Tsukiji is a fish market so popular that everyone will recommend it to you if you visit Tokyo. This was the largest fish wholesale market in Tokyo and Japan. It was created as a replacement for the Nihinbashi market, which was destroyed in the great earthquake of 1923. The Tsukiji market was officially opened in 1935.
Although the Tsukiji Market was filled with hundreds of small wholesalers selling a variety of sea fish and seafood all the way to whales, the most famous part of the market was the daily tuna auction where giant tuna were sold and prices reached thousands of dollars. This tradition has been broken, tough, and tuna auctions are now being organized at Toyosu Market. If you want to attend the tuna auction you have to register up to a month in advance to schedule your appointment.
Getting up at 3 am to get in line with auction visitors who were allowed to watch the auction even though they did not participate in it directly, has become a highly sought-after attraction. At this market you can normally eat delicious breakfasts that are served from the early morning hours. If you are wondering where to eat a good sushi at Tsukiji Market, the answer is simple: EVERYWHERE. There are several hundred restaurants and shops where you can try amazing Japanese dishes. The Japanese are the longest-living people in the world, and nutrition plays a really big role in that.
The market offers optional sushi, sashimi, seaweed salads, fruit, fish, sushi knives, kitchen dishes and many other kitchen utensils. The prices are quite correct, but Tokyo is an expensive city, so breakfast or lunch at this market is to be commended. The prices are great and the quality is unbeatable.
After a meal, you can visit the shrines of Namiyoke Inari, which means "protection from the waves". It is the shrine of the guardian Tsukiji, and merchants come here to pray for successful business
Photo credit: Bantersnaps
