Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations-Hokkaido

[JohnBraden]

I just saw his newest episode, filmed a few weeks prior to the Great Tohoku and Kanto Earthquake. This time he visited Hokkaido. I was glad he finally went off the beaten path and went to Japan's "Wild West".

I immediately thought of Go Native when I saw this episode, as he was quite close to his Kutchan. He started in Sapporo and then went to an izakaya in Niseko. The following day, he went skiing nearby and had lunch in a soba-ya in Niseko.

Anthony also headed to a ramen shop in Shiraoi and visited the Ainu people. It was enlightening how similar their predicament is with the Native American people here in the U.S. Finally he headed to an onsen in Noboribetsu and had a robatayaki meal.

It was quite interesting to see that Sapporo's sidewalks are warmed and there's no snow, while the pavement is inches deep in the stuff.

I don't know if I'll go back up there as a tourist. It would be awesome to go, but it's quite far from 'mainland" Japan. All I saw of Hokkaido was Wakkanai airport and a few buildings in that area. Ooops, I don't know if I was supposed to mention that, seeing as I "was never there, oficially"....wink, wink....

Anyway, I thought of Go Native throughout the episode. I don't know if you know who Anthony Bourdain is or have ever seen any of his episodes, but if you're interested, pm me and we can talk.

[steel]

YouTube - Anthony Bourdain - No Reservations - Japan Hokkaido 1:3
YouTube - Anthony Bourdain - No Reservations - Japan Hokkaido 2:3
YouTube - Anthony Bourdain - No Reservations - Japan Hokkaido 3:3

I can't imagine how and why Bourdain would have wanted to make the trek out to Niseko for the food. Next, he'll be extolling the virtues of the 'world-class' cocktails at Gas Panic in Roppongi.

[GoNative]

Thanks for posting those steel and bringing them to my attention John. I actually got a little emotional seeing the region I love so much featured like that. I've never seen any of his shows before and really enjoyed them.

The first restaurant he went to in this area, the yaki-tori place, is actually my favourite restaurant in Kutchan (called Torimatsu). I go there often and over the years have become quite good friends with the owners.

In Sapporo it's only the main sidewalks like down in Susukino that are heated. Many of the side streets are not and are quite treacherous in the winter.

And steel you shouldn't underestimate the quality of the food in this region. It's famous throughout Japan for it and people from all over come up here to sample the gastronomic delights on offer!

[steel]

Please don't get me wrong - I love Hokkaido.

However Niseko really isn't a place to write home about. It's inland and like Gas Panic, it's main redeeming feature is that it's popular with other gaijin for skiing. Moreover there isn't anything special out there about the food.

[thesoulofjapan]

I do have some complaints about this episode in Hokkaido, so I hope Mr. Bourdain reads this. Firstly, the restaurant you went to with your female host was just average. The place you should've gone to is called Uni Murakami in Sapporo. They are unarguably the greatest uni restaurant franchise in all of Japan, and they serve up the highest grade of sea urchin the right way with generous portions. All of your hosts were inexperienced nihonshu drinkers which , in my opinion, took away from the show. Sake and Japanese food go better together than beer. I think you know this. You missed out on the Sapporo Snow Festival which was held in Feb 2011 - I know, I was there. What a pity. You planned poorly and I wished I had known about you before hand. I sort of resented your hosts for not talking about the how to pair sake with the food you were eating You must go back to Sapporo and redo the whole thing again. You missed out on some really great restaurants and scenery. I have been writing about food in Japan for almost ten years. You also missed out on Furano's famous curry and milk. You ate boiled crab! This is a sin. You eat it steamed. That is the only way you are supposed to eat crab. You should've visited Kushiro and Nemuro for Hanasaki Gani. Again, with all do respect, the Hokkaido show was poorly planned and I feel a little bitter about it. You have to redo that episode. Also, Niseko is the last place on earth you should've written about - little Oz. Furano would've been better!