[Kinema-kan in Abashiri] Abashiri Zangi Rice Bowl Has Not Chicken But Salmon

Kinema-kan

Food Court Kinema-kan (フードコート キネマ館) is a restaurant opened in 2009 on the 2nd floor of Roadside Station "Drift Ice Highway Abashiri (流氷街道網走)" that is a landing place for a drift ice ferry in Abashiri city located in the northeastern direction of Kitami city, and is run by Takahashi corp that is Karaoke Utaya. (株式会社タカハシ) that runs Karaoke Utaya (カラオケ歌屋). The restaurant is large, and some movie scenes are put on inside walls. Since the Abashiri was choosen as the setting of Japanese movies such as Abashiri Prison Series (網走番外地シリーズ) in Showa period, a concept of the Kinema-kan is Japanese movies in those days. Counter seats and table seats are provided, so I guess that even family customers and a large number of customers enjoy meals.

Drift Ice Sightseeing in Abashiri

There are 2 sightseeing spots that tourists can enjoy the scheduled drift ice cruising in Japan. Abashiri in the northeastern part of the Hokkaido faces the Sea of Okhotsk, and is one of the sightseeing spots for drift ice cruising. Drift ice drifts to the offing of Abashiri around mid January. If common ships collide with the drift ice, those are broken, but Drift Ice Icebreaker Aurorago (流氷観光砕氷船おーろら号) and Aurorago2 (おーろらⅡ号) that can break the drift ice zone with the weight of themselves go into service. A lot of tourists visit here to see the drift ice from mid January to early April. The drift ice icebreaker Aurorago and Aurorago2 go into service from 2 to 5 each day, and cruising time is around 60 minutes. The tourists can get aboard a ship at the roadside station "Ryuhyo Kaido Abashiri (流氷街道網走)". Read More

By the way, "Dreamint Okhotsk-go (ドリーミントオホーツク号)", an express bus, runs between the Sapporo and the Abashiri. Besides, Rent-a-car can be rented around Abashiri Station.

List of Means of Transportation

Highway buses run between the Abashiri and the Sapporo. Refer to following the means of the transportation in the Abashiri. As for car rental comparison websites, you can compare vehicle rental prices on Jalan Rental Car (じゃらんレンタカー) and Rakutem Travel Rental Car (楽天トラベルレンタカー).

(Chuo Bus)中央バス	From Sapporo to Abashiri	HP	Jalan	Rakuten
(Chuo Bus)中央バス	From Abashiri to Sapporo	HP	Jalan	Rakuten
Nippon Rent-a-car(ニッポンレンタカー)	Their office is near the Abashiri Station.	HP	Jalan	Rakuten
Times Car Rental(タイムズカーレンタル)	Their office is near the Abashiri Station.	HP	Jalan	Rakuten
Toyota Rental Lease(トヨタレンタリース)	Their office is in Omagari.	HP	Jalan	Rakuten
Station Rent-a-car(駅レンタカー)	Their office is near the Abashiri Station.	HP	Jalan	Rakuten
Ones Rent-a-car(ワンズレンタカー)	Their office is near the Abashiri Station.	HP	Jalan	Rakuten

ABASHIRI

Abashiri (網走) that about 40,000 people live is the 20th largest tourist city in Hokkaido, and is one of regional hub cities of the Northeastern Hokkaido area. It is also a fisheries city facing the Sea of Okhotsk, and Crab, Idiot Fish, Whale and Salmon are famous as a local specialty. As for a climate, it is chilly that temperature rises to nearly 25 degrees in a summer, and it is cold that temperature falls to nearly -5 degrees in a winter, and it does not snow hard, too. It may be said that the Abashiri is relativelly warm climate in the Hokkaido. The Abashiri is well-known for drift ice reaching to the coast, and is famous as a winter tourist spot, too, and is roughly divided into 2 areas, a old city area (a neighborhood of Abashiri River mouth) and a new suburbs area. The new suburbs area is more developed than the old city area, and has more restaurants than the old city area. Read More

Abashiri Zanki Rice Bowl

I visited here to eat Abashiri Zanki Rice Bowl (網走ザンギ丼) around 14:00 on a weekday. The restaurant adopts a system of a meal ticket, so vivistors should buy a meal ticket via a ticket vendor, and look for their seat. I bought a meal ticket of the Abashiri Zanki Rice Bowl via a ticket vendor at once. The price was JPY 880. Customers have to help themselves to water.

The Abashiri Zanki Rice Bowl is a rice bowl topped with fishery products and vegetables caught in the Abashiri, and is served at some restaurants in the Abashiri. They have some rules and regulations to name a dish as the Abashiri Zanki Rice Bowl. Those are as follows. But thanks to that, restaurants compete with each other, and different Abashiri Zanki Rice Bowls are born. You might as well eat those at different restaurants.

1. Rice produced in Hokkaido shall be topped with Abashiri Zanki.
2. Other toppings as well as the Abashiri Zanki are used as soon as possible.
3. Yam and mountain wasabi produced in the Abashiri are added.
4. Soup using shellfish such as shijimi clam, scallop, clam and so on caught in the Abashiri is also served.
5. White dishes or bowls shall be used.
6. Chopsticks made from thinned woods produced in the Hokkaido shall be used.
7. Common chopstick wrapper shall be used.

