The 4th annual Sakana & Japan Festival 2023 is set to take place in Yoyogi Park in Tokyo's Shibuya Ward from February 23rd to 26th. This event is the sister event of the Japan Fisherman's Festival, which is held annually in November at Hibiya Park in Chiyoda Ward and is considered the largest fish food event in Japan.

The 3rd Sakana & Japan Festival was held in 2019 but the ones in 2020, 2021, and 2022 were canceled due to the novel coronavirus pandemic. Now, to the delight of seafood lovers in the Tokyo area, after a four-year hiatus, the annual festival has finally returned!

The festival will feature around 70 booths offering a variety of fish and seafood dishes from all over Japan, including tuna, salmon, ikura (salmon roe), sea urchin, and crab. Visitors will have the opportunity to taste fresh seafood bowls, local specialties, fisherman's meals, seafood ramen, and seafood paella.

Details are still to be announced, but according to the press release, some of the must-try food items at the festival will include things like:

succulent fresh grilled oysters...

贅沢まぐろ3種丼 (a bowl of three types of tuna) from the Kuroshio Market....

メイプルサーモンとイクラの親子盛り ("Maple Salmon"* and salmon roe bowl)...

* メイプルサーモン Maple Salmon is a brand of salmon trout from Fukushima Prefecture in which rainbow trout roe from Canada was hatched, bred, and developed through several generations to match Japanese consumer tastes. The name "maple" was given in honor of its Canadian origins.

新こぼれいくら丼 (new improved salmon roe bowl)...

and the ふくしま海鮮丼 (Fukushima seafood bowl).

The festival is free to attend, but food and drinks will be sold separately.

This is a unique opportunity for foreign visitors to try a wide range of fish and seafood dishes, and to experience the local food culture of Japan.

Check the official website (link below) for details on the booths and events when they become available.

If you can't make it this time, don't worry! The festival is annual and, barring another outbreak, it will be back next year in February!

Information

  • Name: 4th Sakana & Japan Festival 2023 (Fish Japan Festival)
  • Host: Sakana & Japan Festival Executive Committee
  • Support (planned): Fisheries Agency / Tokyo / Shibuya Ward and more
  • Date & Time:
    • February 23rd (Thu, holiday) 10am - 8pm
    • February 24th (Fri) 11am - 8pm
    • February 25th (Sat) 10am - 8pm
    • February 26th (Sun) 10am - 6pm
  • Venue: Yoyogi Park Event Plaza
  • Purpose of the event: To promote fish consumption by providing fish and seafood dishes from all over Japan
  • Number of booths: Approximately 70 (planned)
  • Expected number of visitors: Approximately 150,000 - 170,000
  • Admission: Free, food and drinks sold separately (payment in cash or electronic money such as Suica or PASMO)
  • Official website

By - grape Japan editorial staff.

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