Goryokaku Tower has a gelato shop on its second floor, and after walking the park and going up to the observation deck, Audrey and I treated it as the reward for completing the whole routine. It was a good reward. Milkissimo is worth the stop, with a few conditions: the berry is the safe pick, Audrey and I split on the other two flavours, and the question in the title, how Hokkaido these Hokkaido flavours really are, has a more specific answer than “all of them.”
Finding Milkissimo on the Way Down from Goryokaku Tower
We reached Goryokaku before the Tower opened, so we spent the first stretch walking the park until the doors opened at 9:00. Then we went up for the view of the fort, the city and the harbour, and stopped at the gelato shop on the way down. If you’d rather sort out the deck ticket before you arrive, you can book Goryokaku Tower admission in advance. That listing says you collect a physical ticket at the Tower’s ticket counter and that bookings can’t be changed or cancelled, so it suits you best once your day is settled.
It was early and quiet when we reached the shop, and the room was modern and clean, with somewhere to sit and eat, which is not a small thing after a morning of walking. Milkissimo started in Hakodate in 2009, and this is its shop inside the Tower. Because we’d already been up to the deck, I never found out whether you can reach the shop without buying a ticket for it. The Tower currently opens from 9:00 to 18:00 and the shop is listed as keeping the same hours, but the Tower’s own site is the place to check before you plan around either. We arrived before it opened and found the shop quiet, and if you’d like that early, unhurried version of the morning, a hotel around Goryokaku makes it easy to be at the doors at 9:00. I won’t single out a property, but you can browse current hotels near Goryokaku and see how far each sits from the Tower.
What We Ordered, and Where We Disagreed
The case was a wall of colour, and we passed on chestnut, matcha and plain milk. The last is the flavour the shop is named for, so I can’t speak for whether the milk lives up to the name. Instead we ordered three flavours we’d never had as ice cream: a berry, pumpkin and purple sweet potato. We picked some because they felt local and some because we simply like them, and we figured we’d be eating a lot of interesting ice cream in Japan anyway, since wherever you travel there’s something a little different, local and typical of the region. The lineup changes by day and by season, so your case will look different from ours.
Everything was melting before we’d properly started, so we ate fast. The berry was an instant hit, nice and tart. The pumpkin I judged on my dad’s behalf, and I decided he’d approve, though the answer I got back was that it was very creamy and hardly tasted like pumpkin at first. The pumpkin was there once you went looking for it, just not loudly. The purple sweet potato was surprisingly sweet for a potato and tasted toasted, like the roasted sweet potatoes sold as street snacks, and it drew two different verdicts: a strange aftertaste, and a fairly firm “I quite like that one.”
The berry took first place on both of our scorecards. Second place is where Audrey and I parted ways, with pumpkin taking it on one and the sweet potato on the other, and we agreed the margin was very close. If you want the safest order, start with the berry. For the other two, the question is whether you’d rather have something mild and creamy or something that tastes like a roasted street snack.
How Hokkaido Are These Flavours, Really?
The shop says its milk-based gelato is made with milk from near Hakodate and that it picks Hokkaido fruit and vegetables in season. That’s the shop’s own claim about its own product, so take it as that, but it gives a way to sort our three flavours, because the range is split into lines. One is built on ingredients particular to Hokkaido, one is the shop’s own house recipes, and one is Italian dessert flavours such as tiramisu.
The pumpkin and the berry both come from the shop’s Hokkaido line. The board that day listed a single pumpkin, the one the shop makes with organic pumpkin from a farm in Mori, not far from Hakodate, mixed with local milk, so that’s the one we ate. The berry I’m fairly sure was the haskap the board called Northern Haskap, a Hokkaido berry the shop lists as grown in Atsuma. I’m matching a name on the board to a scoop in the cup, so treat that as my best identification. The purple sweet potato is a house flavour, and the shop’s description says nothing about where the potatoes come from, so I won’t call it a Hokkaido flavour. It’s a favourite, which is a different category.
So the honest answer to the title is two flavours from the shop’s Hokkaido line, the pumpkin and the berry, and one house favourite, the purple sweet potato. Those lists are the shop’s own, and the flavours rotate daily, so read them as a guide to what “Hokkaido” means at this counter, not a promise about today’s case.
What Three Flavours Cost and Whether It’s Worth the Stop
Three flavours cost ¥650 when we went, and you could take one or two if your sweet tooth was more modest. That was the price on our visit, so check the board rather than trusting my memory. Is it worth the stop? Yes. It was a modest, pleasant way to finish the park and the Tower, and the sensible order of operations is the one we followed: burn a few calories first, then eat the gelato guilt-free.
– Gelato (winter berry, purple sweet potato and pumpkin)
I’ve got one visit, three flavours and no milk to go on, so I won’t tell you it’s the best gelato in Hakodate. If you want a Hokkaido flavour specifically, order the pumpkin or the haskap berry. If you want to find out where you and your travel partner disagree, order the purple sweet potato.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Milkissimo located inside Goryokaku Tower, and do you need an observation deck ticket to reach it?
Milkissimo sits on the second floor of Goryokaku Tower, with a clean indoor seating area where you can sit down after walking the park. Because Audrey and I stopped on our way down from the observation deck, I cannot confirm whether you can reach the counter without buying a deck ticket first.
How much did three flavours of gelato cost at Milkissimo?
On our visit, a cup with three flavours cost ¥650, and the menu board also offered one-flavour and two-flavour cups if you want a smaller portion. Prices can change, so check the chalkboard sign at the counter when you arrive.
Which Milkissimo flavour was the safest pick from the three you tried?
Northern Haskap berry took first place for both Audrey and me thanks to its bright, tart fruit flavour. Between the other two scoops in our cup, we split on second place: the pumpkin was mild and very creamy with a subtle squash note, while the purple sweet potato was surprisingly sweet and tasted like a toasted street snack.
Are all of the flavours at Milkissimo made with Hokkaido ingredients?
No, the shop divides its menu into three distinct lines: seasonal Hokkaido fruit and vegetable flavours made with milk from near Hakodate, house recipes, and Italian dessert flavours like tiramisu. Out of the three scoops we ordered, the Mori-farm organic pumpkin and the Atsuma-grown Northern Haskap berry came from the Hokkaido line, whereas the purple sweet potato is classified as a house flavour without a stated potato origin.
What are the opening hours for Goryokaku Tower and Milkissimo?
Goryokaku Tower currently opens from 9:00 to 18:00, and the Milkissimo shop inside is listed as keeping those same hours. Arriving right as the doors opened at 9:00 after walking Goryokaku Park gave us a quiet, unhurried visit, though you should always check the official Goryokaku Tower website before your trip in case hours shift.
Will the same gelato flavours be in the display case when I visit?
Daily and seasonal rotation means the display case changes regularly, so the flavours available on your visit will likely differ from ours. Checking the Today’s Flavor chalkboard sign beside the counter is the best way to see which seasonal Hokkaido ingredients and house favourites are being scooped that day.
20:36 – Goryokaku Tower
This guide is also available in Spanish. [Leé la versión en castellano: Reseña del gelato de Milkissimo en la Torre Goryokaku: los sabores de Hokkaido que probamos]
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