Let’s wake up at 5:00am to watch a tuna auction!
When faced with a proposal as inviting as this, it’s hard to say no. Or so one would think.
Unfortunately it would appear that my friends and fellow travelmates are less than adventurous, and more importantly, preferring the comforts of their futon beds to an early start to a fantastic and fishy day. Ah well. How much fun could waking up before the break of dawn to watch a small group of Japanese fishmongers haggle over frozen fish anyway, right?
Just the opportunity of a lifetime is all…
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1. Breakfast at Tsukiji’s • Tsukijishijō Station
There might not be a Tokyoite version of Audrey Hepburn sashaying in a Givency dress and an oversized cigarette holder, but there’s something equally captivating about breakfast at Tsukiji’s. Everyone tells us there’s nothing quite like fresh sashimi and sushi for one’s first meal of the day at the Tsukiji Market (築地市場 or Tsukiji shijō), one of the biggest fish markets in the world, if not the largest.
Walking towards to market from Tsukijishijō Station, we pass by some ramen shops already open and serving early customers – businessmen and housewives and foreign tourists alike – rapid meals for a clientele that is already rushing away to their next task before the last strand of noodle is slurped up.
We hurry too; there is all manner of fish and fishiness to be sought and to be seen.
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2. Of Giant Tentacles and Hairy Crabs • Outer Tsukiji Market
Where does one even start?
There is all manner of fresh fish and frozen and dried: Salmon and trout. Horse mackerel and dried cuttlefish. Mackerel pike and bonito. Shellfish and live fish. Seaweed and shrimp. Lobsters and sea bream and cuttlefish and giant octopi. Sea urchins and spotted shad. Hairy crabs, flower crabs, snow crabs and more.
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And that’s just the fish. Aside from the seafood, there are Japanese kitchen tools and knives, restaurant supplies, groceries, fried food made from the marine produce of the market, and a sushi bar or restaurant for starving visitors around every corner.
If one went hungry here, it would be because one is paralysed by the choices and the colours and the flavours, a very real danger. It is a risk well worth taking though, for the rewards are delectable and belly-filling.
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3. A Bit of Fry and Dory • Outer Tsukiji Market
“If it swims or it slithers, if it has fins or feelers, a tail or a pair of claws or a swarm of tentacles – we can fry it for you.”
That might just be the slogan or professional promise emblazoned on the banner above the fry shop, and it is, it’s certainly convincing given the smörgåsbord of deep-fried seafood displayed before us. You have fish balls and cuttlefish patties and skewers of some foreign-looking but probably very tasty oceanic creature unfortunate enough to fall into the fishermen’s net.
Unfortunate for the sea creature but very lucky for us. We are ravenous.
We are not really sure of what we ordering, of course, just picking out what looks the nicest and most intriguing and pointing at them. We want this, and that one too, and ooh, this one also. It all looks so delicious.
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And it is. From fluffy patties made of the flesh of freshly harvested snow crabs to deep-fried tentacles of baby octopi slathered generously with wasabi and Japanese mayonaise, it’s all good.
We munch and we chew and wonder how these Tokyoites stay so fabulously slim eating all manner of deep-fried seafood every day. They say if you can’t beat them, join them. This is a philosophy we are seriously considering adopting, both sensible and satisfying.
“What else can they fry? Got see ham or not har?”
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4. Trucks, Carts & Bicycles • Tōkyō-to Chūō Oroshiuri Shijō
We are at the Tsukiji Fish Market and we are not at the Tsukiji Fish Market.
Whereas the outer market has small retail shops and restaurants for the public, the real action lies within the realms of the “inner market” (Jonai Shijō) of what is formally known as the Tokyo Metropolitan Central Wholesale Market (東京都中央卸売市場, Tōkyō-to Chūō Oroshiuri Shijō). This is where tens of thousands of tons of seafood from all around the world arrive at Tsukiji early every morning and is auctioned off in a process that involve a whole slew of wholesalers, intermediate wholesalers, authorized buyers, traders, auctioneers and hygiene inspectors before ending up on the dinner plates of the consumers.
