Pork bowl @ Tokachi Butadon Ippin, Stellar Place, Hokkaido

 

Pork is not something that most tourists would associate with Hokkaido. But you would be doing a disservice if you do. Having said that, it can be quite hard to look for some great pork dishes when seafood is so prevalent in this side of Japan. Well, this is where Tokachi Butadon Ippin comes in. 

The menu on display at the front. Ok I am sold!

A pork bowl chain born and raised in Hokkaido, they serve barbecue pork belly hot and ready to be gobbled down with rice. With a sweet and salty soy glaze which is sticky to the touch, you may associate it with the Cantonese export or char siew. And you may not be wrong, since the technique and ingredients are somewhat similar.  But what makes this special is that each strip of pork belly is hand grilled using the fires of local charcoal, giving it that smoky aroma that is hard to replicate. 

Look at that sheen

There are a few outlets in Hokkaido, but as I was preparing for my return I decided to use this as a preflight pitstop in Sapporo Station. Even though I was there at 11.30 am, there is already a line in front of the shop. For a place that serves only one thing in the menu, it is quite impressive. but after a 15 minute wait, I was then escorted to my seat. After browsing the menu I then ended up with the Zanmai rice bowl with less rice, which includes pork belly and loin meat.  That bowl stood at 1150 yen. 

Mouthwatering close up

The bowl itself was simple but still pretty impressive. With that glossy sheen on the sliced pork belly nicely arranged on the rice and with some spring onion on the top, this is not your regular pork bowl from that gyudon place you go at 10 pm after drinking with colleagues. And it does look like char siew on the first glance. However, the taste is anything but. The belly part of the pork was very juicy and fatty, with the charring being quite even, making it an amazing experience after each chew. The loin part is also pretty tasty, with a bit more bite than the fatty bits earlier. Honestly this is a better bite for me as the fat had made the flavour too intense and the marinade has tenderized the meat a bit, which makes for an amazing mouthfeel.

First of many delicious bites. 

 The glaze although has that classic sweet and salty Japanese taste, it is not teriyaki. It does taste a bit similar to char siew, but a bit more focus on the salty side than the floral spicy aroma that you may get from a Cantonese roaster. Despite being so simple, this was pretty enjoyable. I did get less rice since I want to enjoy the meat more. But as the meat and that intense sauce made of the glaze was so punchy, getting a bit more rice to cut the fat and the sauce would have been a good idea. Still, this is a great meal and indeed a sleeper hit if you ask me. 

Front of the house. 

So if somehow you got a bit tired of the seafood in Hokkaido, this is a place that I can strongly recommend. It is located in the major parts of this prefecture as well so finding it may not be that difficult. However, i do think that the shop located at the Stellar Place mall in the Sapporo Station complex is the most convenient. So if you would like t try the branch that I visited, the address is as below:

Floor 6 3 Chome-５番地 Kita 5 Jonishi, Chuo Ward, Sapporo, Hokkaido 060-0035