafood, so it pays to shop around and compare prices.

The live crabs were sold based on their weight and the king crab can grow up to a few kilograms in size. We wanted a smaller crab since it was just the two of us and the smaller crabs were also cheaper in terms if price per kg.

The first store that we enquired quoted 17,000 JPY per kg for a small live King Crab. The seller then dropped the price to 13,000 JPY per kg when we walked away. Trying to retain us, he brought us to another shop to show us a half dead (or dead crab) with missing legs for 8000 JPY per kg.

We did not get good feelings from this seller so we decided to go to another.

We bought our breakfast from this store.

We found a nice lady who quoted us 10000 JPY per kg for small live King crab. She chose a small King crab that weighed 1.68 kg for us. She then gave us slight discount offering us the crab for 16,000 JPY which we accepted.

 

This 1.68 kg crab was dancing on the weighing scale.

We also check the price of a horsehair crab but we did not go for this.

This 1.68 kg crab is consider small but was just right-sized for us.

The price includes free cooking. She offered to cook the crab in two ways (half of the crab to be grilled and the other half boiled). We told her we prefer to have the entire crab boiled. From previous experience in Otaru, we prefer the texture of the boiled crab over the grilled crab which was sweeter but a little drier after cooking.

The crab took 30 minutes to prepare. The seller made and served free hot macha green tea while we waited.

The macha green tea was free and refillable.

The cooked crab was expertly cut and presented. It was very easy for us to eat without getting pricked by the thorny shells. 

The best and sweetest parts of the king crab were the long legs.

The chef expertly cut the cooked crabs so it was very easy for us to eat without getting pricked by the thorny shells.

The store also sells donburi and other fresh seafood. We saw that the store’s menu offered fatty bluefin tuna sashimi. Tuna sashimi is a “must try” food while visiting Japan. It would be difficult to find similar quality fresh tuna sashimi back home, even at a much higher price than we are paying in Japan.

We ordered the chutoro which is the medium fatty tuna. It was good but not great. Not as good as the chutoro we had in the Maguro Koya restaurant in Nara, where we had our first taste.

Chutoro or medium fatty tuna. 5 pieces for 1452 JPY.

After our fishy breakfast, we returned to the market square to buy some Hokkaido melons for dessert. Hokkaido melons are Japan's most prized fruit, celebrated for their intense floral aroma and melt-in-the-mouth, juicy texture. The most sought after is the Yubari melon, painstaking grown in greenhouses by farmers in the town of Yubari.

The famous Yubari melons cost 700 JPY per slice while the “normal” Hokkaido melon cost 500 JPY. We tried both.
Yubari melon at 700 JPY per slice.

The Yubari melon is slightly sweeter and tastier although both were juicy and sweet.

Our second visit to the Hakodate Morning Market was on the day that we drive to Lake Toya. Unlike the first day, we wanted a quick and fast breakfast before checking out from our hotel.

There are several stores selling seafood sashimi rice bowls in the food court area of the market. There are tables and chairs in a very clean environment and we saw many locals eating at this place.

We ordered the sashimi rice bowls from the Araki store. We could choose any mixture of seafood sashimi as toppings to our rice bowl. For us the best toppings were the ones that are hard to get back home. i.e. sea-urchin (uni), salmon eggs (ikura) and crab.

This stall also offered grilled squid!

We went to patronise the Araki store.

Two seafood rice bowls – one with ikura and uni (2850 JPY) and one with 3 toppings that include ikura, uni and crab meat (3850 JPY).

Grilled squid for 880 JPY.

Overall, this stall offered value-for-money fresh seafood rice bowls.

We had Yubari melon again for dessert before leaving the market.

Yubari melon for dessert.

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Exploring Hakodate’s Motomachi District, Night View from Mount Hakodate and Lucky Pierrot

27 May 2026

I had planned to spend 2 days in Hakodate as there are many attractions to see such as the Goryokaku Fort and Tower, Motomachi District located at the foot of Mount Hakodate, Kanemori Red Brick Warehouses located in the waterfront, Hakodate Morning Market and of course the famous night view from the summit of Mount Hakodate.

