Yabuhan Soba in Otaru for lunch and Soup Curry in Sapporo for dinner and everything else in between.

31 August 2023

After the Nikka Distillery Tour and whisky tasting in Yoichi, we arrived back in Otaru train station at about 1 PM. We managed to get the last locker at the Otaru train station to dump the loads of whisky we bought at the Nikka distillery before heading out for lunch in Otaru.

Lunch at Yabuhan Soba

We walked about 5 minutes to Yabuhan Soba. There was a short queue at this well-known soba (buckwheat noodle) restaurant in Otaru. We waited about 20 minutes for a table.

The restaurant is in a Japanese-style building marked by a willow tree.

We sat in a normal table instead sitting  on tatami mats at the traditional low tables. They have an English menu that offered various dishes besides soba.

We ordered the TenKake soba which is tempura with soba noodles in soup. This could come in either hot or cold soba. We ordered the usual hot soba. Most other diners, we noticed, ordered the cold soba which is popular in the summer heat. 

Tenkake soba which is tempura with soba noodles in soup.

We also ordered some cold Otaru beer to go with our hot soba soup.

Light and refreshing Otaru beer.

This restaurant is tourist friendly. There is information in English on how to best enjoy the food.

The soba has a nice chewy texture which I like.  Overall the lunch was delicious.

After our meal, the staff came over and served us some hot water which the noodles have been boiled in. Well worth a try.

We tried the soba-yu as per custom but it was not so tasty.

Sakaimachi Street

We went back to Sakaimachi Street after lunch.  This time we could take our time to browse through the pasty shops and buy some goodies from LeTao to bring home.

Ivy covered building at the start of Sakaimachi Street.

We did not take many photos since this was our second visit in two days.

Otaru Canal

Just before heading to our hotel to collect our luggage, we made a quick detour to take a look at Otaru Canal.

Otaru Canal in the day time emits a different vibe compared to the night. It is less romantic without the gas lights but still present a pretty picture.

Gulls, ducks and the usual canal boats could be seen.

We could see a local man feeding the gulls in the air and ducks on the water.

 

Travel from Otaru to Sapporo

Otaru Authent Hotel is within walking distance to the Otaru JR Train Station. We did not forget the Nikka whiskey that we stashed in the locker there.

Trains between Otaru and Sapporo is frequent. We bought the IC cards and loaded them with money. The IC cards could be used for the JR train ride from Otaru to Sapporo, as well as public transport when we are in Sapporo.

The first part of the train ride was quite scenic as the tracks pass by the coast. Thereafter, the train got pretty crowded as we got nearer to Sapporo, the big city in Hokkaido. It was a good thing we sat near the entrance and did not have to struggle too much to get off the train with our luggage (two of our suitcases had handles that broke during this trip – became fragile after 2 years sitting in the attic during the Covid 19 travel freeze).

The Sapporo Train Station is pretty big and busy. Besides JR trains, the subway in Sapporo is also linked. Our hotel in Sapporo is the Gracery Hotel and is located in front of Sapporo Station, connected to the Sapporo Station underground shopping mall.

Soup Curry Dinner in Sapporo

After enjoying soup curry at Soup Curry Garaku on our first night in Hokkaido, we decided that we must have another meal of soup curry before leaving Hokkaido. There are many soup curry restaurants in Hokkaido serving this dish, each with their own secret recipe for the curry broth. We decided to try Soup Curry Suage, which is one of the highly recommended soup curries.

We made our way to Soup Curry Suage4 which was supposed to close at 7.30 PM. Just as we arrived at the restaurant at about 7 PM, the staff stopped accepting people in the queue. Japan is known for their excellent service culture. Turning customers away 30 minutes before stated closing time is so strange.

After a quick check with Google Map, we found another soup curry restaurant nearby. Sapporo Tiger Curry is located inside Akarenga Terrace, just across the road junction from where Soup Curry Suage is located.

The restaurant is actually a stall in a food court located on the 3rd floor. We ordered from the Japanese menu using Google Translate. In addition to the usual chicken, there are soup curry with hamburgers in the menu and also vegetarian options.

We unknowingly ordered one that came with some horumon (fatty innards)! We did not eat the fatty innards and ordered an additional topping of chicken curry.

Vegetarian soup curry for my wife who wanted something lighter.

The curry was quite good, full of flavour! 

After our dinner, we went to check out a store in the mall selling outdoor gear. I was looking for small day pack to replace my current Northface bag which is aging and also a little heavy.

I found and bought this Montbell day pack that meets all my requirements (super lightweight, rain cover, waist straps that can be stowed, adjustable chest strap) for a good price.

Montbell is a excellent local brand and this bag is lightweight and packed with features that I need.