Tokyo Sushi Restaurateurs Set New Benchmark with $1.3M Bluefin Tuna Purchase

A bluefin tuna weighing 276kg has been sold for 207m yen ($1.3m) at Tokyo’s Toyosu Fish Market, marking the second-highest price ever recorded. Onodera Group, the winning bidder, aims to serve the prized fish in their Michelin-starred restaurants, while other seafood at the auction, including sea urchins, also drew record prices this year.

In a spectacular display of luxury seafood trading, sushi restaurateurs in Tokyo bid a staggering 207 million yen (approximately $1.3 million) for a bluefin tuna that weighs as much as a motorbike. This sale, which occurred during the annual new year auction at the renowned Toyosu Fish Market, ranks as the second-highest price paid for a tuna at this event.

The winning bid came from the Onodera Group, which aims to serve this remarkable 276kg (608lb) tuna at its Michelin-starred Ginza Onodera restaurants, as well as across other Nadaman locations nationwide. Onodera official Shinji Nagao expressed hope that the tuna, which was caught off Japan's northern Aomori region, would symbolize good fortune for those who enjoy it, saying, "I hope people will eat the tuna and have a wonderful year."

This year marks the fifth consecutive year that the Onodera Group has outbid competitors in the Ichiban Tuna auction, previously paying 114 million yen for the top tuna last year. The record for the highest auction price remains at 333.6 million yen, achieved in 2019 for a 278kg bluefin tuna, purchased by Kiyoshi Kimura, who is famously known as Japan's "Tuna King."

The Toyosu Fish Market, which has been in operation since 1935, is renowned as the largest fish market globally and is famous for its pre-dawn tuna auctions. This auction, held on a Sunday, featured not just bluefin tuna but also a wide array of seafood, with Hokkaido sea urchins fetching a jaw-dropping 7 million yen, further underscoring the market’s prominence in the culinary world.