Tour Overview
Discover Kanazawa's Food Culture at Omicho Market
Begin your culinary journey at Omicho Market, known locally as "Kanazawa's Kitchen." For more than 300 years, Omicho Market has played an important role in the city's food culture. Today, its lively lanes are filled with fishmongers, vegetable shops, fruit stalls and other specialty food stores used by both local residents and professional chefs. Together with a local guide, explore the market and discover the ingredients that make Kanazawa's cuisine unique. Rather than simply walking through the market, you will learn what to look for, what is in season and how local ingredients are used in everyday Kanazawa cooking.
Explore Omicho Market with a Local Guide
Omicho Market can be overwhelming when visiting for the first time. With dozens of shops and a constantly changing selection of seasonal ingredients, it is easy to walk through without understanding what makes the market special.
Your guide will introduce you to different areas of the market and explain the seafood, vegetables and other ingredients on display. Learn how locals select fresh ingredients, discover what professional chefs look for when shopping and hear the stories behind some of the foods that have shaped Kanazawa's culinary traditions.
The market changes throughout the year, so every visit offers something different.
Discover Kanazawa's Seasonal Seafood
Kanazawa faces the Sea of Japan and is particularly famous for its seafood. Depending on the season, Omicho Market may display a wide variety of fish and shellfish brought in from ports around Ishikawa and the Hokuriku region.
Winter is especially celebrated for seafood such as crab, while other fish and shellfish appear throughout the year according to the season. Your guide will help you understand what is available during your visit and why seasonality is so important in Japanese cuisine.
Learn About Kaga Vegetables and Local Ingredients
Kanazawa's food culture is not limited to seafood. The region is also known for Kaga vegetables, a group of traditional vegetables cultivated around Kanazawa for generations. Walking through Omicho Market provides an opportunity to see how seafood, vegetables and other seasonal ingredients come together in the local cuisine. Rather than experiencing Kanazawa food only as a finished dish in a restaurant, the market allows you to discover where the ingredients come from and how local people choose them.
From Omicho Market to a Traditional Kanazawa Machiya
After approximately 45 minutes exploring Omicho Market, leave the busy market behind and walk with your guide to IN KANAZAWA HOUSE. The walk takes approximately 15 minutes. IN KANAZAWA HOUSE is located inside a restored traditional Kanazawa machiya townhouse that was formerly used as a dyeing workshop.
The spacious wooden building retains traditional architectural details and provides an atmospheric setting for the next part of your experience: making your own Temari Sushi.
Make Your Own Temari Sushi
After discovering Kanazawa's ingredients at Omicho Market, it is time to experience Japanese food culture with your own hands. Temari Sushi is a small, colorful, ball-shaped style of sushi named after traditional Japanese temari balls. Unlike conventional nigiri sushi, its compact round shape and colorful presentation allow many different ingredients to be combined creatively. Your instructor will demonstrate how to prepare and shape Temari Sushi before you begin making your own. No previous cooking or sushi-making experience is required.
Choose from More Than 15 Toppings
More than 15 different toppings are prepared for the Temari Sushi experience. Choose from a colorful selection of seafood, vegetables, meat and other seasonal ingredients. You can create familiar combinations or experiment with ingredients and flavors that you may not have tried before. The emphasis is not only on making sushi, but also on understanding how Japanese cuisine uses color, seasonality, presentation and combinations of ingredients.
Learn the Techniques Behind Temari Sushi
Your instructor will guide you through the essential techniques for making Temari Sushi. You will learn how to handle sushi rice, create the distinctive round Temari Sushi shape, arrange different toppings and present your finished sushi beautifully. Along the way, you will also learn about the history of sushi and what makes Temari Sushi different from other styles of Japanese sushi. The techniques are approachable for beginners and can be recreated at home, allowing you to take a small part of your Kanazawa experience with you.
Enjoy Your Temari Sushi for Lunch
Once your Temari Sushi is complete, sit down and enjoy the sushi you have made. Dessert and Kaga bocha, Kanazawa's traditional roasted tea, are also included. The lunch brings together everything you have experienced during the morning: the market, seasonal ingredients, Japanese cooking techniques and Kanazawa's culture of food and hospitality.
Why Kanazawa Has Such a Rich Food Culture
Kanazawa's cuisine has developed through a combination of geography, history and craftsmanship.
