Sapporo, Hokkaido, Japan｜Daruma Main Shop

This place was recommended by our hotel reception as all the other genghis khan places we originally wanted to visit were fully booked. This place has gotten so popular that they’ve opened several other outlets within walking distances of each other. The other outlets are open later. Given their close proximity, have a walk around to see which has a shorter queue. We moved from the outlet 5.5 to the main shop because of a shorter queue. Be prepared to smell like bbq after this, there were no lockers to keep your things so everything will smell like smoke. They’ve kindly provided some fabric spray at the exit should you wish to use it. This place seems popular amongst the locals and local tourists alike. There is always a queue but everything was handled efficiently. The menu has some simple English. We order one of each different meat types they offered. They distinguished the cuts using different plates, so should you wish to order more of something, just point to the plate then gesture how many. Initially the server started off cooking the meat for us - as we were clueless tourists and weren’t sure what to do. After which we just followed what every one else was doing. The food was good. The place is small, but you’re served promptly so everything moves fast. Cash only payment.

This was our best meal in Sapporo! The lamb was so fresh there was no strong smell that lamb or mutton usually have. We had 3 portions of Genghis Khan lamb, and 1 portion each of the filet and the special cut, a serving of kimchi and bowls of rice each. It was just nice for two average eaters and one small eater, and the bill came up to 7500¥ (with two beers and the accompanying chargeable sides). The only things we could complain about is coming out smelling of BBQ and maybe that it was a very oily meal. We arrived at 530 and it was full and there was already a queue! Thankfully the queue was relatively short and we could wait inside, on the waiting seats, and got our seats in half an hour.

This place is so good! We got there at 6pm and had to wait for 45 min in the snow, it only opened at 5pm... Inside is a small 14 seater restaurant, each seat has its own charcoal barbecue station. We ordered the lamb, which was soft and juicy with just the right amount of fat on it. One set each was not enough, I recommend ordering 3 sets between 2.