I had visited the Goryokaku Fort and Tower before checking into JR Inn Hakodate, a hotel located right on top of the JR train station. I had to adjust my itinerary in Hakodate a little as the rain was forecasted for Day 2 in Hakodate. In fact, light rain was forecasted to start at 8 PM on the night of Day 1 and continuing to the next day!

We decided to explore the Motomachi District in the late afternoon before heading up to Mount Hakodate to see the famous night view. Hopefully before the rain set in.

Hakodate was one of the first ports in Japan to be opened to foreign trade in 1854. As a result, many traders from Russia, China and Western countries moved to Hakodate. Motomachi, at the foot of Mount Hakodate, became a district favored among the new foreign residents. Many foreign-looking buildings remain in the area and are definitely worth a visit.

A walk through the Hakodate Waterfront

Although there are public trams linking the JR Station to the Motomachi area, we decided to go on foot as the weather was nice and cooling. We figured that we could enjoy some sightseeing at the waterfront along the way.

About 1 km into our walk, we came upon the Kanemori Red Brick Warehouse with Mount Hakodate in the back. The weather was clear enough for us to see the observatory on the summit.

View of the Kanemori Red Brick Warehouses with Mount Hakodate in the background.

Kanemori Red Brick Warehouse.

This is an old docking area where cargo ships unload their cargo into the warehouses.

The Kanemori Red Brick Warehouse (originally built in 1909) is a premier shopping and dining complex on the Hakodate waterfront. It houses about many stores, cafes, and restaurants. We would save this for a visit on a rainy day.

Across the road from the Kanemori Red Brick Warehouse is a local hamburger restaurant known as the Lucky Pierrot. This fast food chain is only found in Hakodate and has become a Hakodate “must-try”. There are several such restaurants located all over the city and this was the first one we saw. More about this restaurant later in this post.

There is a Lucky Pierrot restaurant located opposite the warehouse. This is the Marina Suehiro Branch.

We came across another Lucky Pierrot restaurant as we came to the Motomachi area.

Another Lucky Pierrot restaurant in the Motomachi area. This is the Bay Area Main shop.

Statue of Kimi Chan or Girl With The Red Shoes

At the traffic junction leading up to Hachimanzaka slope, there is a small statue of a girl wearing a pair of red shoes. This is a statue of Kimi Chan, also known as the girl with the Red Shoes. .

There is a real tragic story behind this statue of a girl who was adopted by an American missionary couple and supposed to travel to America with them. Sadly she fell sick could not travel and was abandoned to die in an orphanage.

Statue of Kimi Chan. She is dressed in Western clothes, including shoulder cloak, and clutching a purse and of course, red shoes.

Hachimanzaka slope

Located on the foot of Mount Hakodate, there are many roads sloping down towards the waterfront in the Motomachi area. One of the most famous is the Hachimanzaka slope.

At this time of year, there are flowering white azaleas bushes on the sidewalk adding to the beauty. We also noted the colourful mix of Western and Japanese style building along the slope. 

Flowering white azaleas bushes on the sidewalk adding to the beauty.     

One of the best views is from the top of the slope, looking down at the sea and port. The top of the hill is a T-junction and there are cars using the road!

We saw many tourists trying to shoot their best photos in the middle of the cobblestone road. Thankfully the traffic is not heavy but if I am a resident in the area, I will be upset.

Hachimanzaka is a popular scenic spot. The view is great because it faces straight down to the sea.

Motomachi Churches

After taking photos of the Hachimanzaka Slope, we spent time exploring the famous places of worship in this area. Among the most famous are the Russian Orthodox Church, Motomachi Roman Catholic Church and Hakodate St. John’s Church.

The Russian Orthodox Church is a beautiful church with pure white walls and green roof that is located on the left of the T-Junction at Hachimanzaka Slope. 

Russian Orthodox Church is the first Russian Orthodox cathedral founded in Japan.

There are information boards like this one explaining the background of the buildings.

Front view of the Russian Orthodox Church.

