New Year’s holiday season shopping lists can get pretty crowded in your head: “toshikoshi soba,” “hot pot,” “sushi,” “sukiyaki,” “osechi,” “New Year’s gifts,” “lucky bags”… So again this year, we went to check out the New Year’s holiday feast preparations on the 1st-floor food section at Hanshin Nishinomiya!
This was the crowd at 10 a.m. on Monday, December 29! Hanshin Nishinomiya is lively again this year-end!
On Wednesday, December 31, only the 1st-floor food section opens at 9:30 a.m. / All floors close at 6 p.m.
All floors will be closed on Thursday, January 1 (national holiday), and Friday, January 2
New Year’s first sale: Regular business hours from 10 a.m. on Saturday, January 3
*Prices shown include tax. Limited-time items may sell out, so please understand.
目次
The 7-item New Year’s holiday “shopping note” set
Here’s a quick roundup so you don’t end up wondering, “What was I supposed to buy?” while doing your year-end shopping.
- Hot pot (tecchiri / kani-suki / ingredients)
- Sushi (for large groups)
- Meat for sukiyaki
- Toshikoshi soba
- Mochi (including kagami mochi)
- Osechi fish cakes (kamaboko / datemaki)
- New Year’s gifts (lots of Horse zodiac items!)
1. Hot Pot
There was a great selection of hot pot gourmet foods to get you through the New Year’s holiday season.
Kumamoto Prefecture torafugu tecchiri, land-farmed (serves 3-4) 11,801 yen
The fugu looked incredibly plump and springy. Actually, Shachomi has never tried it, so I’d love to eat it at least once.
Raw snow crab from Russia, thawed (serves 3-4) 8,801 yen
This is really huge. It serves 3-4 people, after all. Start with “kani-suki”, then finish with zosui rice porridge. I really do want to eat crab.
One item you’ll want to add to hot pot. There were plenty of wild head-on shrimp, too. You can also keep them frozen.
Spiny lobster is here too! As expected from a department store.
The live kuruma prawns were so fresh they were moving!!
この魚はなんでしょう〜？
It’s yellowtail! At this time of year, the richness of the fat is on a whole different level. For buri-shabu, you just swish it briefly through hot water, and apparently the fat turns soft and sweet.
2. Sashimi and Sushi
I think sashimi and sushi are must-haves for the New Year’s holiday season.
Fresh bluefin tuna!
Otoro is basically a work of art, isn’t it? This was 2,031 yen.
You can’t go wrong with a platter! It’s so gorgeous too!
You eat “tessa” with ponzu and grated daikon with chili pepper, apparently.
This is the kind of thing that turns the thought “I’d love to try chirashi sushi like this” into a dream come true.
Of course, there’s sushi too!
Assorted Sushi Platter (40 pieces) 5,980 yen [planned quantity: 50]
A great-value sushi set packed with everything from chutoro to sea bream, salmon, blackthroat seaperch, herring roe, and salmon roe. Available only on Wednesday, December 31. It could be perfect for making New Year’s Eve feel extra festive.
3. Omi beef for sukiyaki
As usual, this is where the line forms.
The meat section.
Domestic Omi beef for sukiyaki, chuck roll 3,000 yen per 100g
Beautifully marbled chuck roll. Please note that it’s only available on Monday, December 29, and Tuesday, December 30!
4. Toshikoshi Soba
This is where choosing becomes part of the fun.
There were so many kinds of toshikoshi soba that you’d wonder, how many varieties are there?
There’s 80% buckwheat, coarse-ground, duck broth, yam, and famous types like Izushi and Izumo soba.
There’s even premium Yamagata ita soba for 2,150 yen (serves 3).
The lineup is impressive, with soba sold in bags too. Juwari soba starts at a reasonable 204 yen.
They sell all kinds of toppings too, so you can get everything fully prepared!
5. There are way too many kinds of mochi
Hanshin Nishinomiya. This is the power of a department store. They sell all kinds of mochi.
Mori no Wagashi
“Mori no Wagashi” has a pop-up near the east-side entrance. They have kine-tsuki mochi, rice cakes pounded with a traditional wooden mallet.
Kine-tsuki round mochi: 130 yen each
The packaging is pink and the shape is cute too: “