All we have seen so far is the surface. We want to see some real action.
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In the end, we abandon our guidebooks and our tourist maps and follow our noses. Or rather, the trail of fresh seafood aromas left by the ever-busy, ever-hustling-and-bustling troops of stevedores standing on “fish taxis” or motorised carts. They eventually bring us to the entrance of the inner market where trucks are loading the day’s stocks and old men race past us on small, ancient bicycles with smaller portions.
Bingo.
Past the stacks of white polystyrene boxes containing millions of yens worth of seafood, frozen or iced to keep them fresh, lies the jackpot, the heart of the empire of fish.
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5. Cockles Boy • Tōkyō-to Chūō Oroshiuri Shijō
Wet yet clean, bloody in places yet somehow pristine, the marketplace is made of rows upon rows of cramped stalls offering wholesale everything that has been auctioned earlier the same morning. We have missed the infamous tuna auctions, of course, but certainly there is enough teeming activity here to keep us unwary tourists busy as we hop and skip to avoid stedores zooming by with their carts full stacked high with boxes of seafood.
I won’t even begin to name half of the astonishing variety of seafood we stumble on here (nor am I likely to be able to), but Devil is delighted by the sight of this young man grabbing handfuls of fresh cockles (or ‘see ham‘ in Cantonese) and dumping them into transparent plastic bags for his customers.
Devil loves his cockles and these are humungous.
And bloody. Hardly my favourite so I sidle away discreetly, in search of the tuna auctions…
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6. The Empire of Fish • Tōkyō-to Chūō Oroshiuri Shijō
If this be the Empire of Fish, then the Regent is the Tuna, Emperor of the Rising Sun-kissed Oceans and the King of Sushi and Sashimi Platters.
We find out later that we wouldn’t have been able to attend the tuna auction even if we woke up at an insanely early hour. From an official notice from the Tsukiji Central Wholesale Market, ‘From April 8 to May 8, 2010 tourists will not be allowed to watch the morning tuna auctions to ensure a smooth and accident free course of business.’
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However, during normal periods when tourists are allowed, it is still important for visitors not to interfere with the action by adhering to the following rules:
- Visit the tuna auction only between 5:00am and 6:15am!
- Do not enter areas restricted to authorized personnel!
- Do not obstruct traffic!
- Do not bring large bags or suitcases into the market!
- Do not take flash photography during the tuna auction!
- Do not enter the market in high heeled shoes or sandals!
- Do not bring small children or pets!
- Do not smoke in the market!
- Do not touch the fish!
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Apparently, there is much friction between the hapless market officials & buyers and the rowdy and flash-photography-friendly tourists. So while we missed out on a unique experience, we are happy not to contribute to enraging the local marketpeople who just want to get their job done.
The first thing on our minds as we leave the Jonai Shijō is, Let’s get some sushi! And what better place than the biggest fish market in the world to get some?
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Copyright © 2010 Kenny Mah Ying Fye.
~ the Tokyo, Tokyo series ~
Prologue • Bye Bye Sakura
Part 1 • All You Can Eat Ameyoko
Part 2 • Uniquely Ueno
Part 3 • Okachimachi: The Best Sushi in Tokyo
Part 4 • Tsukiji: The Biggest Fish Market in the World
Part 5 • The Giant Lanterns of Asakusa, or The Girl Called Spring
Part 6 • Yanaka Cemetery: A Picnic with the Departed
Part 7 • Leonardo DiCaprio & the Gangs of Ginza
Part 8 • A Match Made in Meiji
Part 9 • Harajuku Girls in Love
Part 10 • Heavenly Hakone
Part 11 • Where Did Mt. Fuji Go?
