MustEatList

Where to eat, one dish at a time. Curated places, community votes.

Theme Want to try

The best Kani (Hokkaido Crab) in Sapporo

Also spelt kani, かに, 蟹 and crab. A curated shortlist, shaped by your votes.

Editorial picks

Selected from published food guides and local reporting. How the list works

  1. Number 1.Kyodo Ryoritei Suginome

    Open
    5pm to 10.30pm, shut Sundays
    Where
    Minami 5-jo Nishi 5-chome, Chuo-ku, Sapporo (3 min from Susukino Stn exit 4); tel 011-521-0888

    Order the hama-yude kegani, boiled at the port and served cold in its shell. The kaiseki runs to five figures, so ask prices first. Closed Sundays, and dinner only, from five.

    What to orderHama-yude kegani, port-boiled hairy crab

    0 votes

  2. Number 2.Sapporo Kanihonke, Sapporo Station Main Branch

    Open
    11.30am to 10pm daily, shut 31 December
    Where
    Kita 3-jo Nishi 2-chome 1-18, Chuo-ku, Sapporo (5 min from JR Sapporo Stn south exit); tel 011-222-0018

    Ask for the whole boiled kegani rather than the kanisuki hotpot, which is the Kansai dish everyone defaults to. Seven floors and 460 seats mean walk-ins usually work. Only 31 December is shut.

    What to orderWhole boiled kegani, kegani no shioyude

    0 votes

  3. Number 3.Hyosetsu no Mon

    Open
    11am to 10.30pm, weekday break 2 to 4.30pm
    Where
    Minami 5-jo Nishi 2-chome, Chuo-ku, Sapporo (1 min from Hosui-Susukino Stn exit 4); tel 011-521-3046

    Sapporo's oldest crab specialist, trading since 1964, and the three-crab course puts kegani, taraba and zuwai on one table. Book, and ask about the cheaper lunch courses before the evening prices land.

    What to orderSandai-gani, the three-crab course

    0 votes

  4. Sapporo Kani-ya Main Branch

    Open
    11am to 3pm and 5pm to 10pm, open daily
    Where
    Minami 4-jo Nishi 2-chome 11, Chuo-ku, Sapporo (2 min from Susukino Stn exit 2); tel 011-222-1117

    Nine floors of crab, and the kanisuki is what the kitchen is built around. Lunch sets cost a fraction of dinner. It closes between three and five, which catches people out.

    What to orderKanisuki, the crab hotpot

    0 votes

  5. Kaiyotei, Susukino Main Branch

    Open
    5pm to midnight, Sundays to 11pm
    Where
    Minami 6-jo Nishi 4-5-27, White Building B1F, Shinjuku-dori, Chuo-ku, Sapporo

    An izakaya first, so order the live kegani sashimi and the grilled taraba leg, then stop. It is a basement on Shinjuku-dori, opens at five, and fills by seven without a booking.

    What to orderLive kegani sashimi

    0 votes

  6. Kani to Dosan Ryori Sekkatei

    Open
    5pm to 10pm, closing days irregular
    Where
    Minami 3-jo Nishi 4-chome, J-BOX Building B1, Chuo-ku, Sapporo; tel 011-251-1366

    Kegani no arai is the reason to book: raw hairy crab rinsed in iced sake water. Fifteen private rooms round a garden, dinner only, and closing days are irregular, so ring ahead.

    What to orderKegani no arai

    0 votes

  7. Nijo Kani Ichiba Marudai Suisan

    Open
    8am to 4pm, last orders 3pm, shut 1 to 2 January
    Where
    Minami 3-jo Higashi 1-8, Chuo-ku, Sapporo (Nijo Market, corner on Sosei-gawa); tel 011-281-2222

    A Nemuro wholesaler's own counter on the Sosei-gawa corner, which is why the crab sashimi is worth the 3,000 yen. Last orders at three. Skip the plain seafood bowls and stay with crab.

    What to orderKani no sashimi

    0 votes

  8. Sugiyama Suisan Nemuro Kani Ichiba, Jogai Market Branch

    Open
    6am to 3pm, best crab gone well before that
    Where
    Kita 11-jo Nishi 22-chome 1-26, Chuo-ku, Sapporo (Sapporo Jogai Market); tel 011-640-2333

    Nemuro crab sold whole and boiled on the spot, kegani included. Doors at six in the morning, and the good ones go early. This is the outer market, a taxi ride from the centre.

    What to orderWhole boiled kegani

    0 votes

  9. Kani Kui Dokoro Kanikosen, Nijo Market Branch

    Open
    8.30am to 2.30pm, 3pm weekends, shut Tuesdays
    Where
    Minami 2-jo Higashi 1-chome 1-4, Sapporo Kanihan Building 1F, Chuo-ku, Sapporo; tel 011-252-7373

    Pick your crab from the tank and have it cooked, or just take the gokai kani-don. It is a morning trade, gone by half two, and Tuesday is the closed day.

    What to orderGokai kani-don

    0 votes

  10. Kyodo Ryori Oga

    Open
    From 5pm to late, listings disagree on closing
    Where
    Minami 3-jo Nishi 3-chome, Sun Three Building 8F, Chuo-ku, Sapporo; tel 011-242-3328

    Order the extra-large raw king crab leg, grilled; the kyodo-ryori kitchen handles it plainly. Eighth floor above Tanukikoji, dinner only, and listings disagree on closing days, so telephone before you go.

    What to orderTokudai nama-taraba yaki

    0 votes

  11. Ebi Kani Gassen Sapporo Main Branch

    Open
    4pm to 10.30pm, shut over new year
    Where
    Minami 4-jo Nishi 5-chome, F-45 Building 12F, Chuo-ku, Sapporo

    All-you-can-eat boiled crab across kegani, zuwai and taraba, plus crab sushi and chawanmushi. Twelfth floor, and the shellfish is better than the hot dishes. Book, because the room sells out at weekends.

    What to orderThe boiled-crab tabehodai, starting with kegani

    0 votes

  12. Katsu Kani no Hanasaki

    Open
    6pm to 11pm, closing day irregular
    Where
    Minami 5-jo Nishi 2-1-1, Mimatsu Muraoka Building 5F, Chuo-ku, Sapporo (1 min from Hosui-Susukino exit 7)

    Live king crab is the house act, taken as sashimi, grilled and boiled from the one animal. All private rooms, opens six, and the closing day moves, so telephone before you walk over.

    What to orderLive taraba, three ways

    0 votes

New votes usually appear in the counts and rankings over the next 1–3 days. Own one of these places? Tell us.