Further down the road, on the left, is the Catholic Church Hakodate Motomachi. It is a small, historic Roman Catholic church featuring Gothic architecture, red roofs & a bell tower.

Catholic Church Hakodate Motomachi.

The last church we saw was the Hakodate Episcopal Church. This church is that of the Anglican Church founded by an English priest who visited Hakodate in 1874. We actually saw this church as we were making our way to the Mount Hakodate Ropeway later in the day.

This church has an interesting architecture, featuring a cross when viewed from above.

Lunch at Raymon House

I thought eating Western food while exploring Hakodate’s Motomachi district is a good way to appreciate the foreigner’s influence in this part of Japan. I had earmarked a couple of restaurants to try.

We went to the historic Carl Raymon House in Motomachi since it was located very near to the churches we just saw.

The restaurant is housed inside a Western-style house complete with a gable featuring wooden beams.

Raymon House in Hakodate’s Motomachi area that is supposed to be already 100 years old.

Upon entry we saw a display of sausages and hams in refrigerators for sale. We came to eat their sausages that are grilled upon order. Ordering is via a kiosk that has multilingual options.

Delicious traditional German-style hot dogs with very fresh lettuce.

At the back of the shop, there are stairs leading to a small museum on the second floor. The exhibition tells the story of Carl Raymon and it was worth a visit to see some old photos of Hakodate.

Carl Raymon is an Austrian who married a Japanese woman and spent his life working with authentic German ham and sausages in Hakodate.

It was interesting to learn that Carl introduced authentic German sausages to Japan and was the inspirator for flag emblem of the European Union.

Old Public Hall of Hakodate Ward and Motomachi Park

After lunch we continued our exploration of the Motomachi area. We back tracked our way to the T-junction on top of Hachimanzaka slope and continued our walk through residential area to the Old Public Hall of Hakodate Ward. There are some notable gardens in some of the houses.

      

Red azaleas in one of the houses.

Perched on a scenic hill overlooking Hakodate Port, the Old Public Hall of Hakodate Ward is one of Hakodate’s most iconic historic landmarks. We only viewed the building from the outside.

Old Public Hall of Hakodate Ward is renowned for its striking symmetrical design, painted in soft blue-gray and vibrant yellow.

In front of the building is a park with beautiful spring flowers and views. Motomachi Park also features some nice sculptures.

Motomachi Park with views out over Hakodate Port.

Another “ Welcome to Hakodate” signage.

As I was admiring these sculptures, I heard a loud “pock” sound coming from behind me. I spot a crow trying to crack a nut by dropping it onto the concrete floor from high up. It is so fascinating to watch this intelligent bird using gravity to solve a problem. The crow did this several times, each time flying higher until it gave up at the end. So sad.

This crow gave me an interesting peek into their intelligence and problem solving skills.

On to the Mount Hakodate Ropeway

It was about 5.30 PM when we made our way to the Mount Hakodate Ropeway Station. Once again, we had to walk through the residential area to the T-junction of Hachimanzaka slope. We could have saved ourselves some walking if we had visited Motomachi Park and the Old Public Hall of Hakodate Ward before seeing the places of the worship which was nearer the ropeway station. In reality, we enjoyed the additional walking since the weather and the surroundings were very pleasant and we saw things that we missed the first time.

Beautiful wisterias outside a house.

We went to look for a Russian restaurant hoping to get an early dinner before going up the mountain. It is not easy to find Russian food back home so I thought it would be a good opportunity to do this while in Hakodate. Unfortunately, this restaurant called Marutamagoya was closed on Wednesday.

There is a large dog-house outside the restaurant for the owner’s dog, named Rye.

Doghouse outside the Russian Restaurant.

 

Mount Hakodate Ropeway and the Famous Night View

We were not sure if the ropeway was in operation on this day since we did not see any cable cars going up and down the mountain.

As we approached the ropeway station, we saw a gondola leaving the station. So, it was operating but the frequency is low at this time of day.