About 10 minutes later, and my number was announced, so I brought my dish. A content of the set meal was a bowl of the Abashiri Zanki Rice Bowl, a bowl of short-necked clam soup, a dish of salad and a dish of pickles. The most surprising thing was the content of the zanki (ザンギ). Speaking of the zanki, it was chicken generally. But it was salmon. That was Okhotsk Salmon that Mr. Rosanjin Kitaooji (北大路魯山人), a famous artist, praised highly. Because I assumed that the zanki was meat, I was even more surprised. The dish was Chinese cuisine style taste. When I mixed mountain wasabi and yam with rice, and ate it, it was interesting that the Abashiri Zanki Rice Bowl had good flavor. Thanks for the tasty meal!

Abashiri Zanki Rice Bowl and Atmosphere of Restaurant Can Be Watched on Youtube

Movie of Abashiri Zanki Rice Bowl

List of Accommodations

Refer to following websites for the accommodations in the Abashiri. You can get information regarding online reviews and photos.

ABASHIRI

Abashiri Royal Hotel(網走ロイヤルホテル)	HP	Booking	Jalan	Rakuten
Hotel Route-Inn Abashiri Ekimae(ホテルルートイン網走駅前)	HP	Booking	Jalan	Rakuten
Abashiri Central Hotel(網走セントラルホテル)	HP	Booking	Jalan	Rakuten
Dormy Inn Abashiri(ドーミーイン網走)	HP	Booking	Jalan	Rakuten
Hokkai Hotel(北海ホテル)	HP	Booking	Jalan	Rakuten
Abashiri Hotel Okhotsk Inn(網走ホテル オホーツク・イン)	HP	Booking	Jalan	Rakuten
Toyoko Inn Hokkaido Okhotsk Abashiri Ekimae(東横インオホーツク・網走駅前)	HP	Booking	Jalan	Rakuten
Abashiri Green Hotel(網走グリーンホテル)	HP	Booking	Jalan	Rakuten
Abashiri Ryuhyou-no-Oka Youth Hostel(網走流氷の丘ユースホステル)	HP	Booking	Jalan	Rakuten
Hotel Sun Abashiri(ホテルサンアバシリ)	HP	Booking	Jalan	Rakuten
Minshuku Lamp(民宿ランプ)	HP	Booking	Jalan	Rakuten
Notoronoso Kagariya(能取の荘 かがり屋)	HP	Booking	Jalan	Rakuten
Washi-no-Tomarigi(わしのとまり木)	HP	Booking	Jalan	Rakuten
Business Hotel Family(ビジネスホテル ファミリー)	HP	Booking	Jalan	Rakuten
Chiba Ryokan(千葉旅館)	HP	Booking	Jalan	Rakuten
Business Ryokan Miyuki(ビジネス旅館 みゆき)	HP	Booking	Jalan	Rakuten
Minshuku Kamome-so(民宿 かもめ荘)	HP	Booking	Jalan	Rakuten
Yasuragi-no-Yado B&B Abashiri(やすらぎの宿 B&B あばしり)	HP	Booking	Jalan	Rakuten
Sea Side Stay(Sea Side Stay)	HP	Booking	Jalan	Rakuten
Arawashi(あら鷲)	HP	Booking	Jalan	Rakuten
Imodango Village(いもだんご村)	HP	Booking	Jalan	Rakuten
Tent Land(北海道立オホーツク公園 てんとらんど)	HP	Booking	Jalan	Rakuten
Lakeside Park Notoro(レイクサイドパーク・のとろ)	HP	Booking	Jalan	Rakuten

ABASHIRI KOHAN ONSEN

Onsen Ryokan Motoyoshi(温泉旅館もとよし)	HP	Booking	Jalan	Rakuten
Abashiri Kanko Hotel(網走観光ホテル)	HP	Booking	Jalan	Rakuten
Hokuten-no-Oka Abashiriko Tsuruga Resort(北天の丘 あばしり湖 鶴雅リゾート)	HP	Booking	Jalan	Rakuten
Hotel Abashiriko-so(ホテル網走湖荘)	HP	Booking	Jalan	Rakuten
Anima-no-Sato(アニマの里)	HP	Booking	Jalan	Rakuten
Auberge Kita-no-Dan-Dan(オーベルジュ 北の暖暖)	HP	Booking	Jalan	Rakuten
Tento-no-Sato Hotel Honjin Abashiriko(天都の郷 ホテル本陣網走湖)	HP	Booking	Jalan	Rakuten
Pension Wani-no-Ie(ペンション わにの家)	HP	Booking	Jalan	Rakuten
Business Hotel Koraku(ビジネスホテル 幸楽)	HP	Booking	Jalan	Rakuten
Techan&Tetsuko-no-Yado(旧国鉄保養所 鉄ちゃん＆鉄子の宿)	HP	Booking	Jalan	Rakuten
Yobito Ryokan(呼人旅館)	HP	Booking	Jalan	Rakuten
Yobitoura Campsite(呼人浦キャンプ場)	HP	Booking	Jalan	Rakuten