Part 12 • Beautiful Boy Ramen
Part 13 • Ghibli Museum: Spirited Away by Princess Mononoke
Part 14 • How We Got Beaten Up by Bruce Lee at Roppongi Hills
Part 15 • Shinjuku Gyoen
Epilogue • The Last Meal in Tokyo
Kenny Mah believes in the good in people. He has been blogging for over ten years. No, his hands aren't tired. Yet.
If i was to describe how i want heaven to be, i think this would be it!!
@lotsofcravings: I have been to your version of heaven and it rocks! :D
Fantastic post, kenny. Great post to start the Monday with. easily digested … hehe.
Anyway, saw this market on Travel & Living and AFC many times before, I’m telling myself this is a MUST-VISIT if ever I am in Tokyo. The tuna auction sadly can’t be observed anymore, but the fragrance (yeah) of the freshest of seafood should be enticing enough.
Plus the chance to devour them there and then!
@J2Kfm: I think there is something amazing here… it does smell different, fresh seafood… a clean and healthy smell, a fragrance of wonderful meals to come. :)
I would definitely head back here next time when the visitors ban from the tuna auction is lifted again.
You captured the many wonderful facets of Tsukiji! It’s a real shame they’re closing the auction to visitors but I guess it’s better let them get on with the brutal business of fish without pesky tourists about. I wonder why just Apr 8 to May 8 though? What about the rest of the year?
@minchow: I think they close it periodically so there is still a chance when you and anyone else visit, you will be able to witness the auction.
But even then, it’s only from a small blocked-off area and with no flash photography that may interfere with the bidding.
OMG. Such a nice fish market, I think I would have spent all my Yen on the food already just walking passed the stalls.
@Simon Seow: Where did you think all my ¥¥¥ went? LOL
sashimi for brekkie feels not quite right. but i’d love to visit right before lunch and spend 3-4 hours just walking and eating (i wouldn’t wake up at 5 either!).
and yep, i’d stuff myself with see ham too, hepatitis a be damned (or is that b) … don’t suppose there’s a char kuey teow stall there? :D
@Sean: Don’t worry, bro – you don’t have to have brekkie there – lunch works just fine. And a healthy dose of walking helps work up an decent appetite for all that fresh fish and seafood.
P.S. Another see ham fan? Ewwww… :P
wow… those clams!
one thing though… the way the jap kill dolphins… not a good sight.
@zewt: Aye, they do. I’m gonna watch the documentary ‘The Cove’ this weekend and I’m guessing it’s gonna be eye-opening. :(
Great post! I was there last year and I wish I could eat sashimi breakfast there everyday!
@alkanphel: I know exactly what you mean – when sashimi tastes that good and that fresh, it’s no chore at all to have it every day! :)
I must say you’re doing well with the posts on your trip to Japan which I totally enjoyed. :)
Btw, I’m just curious, did you finish your posts on the Beijing trip? :P
@jemima: Hahaha, you caught me there! Aside from a prelude to the entire Beijing experience, I haven’t written anything else yet.
Let’s finish Tokyo first then see how… :P
ohhh there’s a place in selayang sells those big cockles but hvnt got the chance to try yet
@babe_kl: Ooh, that can be another post altogether – “Super-sized See-hams in Selayang!” – but I don’t think I’ll be the one to write it. Me no likee cockles… :P
OMG!!!! This is heaven!! I can imagine myself dancing at the market, from one stall to another!! Hubby been there once and promised to bring me there one day (wonder when). Tonite i shall pester him again. Wish me luck!
@Precious Pea: Maybe not “dancing” though – floor can be slippery with fish blood? :P
If you need any help in persuading your Hubby, just point him here… plenty of pictorial persuasion, haha.
It’s Tsukiji! Definitely on my blue list! Would definitely wake up to catch it.
@Paul: Better set an alarm clock, cos those tatami mats are soooo comfortable you’re gonna wanna sleep in! (That, and all the walking you’d have done all over Tokyo the previous day, haha.)
