Experiencing Ainu Cuisine at Umizora no Haru in Sapporo, Hokkaido

For my spring vacation I decided to travel to a prefecture I hadn’t visited yet, Hokkaido. I knew that Hokkaido was home to the Indigenous Ainu people and I was interested in experiencing their cuisine. However since I was only really visiting 3 cities I was limited to where I could experience it. Luckily I found that there was an Izakaya in Sapporo called “Umizora no Haru (海空のハル)”  that offered various Ainu sampler courses, so I made a reservation.

Umizora no Haru is an Izakaya specializing in Ainu cuisine. The izakaya’s menu options and interior aesthetics are supervised by the National Ainu Museum in Shiranoi which gives the experience a level of authenticity.
When you book you get an option to reserve a “Chise (チセ) ” room that is styled to look like a traditional Ainu house. While I didn’t originally choose this option (as it is best for groups of 4 to reserve it) I did end up getting placed in it without asking which was cool.

Chise Room

In Ainu language “Chise” means ‘a house’. Their houses were typically made from bamboo leaves and tree bark . Usually the houses were square or rectangular in shape.

Chise Room

Chise Room in Umizora no Haru

On the wall there are affixed Ainu Garments. You are allowed to try them on (ask staff first)

Course Details

I reserved the “Popular Dish Plate”. If you reserve online through a site like Hot Pepper you can get the course at a slightly reduced price. The course I chose cost 3500 yen (reduced from 4000 yen).

The Popular Dish Plate consisted of 7 dishes.

Matsumae-zuke – a pickled squid and kelp dish that originates from Matsumae Town.

Grilled Deer Skewer

Citatap (チタタプ ) – Raw finely chopped seasonal fish with miso seasoning

Rabbit Ohaw (オハウ) – Soup with rabbit meat balls.

Komochi Kombu Skewer – Herring roe on kelp

Herring Soba

Horse Meat Sukiyaki

Drinks

Drinks are not included in this particular course so I ordered two drinks

Takaragawa Sake

Takaragawa Sake

Takaragawa Sake from Otaru

Kamuy Tonoto –  Ainu Sake. In Ainu language Kamuy means God and Tonoto means alcohol  , so it is referred to “God’s Alcohol“. The sake is a modern reproduction of the traditional millet Sake used in Ainu rituals and ceremonies. It has a sweet taste, similar to Amazake.

Final Comments

It was a very fulfilling experience. I wish I had a larger appetite so I could order options from the A La Carte menu. I’m glad such an izakaya exists because it seems there aren’t many other dining places that serve Ainu cuisine, not just in Hokkaido but in Japan too.
The good news is that Umizora no Haru is opening a second restaurant in Okhotsk in Hokkaido. You can find more information about their activities and restaurant via their Facebook [x].

Restaurant Location

Umizora No Haru
〒064-0804 Hokkaido, Sapporo, Chuo Ward, Minami 4 Jonishi, 5 Chome−8−1 F45ビル B1F
Open from 5pm