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As almost anyone will tell you, the Tsukiji fish market is a must for your first, jet-lagged morning in Tokyo. The subway starts running around 5:30am, so by 6:00 we were surprisingly awake and already weaving through endless rows of oysters, sea urchins, crabs, and various other sea creatures I had never even heard of. We were lucky to catch the tail-end of the tuna auction, watching successful bidders haul off fish more than twice their size–we later observed the enormous fish being halved and quartered into manageable chunks with a chain saw. We also stopped to admire an old man slicing eels from head to tail in one smooth motion, the fish still wriggling as he nailed them down. I must say I have never been more impressed by a market (and I am a fan of markets in general). Perhaps most impressive is that the innumerable heaps of seafood will be gone in just a couple hours, bought up by wholesalers and restaurants–the market will be completely empty by 1pm. And while tourists are a common sight at Tsukiji, the market is not a show for visitors (unlike, say, the floating market near Bangkok); if anything, bewildered foreigners are a nuisance, always barely avoiding getting run over by the little motor-powered fish-transporting carts.

Apparently, a classic finale to a trip to the Tsukiji market is sushi breakfast at a restaurant in the surrounding outer market–many are even open 24-hours to satisfy 3am raw fish cravings. You can’t really go wrong, since any restaurant will offer you the freshest, most tender sushi you have ever tasted. But having been to an average (read: incredible) place for my first sushi breakfast, I was really impressed by the atmosphere at Sushi Zanmai on my last one (yes, I couldn’t resist the idea of another sushi breakfast). They have many locations near the fish market, but on the recommendation of our friends who live in Tokyo we went to their Shinkan restaurant. The restaurant is not only open 24 hours, but will also deliver sushi anywhere in the country on the same day (as was explained to me, this service is useful if you are in town for a business meeting and would like to send some sushi home).

Upon entering the restaurant we were welcomed by a deafening greeting from the sushi chefs (so deafening, in fact, that I might have thought it was an order to get out if my friends hadn’t translated for me). We ate at the counter, and as each visitor arrived or departed, the chefs’ chorus drowned out our conversation. About 15 minutes into our meal the regular rhythm of tuna-slicing and eel-torching behind the counter suddenly stopped. A bell rang, and the chefs erupted in cheer and applause, joined eventually by the entire restaurant. Apparently a freshly prepared dish had just arrived from the kitchen–this time around it was sea eel baked in an omelet. We immediately ordered some–it was incredible. Honestly, I don’t know whether I will ever be able to enjoy sushi in the States again…

Read more: sushi, Sushi Zanmai, Tokyo, Travel, Travel Tips and Resources, Tsukiji


Inna

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