TOKYO: The cries of the raucous pre-dawn tuna auction rang out for the first time at Tokyo’s new fish market on Thursday (Oct 11),…
TOKYO: The cries of the raucous pre-dawn tuna auction rang out for the first time at Tokyo’s new fish market on Thursday (Oct 11), just days after the world-famous Tsukiji market closed the door on an 83-year history.
The location may have changed but the ritual remained the same: huge frozen whole tuna laid out on the ground, bells tolling to sound the start of the auction and a loud and bewildering system of bidding understood only by those taking part.
« There we go. We’re off, » said Kiyoshi Kimura, one of the celebrities of the sushi world, who owns the Zanmai Sushi chain and has previously paid record prices for tuna at New Year auctions.
« We won’t get the same prices today, » he told AFP with a smile.
On Sunday, after an emotional final tuna auction the previous day, the Tsukiji market’s famed « turret trucks » – one-man flatbeds with a barrel-shaped steering column at the front – began the mass exodus to the new site.
However, the move was a lengthy and controversial process. Few would contest the fact that Tsukiji was past its prime, and there were concerns about outdated fire regulations and hygiene controls.
