Japanese sweets (wagashi) pair perfectly with Japanese tea. Sometimes you just crave them, right? When that happens, where do you go to buy them? These days, you can find wagashi at convenience stores and supermarkets, so perhaps fewer people are going to dedicated wagashi shops.

In Hakodate, the town where I was born and raised, if you want to buy high-quality Japanese sweets or souvenirs, you go to a traditional Japanese confectionery shop, and if you want to buy daifuku or dango, you go to a mochi shop; you generally go to different shops depending on what you want to buy.

It is said that in the past, there was more than one mochi shop in every town in Hakodate, demonstrating the long-standing tradition of mochi shops selling this everyday Japanese confection. This time, we will introduce five of these long-established mochi shops.

<Table of Contents>
1. Daikoku Mochi
2. Ichichūya
3. Eimochi Main Store
4. Benkei Chikara Mochi (rice cakes) by Sankodo
5. Kitaya Mochi Shop
Final thoughts

Daikoku Mochi is located near Nakajima Renbai, a market beloved by Hakodate locals. While many mochi shops in the city have rebuilt their stores, this shop retains the old-fashioned bay window display case. You can see the products currently on sale in this display case, making it easy to check if they have what you're looking for.

Also, the shop's signature products are often written in handwritten letters at the storefront, so when you visit a shop for the first time, try using these letters as a guide to buy Japanese sweets.

Here, we recommend Hokkaido's unique Japanese sweets, such as beko mochi and kujira mochi. Both are made with a chewy dough and are quite sweet, but the bamboo leaves used as a backing give them a refreshing aroma. This shop still wraps the sweets you purchase in traditional wooden sheets.

<Daikoku Mochi>
Address: 7-1 Horikawa-cho, Hakodate City
TEL：0138-51-7405
Opening hours: 7: 00 to 22: 00
No regular holiday

This shop, whose name is written as "Ichinakaya," is a mochi (rice cake) shop located near the Yachigashira tram stop, the last stop on the Hakodateyama side of the streetcar line that runs through Hakodate city.

A strong reason why there were so many mochi shops in Hakodate is that, as a town that prospered from the shipping industry, ordinary people began to order mochi from vendors rather than making it at home. Therefore, there were especially many mochi shops located near the sea. This particular shop has been a beloved local establishment since relocating in 1935.

As indicated on the banner, this shop is famous for its dango (rice dumplings). The dango have a soft and light texture, making it easy to eat several at once. The bean paste mochi next to them is not too sweet, allowing you to fully appreciate the flavor of the beans.

Only 18 of these brown sugar steamed buns are sold per day, and they're a delicious treat with a rich brown sugar flavor. They sometimes sell out quickly, so if you're going specifically for the brown sugar steamed buns, it's best to go as early as possible in the morning.

<Ichinakaya>
Address: 26-11 Yachigashira-cho, Hakodate City
TEL：0138-23-3027
Opening hours: 9: 00 to 18: 00
Closed: Tuesday

Sakae Mochi Honten is located in Sakaemachi, Hakodate City. Founded in 1900, this mochi shop boasts a long history and, like other mochi shops, offers a variety of products, including not only snacks like dango and beko mochi, but also mochi for celebrating the birth of a child and sanmochi for times of mourning.

When I visited, there were many customers who had reserved a large quantity of mochi and were chatting amicably with the staff, which reaffirmed for me that mochi shops are deeply integrated into the lives of the local community.

The photo above shows sesame mochi in red and white, and kintsuba, which is unusual in its round shape, on the right. Sesame mochi is characterized by the strong flavor of the sesame seeds inside, and kintsuba is a delightful treat with a fluffy texture. And the red bean rice, which is an essential item at any mochi shop in Hakodate and is sold everywhere, is also handmade at each shop.

<Eimochi Main Store>
Address: 5-13 Sakaemachi, Hakodate City, Hokkaido
TEL：0138-22-5482
Opening hours: 8:00 AM - 19:00 PM *Until 18:00 PM on Sundays and public holidays
Closed: Wednesday

Benkei Chikara Mochi is located a short walk along the tram tracks that stretch straight from Hakodate Station. Because it's so close to the station, it's a great place to stop by while sightseeing.

You can hear voice commercials playing in front of the station and in the Goryokaku area, and Benkei Chikara Mochi is frequently featured in those commercials. The shop owner, or whoever he is, confidently declares, "It's delicious!", so be sure to try the taste of this mochi.

Benkei Chikara Mochi is located near Green Plaza, where various events are held, and my family visits the shop every time we go to an event there. And almost every time, we buy their inari sushi.

Other mochi shops also sell them, but the ones at this shop have a rich, flavorful fried tofu taste that's really delicious.

If you're visiting Hokkaido as a tourist and want to try something typical of the region, I recommend the two dishes above.

The semi-circular sweets on top are called "Chuka," and in Hokkaido, they are often eaten at funerals. They are filled to the brim with sweet bean paste and are very satisfying.

And what you see below the image is sekihan (red bean rice). In Hokkaido, it's common to find sekihan topped not only with red beans but also with sweetened beans. Try this combination of sweet beans and chewy rice!

<Benkei Chikara Mochi Sankodo>
Address: 4-11 Matsukaze-cho, Hakodate City
TEL：0138-23-1709
Opening hours: 9: 00 to 16: 00
Closed: December 1th - January 1st

This is the only mochi shop among those we're introducing today that's located in the Goryokaku area.

Located very close to the Goryokaku Park tram stop, the nearest stop to the Goryokaku Special Historic Site, this mochi shop has been in business for over 60 years and is a long-established shop in the area. From the outside, it looks like a shop with old-fashioned display cases, but once you go inside, the interior is new and clean.

There are small tables and chairs inside the shop, so you can eat the items you've purchased right there. Its convenient location, right near a tram and bus stop, makes it the perfect place to take a break while sightseeing.

This shop is also popular for its mochi, daifuku, and dango, but we also recommend their savory dishes like norimaki (sushi rolls). If you're feeling a bit hungry after walking around town, try the dango with lots of sweet bean paste or sesame seeds if you have a sweet tooth, or the norimaki or inari sushi if you prefer something savory.

<Kitaya Mochi Shop>
Address: 25-12 Honcho, Hakodate City
TEL：0138-52-2212
Opening hours: 8: 30 to 19: 00
Closed: Sunday

We introduced a long-established mochi shop in Hakodate and the products they sell.

Every mochi shop has so many of their proudest products on display that you'll be spoiled for choice. As soon as you step inside, you're greeted by the sweet aroma and the scent of steaming mochi, which evokes a nostalgic feeling.

You can also see the everyday scene of local customers purchasing large mochi rice cakes and stacked dumplings to offer at Buddhist altars.

When you visit Hakodate as a tourist, be sure to try some local mochi at a local shop!

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