Yukku 北海道料理 ユック : Hokkaido Izakaya Cuisine

There are actually several restaurants that specializes in Hokkaido cuisine in Tokyo. One of them is Restaurant Yukku, which opened its first shop in Sapporo back in 1964. Ever since, it has expanded with several outlets in Tokyo and Yokohama. There is also one at Chitose International Airport Sapporo. This Shinjuku outlet on the 50th floor of offers great scenery views including Mt.Fuji

Like most restaurants, it has a regular grand menu, a seasonal menu and a lunch menu. One can try many authentic Hokkaido cuisine such as this Imo-mochi Yaki (¥530). Because rice was scarce and potato was abundant in Hokkaido, potato was used to make these chewy potato patties that are pan-fried and served in sweet and sticky golden sauce. It's pretty greasy but very yummy, especially with the buttered corns. 

 
Seasonal White and Green Asparagus that are simply steamed and served with Mayonnaise. 

When it comes to Hokkaido seafood, one would surely think of crabs. There are many crabs dishes here such as Baked Kani Cream Gratin (かにクリーム甲羅焼き), Kani Miso Yaki (特選蟹味噌甲羅焼き) and Steamed Crab Claws in Wine and Konbu (たらば蟹酒蒸し). The broth in latter is especially sweet with a slight tang!



Assorted Kani Sushi Platter contained was a mixture of Kani sushi, Kani miso sushi and tamago but they were not very impressive. 

My favourite dishes that day were all the salmon cuisine. The Salmon Hotpot rice (鮭の石焼飯) is probably the best rice dish we've ever had! The base contained some spicy-sweet miso that coated every grain as we mixed with the egg yolk. It came sizzling hot and the aroma of burnt miso was simply irresistible. Even the folks commented that this dish was better than Singapore claypot rice!

雲丹と帆立貝の卵とじ Uni and Scallop with Eggs. 

The Chan-chan Yaki is also another very authentic Hokkaido way of preparing salmon with miso. It was also served at the Nezumaru, the Hokkaido sushi conveyor belt restaurant in Kitte. 

Another Hokkaido dish is this Ishikari Hotpot (石狩鍋) which featured salmon and miso as main ingredients, while vegetables and tofu are also added for that extra sweetness. It is said to be originated from Ishikari City, Hokkaido. 

We were looking for some salad but there was none at all. So we ended up with this Ramen Salad from the North (北のラーメンサラダ) which is basically cold ramen noodles with sesame dressing. But anything with sesame dressing would taste delicious and so was this dish. 

Our dinner was excellent and none of the dishes disappointed. The price range might be slightly higher than usual izakayas because the ingredients are all from Hokkaido but the quality is well-assured. 

Hokkaido Yukku 北海道料理 ユック

2-6-1 Nishishinjuku, Shinjuku-ku, Tōkyō-to  

50F Sumitomo Building

Daily 11.30am-2.30pm (Lunch) 5pm-10.30pm (Dinner)

Other outlets( Ginza/ Shinbashi/ Hanzomon/ Yokohama) and menu: http://www.yukku.net/