My obsession with the fish market reached its peak when queued for hours right after midnight to attend the Tsukiji market tuna auction after landing in Narita less than 12 hours earlier. Other than being the home of the world-famous tuna auction, which opened in 1935, the Tsukiji fish market is also the largest fish market in the world. With these facts alone, how can I not?
Tsukiji Fish Market Tuna Auction
To visit the tuna auction we had to queue from 2 AM and waited for at least 3 hours before the inner market opened. There, surrounded by hundreds of dead fat fish, I met the master who has been a part of the Tsukiji market tuna auction for many generations, he spoke with such pride of the job, yet humble and kind to us, the bleary-eyed foreigners who were trying to get a taste of the 80+ years tradition in hours.
The giant bluefin tuna were tagged with their origin and weight, cut at the tail part and laid side by side on the floor of the auction area. Tsukiji market tuna action started with the bidders, usually, seafood wholesalers, poking and prodding the frozen tuna with their trained eyes and fingers accompanied by torchlight and hook.
Soon the actual tuna auction started when the auctioneer stood on top of a stool, rang the handbell and started yelling in “secret” Japanese fish-mongers language which was then replied to by the wholesalers with hand codes. The energy was buzzing, it happened fast and was exhilarating to watch.
The Million Dollar Tuna
The most expensive tuna auctioned at the Tsukiji Market tuna auction was the 222kg bluefin sold during the annual new year auction in 2013 for a whopping $1.8M, won by the owner of a sushi restaurant chain in Japan. Meanwhile, the highest bid on the very last day of the Tsukiji market tuna auction, which was held in early October 2018, was for 162kg tuna, at $39k.
Tsukiji market tuna action goes on my top 100 world culture checklist
Tsukiji Market Now
Standing there, surrounded by fish and people, I almost could taste the ingrained Japanese culture. Even though, the inner market, including the tuna auction, has been moved recently; the outer market which was left behind has a lot more to offer, including a few finest sushi restaurants in the world such as Sushi Dai.
Meanwhile, if it’s the tuna auction that you are after, head to the newly opened Toyosu Market, though I am not entirely convinced it would carry the same drama as Tsukiji’s. Alas, I shall reserve my judgment after a visit there, because how can I not?
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