The Tsukiji market is one of the most memorable places that I’ve visited in Tokyo. It’s really a part of Tokyo that’s unique, real, timeless and way different from Shibuya or Shinjuku. The ramen stall pics evoked so much memories since I didn’t snap any pic of it as I hungrily chomped down the steaming hot bowl of noodles in the cool late spring morning of 2003. Hmmm, going to get myself some Nissin cup noodle now. Hehe. :)
@Nic (KHKL): Haha, you could have been one of those hungry tourists slurping down one bowl of noodles after another…
Somehow Nissin cup noodles just don’t taste the same… :P
A fish like me does not even have the opportunity to visit Tsukji market yet….
But maybe I fear….what happens to a fish in a fish market. Dead dish!
Nice photos.
@tigerfish: You’re not a fish lah, dear… maybe a sotong, but not a fish… LOL
Just kiddin’, I think you’ll love it there, taking to it like a fish to water (pun intended).
oh my oh my..I’ll kill myself if I dont make a trip here soon. Considering that I got a friend there for now.
Will video the tuna auction if i could!
@thenomadGourmand: Ooh! It’d be brilliant if you could video the tuna auction.
Do check online before you head there if it’s during one of those tourists-banned periods. *keeps fingers crossed for you that it’s not*
ahh…. i got to visit this place.
it’s where the ‘sashimi deluxe’ came from! hehe..
ok ok.. how much did u eat? :-p
@keropokman: How much did we eat? Just check our newly “enhanced” waistlines and you’d have a good idea. :P
o.O
sushiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii……..
omg n cocklessssssssss…..!!! n snow crabs is it???
imma want… (T_T)
how come i dun see any uni???
@asstha: Umi? Got, got, may have forgotten to take some pics though. Sorry la, try and take pics of some for you the next time I’m in Tokyo, ok? :)
This is definitely a MUST-GO place when in Tokyo! I love fish and i love markets!
@Pureglutton: Fish + Market = FUN! :D
WOW… very interesting place to visit!!!
Can’t touch the fish at all? But ppl usually will touch the fish first before decide to buy or not, rite?
@Selba: Not the way they do it in Japan – it’s not hygienic (for the fish and subsequent consumers) for one thing, and what’s more this is Very Expensive Tuna we are talking about…
Once Touched, Considered Sold! :P
This is great. I have waiting for this for a while. And the auction reopens its door tomorrow!
@worldwindows: Yay for that! Hope you have fun at the tuna auction! Take plenty of pics! (But no flash, okay?)
yes! i was waiting for the big fish..! Empire of the Sun.. there’s another great song – Walking on a Dream:P
Tsukiji Market ! Bow bow.. not worthy.. I think u captured it all.. what can i say. U just made Tokyo ur b****
just saw one of your fans ask u about beijing. so funny.. so hardwork hor, but true readers ALWAYS know when u have not finished.. sigh.. LOL
@Ciki: I can’t wait to return to the Tsukiji Fish Market and hopefully during the period when watching the tuna auction isn’t banned.
As for Beijing, exactly lah! But to be fair, I barely got started on my Beijing trip, so how to finish, right? ROFL
Many years ago, I got up before dawn in a Tokyo hotel, and took the subway to Tsukiji. I quickly learned to stay out of the workers’ ways, as I nearly got bowled over by a giant tuna…and was glared at by the man wielding a huge cart.
I will never forget the experience, and suggest others visit Tsukiji also.
@ruth: Thanks for sharing your Tsukiji experience with us, Ruth. I know what you mean about the stevedores glaring at visitors, but we can’t really blame them – most of them, we truly are in the way of their work.
Good job on escaping the onslaught of that giant tuna, too! :)
gosh the humongous-ness of it all!!!
and that last rule – do not touch the fish! just really cracked me up for some strange reason. hahahahhahaaha
can you imagine some ditzy blonde tourist going ooooo what a big fish ~touch~
and then all hell breaks loose as curse words descend upon her…. hahhaahah
ok la my imagination hyperactive today :P
@lingzie: Oh bless your hyperactive imagination, it’s lovely. :)