The roundtrip tickets costs 1,800 JPY per adult. There is an information board which informed us that sunset time is at 7.02 PM and the nighttime view would begin at 7.33 PM. The beautiful night view is best about 30 minutes after sunset time.

It also set expectations that the sky could be foggy later. In fact, weather forecast was light rain after 8 PM. We would probably have a small window of time and probability that we could get to see the famous night view.

Useful information to take note of while waiting for our cable car.

The cable car has a large cabin. We were the first to board since we just missed the previous car. We stood at the side facing down to get a good view of the city as the car went up the mountain. The ride only takes three minutes.

View of the city from the gondola. We could see both bays surrounding Hakodate.

As expected, it was windy and much colder up on the summit of Mount Hakodate. We put on our hiking jackets before going out of the ropeway station at the summit. It was nice to walk around to see various views from the observatory.

The Mount Hakodate gondola as viewed from the summit.

Outdoor plaza at the summit. 

TV and communication towers at the top.

We went to observation deck and there were already hoards of people waiting for the sun to set and the night view to appear. Ushers and security personnel were present to ensure safety.

We stood behind some people but were still able to get a fairly good view.

Ad we waited for the sun to set and the city lights to come on, a few drops of rain was felt. Weather forecast in Hokkaido had been very accurate and soon, light rain fell.

Like the rest of the folks in front of us, we braved the light rain and enjoyed the transition of light to darkness. Due to the slightly misty conditions and light rain, the photos were not the best. 

Once we had enough of the views and photos, we returned into the ropeway station. By now, the interior was packed and much more crowded than when we came. We got some t-shirts from the souvenir shop before taking the gondola down again.

Overall, we were glad that we came and managed to experience the famous Hakodate night view. For those who missed the night view for whatever reasons, there is a large poster with date/time stamped on it inside the ropeway station.

I thought this made a good souvenir photo.

Motomachi Area at Night

It was good to walked back through the Motomachi area to see the views of the churches and even Hachimanzaka at night. By now, the rain had stopped.

Here are the photos.

Hakodate Episcopal Church is beautifully lit at night.

Catholic Church Hakodate Motomachi.

Russian Orthodox Church.

We had some cheeky fun at the Russian Orthodox Church, casting our shadows against the walls. 

Hachimanzaka at night with wet floor.

Dinner at Lucky Pierrot

We walked back to the Hakodate Waterfront and had our dinner at the Lucky Pierrot Restaurant, Marina Suehiro Branch. The restaurant was quiet at this time of day. We sat at a table with harbor views.

In addition to hamburgers, Lucky Pierrot also offers a wide variety of dishes, such as curry and omelette rice. We ordered the highly raved Chinese Chicken Burger, made with sweet and sour fried chicken, crisp lettuce, and fresh mayonnaise.

The Chinese Chicken Burger won the top prize in the National Local Burger contest. No wonder. It was quite delicious and the portions were generous too.

The set came with cold ice tea and fries with a creamy sauce. The soggy fries were a disappointment as I prefer crispy fries. 

Chinese Chicken Burger came with large soft buns, generous portions of fried chicken, mayonnaise and sweet sauce. The fried chicken was a bit sweet with juicy insides. 

Interior decoration inside this branch is quite wacky.

There is a souvenir store inside the restaurant selling delicious sweets, stylish original merchandise, and other items.

It started to drizzle again as we left the restaurant. We stopped to shoot some photos outside the Kanemori Red Brick Warehouses that is nicely lit at night. The light reflecting off the wet floor made the photos even nicer.

  Kanemori Red Brick Warehouses.

The lights reflecting on the waters of the canal exude a romantic feel.

      

End of a long day

We ended the day at the JR Inn Lounge, located on the top floor of our hotel. Adjacent to the large public bath, the lounge is free to use and hot drinks are available to hotel guests. The lounge offers panoramic views of Mount Hakodate which was shrouded in clouds at this time.

It was good to relax and warm up with a cup of hot drink before returning to our room. I was glad that we managed to accomplish our sightseeing plans in Hakodate on this day. The weather forecasted for the next day is rain. That would be the day for shopping and indoor activities.

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