My husband and I just returned from a 2-night, 3-day trip to Hokkaido! (*´艸｀*) As we enter our 50s, it seems our focus has shifted from romance to food!! Oh! Regardless of age, my husband and I have always been on a quest for delicious food, constantly growing in our culinary adventures!! About our figures? (๑´ڡ`๑) Hehe.My husband had heard from a colleague (a Hokkaido University graduate) that we should definitely visit Sushi Sai Wakichi, so we made a reservation and went. The restaurant was located in a calm area, quite different from the lively Sapporo.As customers, we were the first to enter! The restaurant has 8 counter seats. "Wow, I'm a bit nervous." We sat in the designated spot, ordered drinks, and waited for the other guests. Yes, in recent years, we’ve dined at two high-end Italian restaurants and two high-end Japanese restaurants, and this was our first sushi experience, so it felt a bit nerve-wracking to start the meal all at once—maybe because we weren’t used to it? Haha.The live cooking is where the chef showcases their skills, but personally, I wanted to express my thoughts, "Oh! Are you cutting that part off too? What a waste! Please put that part on the plate!" I’m glad I didn’t voice my inner foodie spirit… I almost embarrassed my husband. I managed to hold back and just watched the chef’s knife skills. (；´∀｀)The knives were well-maintained high-quality ones, and they sliced through the ingredients beautifully. This is a level of knife skill that home cooks can’t replicate. I wondered if the difference in cutting technique might be causing the loss of the ingredients' flavors… Hmm, I reflected and took notes on that. Haha. In the back, there was a long ceramic charcoal grill that looked expensive, sparking my imagination about what they might be grilling. (*^^*) There were also several cute small rice containers for the red vinegar sushi rice, which made me wonder if they were tailored to the specific ingredients.On the wall, there was a luxurious painting of nine goldfish, and I entertained myself with the thought of the chef and the eight guests. The person in the back wearing a fishing outfit and glasses (looking like a child) must be the chef, right? Just a fun thought! (*´艸｀*)The dishes included:- Octopus… Served with wasabi. I had never seen such a beautifully arranged octopus with all the suckers intact.- Zuwai crab and oyster chawanmushi… This was worlds apart from the chawanmushi I usually eat, making me wonder if this was really chawanmushi?? It felt strangely different. Perhaps it was because of the oyster broth, which had no off-flavors… or maybe my palate had gotten used to off-flavors? Who knows? Haha.- Grilled Kinki with ponzu… It was delicious, with rich fat and a sweet flavor.- Matsukawa flounder with sesame sauce… It was a small piece, likely the edge of the flounder, but it had a delightful crunch and richness—truly exquisite!- Ikura and salmon… The gentle aroma of yuzu and a refined saltiness made it delicious.- Herring sushi… Finally, we had rice! To be precise, it might not be pressed sushi since it wasn’t pressed, but I had never eaten raw herring before. The herring was rich and melted in my mouth, and the acidity of the red vinegar rice was slightly stronger than usual, pairing perfectly. However, it was strange that the herring disappeared from my mouth while the rice remained—what a curious phenomenon, and a bit disappointing for a foodie! Haha. I had never realized how delicious raw herring could be!- Fried Tokubire (a type of fish)… I only knew the spice star anise, but I learned about this high-end fish for the first time. It’s a mild white fish, and I wondered if frying it would suit it. It was delicious with a gentle broth, along with some mushrooms and eggplant.- Sumi squid- Grilled squid legs… The aroma from the charcoal was delightful.- Kamatoro… Thinly sliced toro with marbled fat, served in two layers. It was brought out at room temperature, perhaps to allow the fat to melt. The board it was served on had a noticeable amount of high-quality fat, which left an impression. I thought to myself, "I could eat two bowls of rice with that fat!" and whispered this to my husband like a foodie talent. Haha.- Toro-taku… It couldn’t possibly be bad! Haha… The crispy seaweed grilled over charcoal… Oh, I want to eat it again! Haha… After eating so much imitation negitoro, I could really tell the difference! Haha.- Horse mackerel- Hokkigai… It was very sweet and delicious, likely due to being grilled over charcoal. (๑´ڡ`๑)- Abalone… The flesh was dipped in liver sauce, and we mixed the sushi rice with the liver sauce to eat.- Nodoguro… I had never eaten it before, but it was refreshing yet perfectly fatty and delicious.- Botan shrimp… The shrimp was filled with roe and topped with eggs, cut into small pieces for easy eating. The shrimp roe added a nice accent, leaving a lingering flavor in my mouth.- Murakami sea urchin from Rebun… My dream was to go to Rebun Island and eat their sea urchin! I got to eat it even before that wish came true—it was incredibly sweet and the best sea urchin I’ve ever had! I’ve heard that Bafun uni is the best, but Murakami uni was also delicious—applause!- Kinki broth miso soup- Simmered eel- Steamed egg… A cold egg dish resembling dessert pudding.The dishes were remarkable. They used excellent ingredients and prepared them beautifully. My husband, who usually doesn’t like red meat, naturally exclaimed "Delicious!" when he tasted the kamatoro. Haha. However, the issue for me wasn’t the food but the price—JPY 36,000 (TT)… That’s not an amount you can easily spend on a meal. It’s quite rare to have sushi this expensive… maybe once in a lifetime? Haha. I think I’d be comfortable with a budget of JPY 20,000 per person. I don’t drink alcohol, after all… I’ll continue to search for restaurants that are a bit more reasonable and make me want to return! Thank you to everyone at the restaurant for the wonderful meal! ♡