The city has access to seafood from the Sea of Japan, fertile agricultural areas and distinctive local ingredients such as Kaga vegetables. During the Edo period, Kanazawa also developed as a prosperous castle town under the Maeda family. Tea ceremony, traditional crafts and sophisticated cuisine flourished together.
That heritage can still be seen today in the importance placed on seasonal ingredients, beautiful presentation, tableware and hospitality. Visiting Omicho Market and then preparing Temari Sushi provides an opportunity to experience several sides of this food culture in a single morning.
Experience Food Culture in a Traditional Kanazawa Machiya
The setting is also part of the experience. IN KANAZAWA HOUSE is a restored traditional machiya townhouse that was once used as a dyeing workshop. Its wooden architecture and traditional atmosphere provide a contrast to the lively environment of Omicho Market. By moving from the market to a traditional townhouse, you can experience Kanazawa food culture from two perspectives: first by discovering its ingredients, and then by preparing and enjoying food yourself.
Google Reviews
2026.8 Andrew Lan
★★★★★
We took 2 classes on the same day. First was a tour of Omicho market and then sushi making class back at the beautiful In Kanazawa House. Chikako was our tour guide and instructor. She was full of information, enthusiasm, and clearly loved what she did. It was an incredible experience seeing exactly which vendors our ingredients came from, and really fun to create sushi pieces out of these fantastic ingredients.
Later in the afternoon, we took a wonderful class on the history and process of kintsugi, taught by Lin Kiyose, an artisan whose family has been practicing this art form for four generations! One tip for those with “older eyes”: Don’t forget your near-sighted glasses - your own piece will turn out way better if you can see exactly what you’re doing : )
The whole day was definitely one of the top highlights of our entire trip!
Frequently Asked Questions
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What is Omicho Market?
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Omicho Market is Kanazawa's historic food market and has been an important part of the city's food culture for more than 300 years. It is known for seafood, vegetables, fruit and other seasonal ingredients.
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Why should I visit Omicho Market with a guide?
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A guide can explain seasonal ingredients, local specialties and how people in Kanazawa shop and use the foods you see at the market. This makes the visit more meaningful than simply walking through the market independently.
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Do we buy the ingredients for our Temari Sushi at Omicho Market?
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The market tour is designed primarily to introduce Kanazawa's ingredients and food culture. Ingredients for the Temari Sushi experience are prepared for the cooking session based on availability and seasonality.
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What is Temari Sushi?
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Temari Sushi is a small, round style of sushi decorated with colorful toppings. Its name comes from traditional Japanese temari balls.
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Do I need cooking experience?
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No. No previous cooking or sushi-making experience is required. Your instructor will demonstrate the techniques and guide you through the process.
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How many toppings are available?
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More than 15 different toppings are prepared, including seafood, vegetables, meat and seasonal ingredients.
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Can dietary restrictions be accommodated?
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Please tell us about allergies or dietary requirements when making your reservation. Vegan ingredients can also be prepared upon request, subject to availability.
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Is the tour available in English?
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Yes. English and Japanese are available. French, German, Spanish and Chinese guides may also be arranged for an additional guide fee, subject to availability.
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Where does the tour start?
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The tour starts at Omicho Market in central Kanazawa.
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Where does the experience finish?
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The experience finishes at IN KANAZAWA HOUSE after the Temari Sushi making session and lunch.
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How long does the experience take?
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The complete Omicho Market Tour & Temari Sushi Making experience takes approximately 2 hours and 30 minutes.
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Tour Details
71,000 yen/ 2 persons
*71,000 yen is up to 2 persons.
*An additional fee;
¥7,500/ 1 adult
¥4,500/ 1 kid (age 7-12)
*Children aged 6 and under are free of charge. (We are unable to provide dinner for children, but you are welcome to bring your own food.)
*There is an additional charge of 15,000 yen for guides in languages other than English.
◎Schedule
10:30 Meet up at Omicho Market (in front of of Mister Dounuts)
10:30-11:15 Explore Omicho Market
11:15-11:30 Walk to IN KANAZAWA HOUSE
11:30-13:00 Cooking Lesson and Lunch Time
◎Payment Method : By Credit Card / PayPal
＞Payment and Cancellation Details
Number of guests required for this tour/experience to take place
Minimum number of guests*
Maximum number of guests*
2
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