Donburi Chaya

Mini “Otaru market” seafood bowls inside CTS Domestic

Inside New Chitose’s Domestic terminal, Donburi Chaya runs like a fast kaisendon bar: bowls of sashimi over rice instead of conveyor-belt sushi. Think salmon, crab, ikura, and uni on rice for roughly ¥1,200–¥2,000, with most sets under the ¥2,500 mark, so this sits firmly in the $ price tier even by airport standards.

The shop sits on the food floor used by many Sapporo–Tokyo flyers, post-security in Domestic, and typically opens earlier than several ramen spots nearby, so it works for an 10:00–11:00 brunch before a mid‑day JAL or ANA flight. It holds a rating around 4.0 on local review sites, which tracks with the “good for airport, not market-level” comments.

The move here is a mixed seafood don with crab, ikura, and uni; reviewers repeatedly mention generous scoops of uni/ikura compared with pricier nigiri at other CTS sushi counters. One TripAdvisor paraphrase calls it their “last Hokkaido seafood hit,” and another traveler skipped the nearby conveyor-belt place specifically because these bowls looked fresher and easier to share between two to three people.

Watch out for: if you visit near closing, a few reviews complain the shari (sushi rice) can taste slightly fishy when turnover slows after around 19:00. Several Japanese bloggers also note that flavor runs a step below central Sapporo or Otaru markets, which is noticeable if you ate at Nijo Market or Sankaku Market the same day.

Regulars with multiple Hokkaido trips under their belt time their airport run: they eat one last bowl at Donburi Chaya, then buy boxed crab or ikura from nearby souvenir shops in the same Domestic zone as checked-luggage friendly omiyage. Frequent flyers also recommend grabbing a solo counter seat – it turns faster than the 4‑top tables, and you can watch staff stack the seafood in real time.

Practical tip: aim for a bowl here 60–90 minutes before boarding, then use the remaining time to shop; lines spike right after major arrivals from Tokyo around mid‑day.