Pizzeria CIRCO (Cocono Mall, Susukino) in Chuo-ku, Sapporo
As yet another addition to our list of pizza restaurants in Sapporo, we present this bullish review of Pizzeria CIRCO, in the Cocono “mall” in Susukino, Sapporo. I am surprised to be able to say it, but; this place makes a really tasty pizza, one of the best in town.
I have eaten at this shop twice, had a good experience both times. We give this location a “7 out of 10,” but the pizza itself rates higher than that. Circo makes a great pizza.
Located on the rim of the seedy Susukino district, the proper name for this pizza restaurant is Pizzeria C.I.R.C.O COCONO SUSUKINO店. This shop is one of three “Circo” restaurants in central Chuo-ku: Circo Cocono is an almost “fast food” pizza experience (for tourists and shoppers) in the mall; C.I.R.C.O vivo (in the same neighborhood) is a proper sit-down, Italian restaurant; and イタリアン CIRCO being yet another proper Italian restaurant experience, located uptown near Sapporo Station.
(Two of these Circo pizza restaurants are located near The Craft – a place I like, and have eaten at many times, but which makes one of the worst pizzas in all of Hokkaido).
Before we lean into a very favorable review, I offer a quick look at the main attraction:
Isn’t that beautiful?
The Cocono shopping mall is on the border of Susukino; easy to get to and convenient for the gobs of tourists that shuffle through the busy intersection below. Circo Pizza Cocono is in this mall; in the middle of a food court (there seem to be two different food courts). This shop on 3F.
The food court model is not very relaxing, and there are certainly better places to eat pizza in Sapporo (including the other Circo restaurants). However, as for the pizza itself, Circo Pizza Cocono does a surprisingly good job. I am impressed.
As you walk up to the shop you’ll see some digital menus that help degrade the fine quality of Circo to a “fast food” experience. On the pizza menu, you’ll see several choices, most of them custom, “gourmet pizzas;” many are completely original.
On my first visit, I felt obliged to go with the local specialty pizza; the Pizza Hokkaido.
Pizza Hokkaido: Shrimp, Crab, Potato, Corn, Mozzarella, Gran Padano
— From the pizza menu at Cocono Pizzeria Circo
There is no table service. To order, you stand in line at the counter. If you want water, there is a communal water station in the middle of the food court. After placing my order, I grabbed a seat, and waited for my food to arrive.
I confess: I had the lowest expectations for this shop. I expected the taste to match the environment, and I assumed I would not like this pizza. I was wrong; Circo makes an excellent pizza. Since my first visit I have already been back, and I look forward to more Circo pizza (even if I am more likely to go to their sit-down restaurants from now on).
As I sat at the counter and watched my pizza being made, I saw huge scoops of toppings, somewhat lovelessly dumped onto the uncooked dough.
The heaps of toppings looked like “way too much.” The pizza master dragged that over-loaded pie onto the peel, and gave it a 2-minute spin in the gas pizza oven. It was delivered it to me, and…
A beauty, and I was eager for a bite.
The crust smelled so good, and felt good, as I pulled it apart. My estimation of the meal was rising and my appetite increased. First bite: almost creamy. Then the corn flavor dominated everything else (maybe too much corn). Then a second bite; mostly potato and crust, all starch. But good, very good.
A note on the corn: Corn (or particularly, sweet corn) is a very Hokkaido food. While the Japanese generally call corn “tomorokoshi,” locally we call it “toukibi.” Corn can be an excellent choice for a pizza topping (perhaps especially so when paired with bacon). Here in Sapporo, you can try an especially high-end corn pizza at Pizza e svago di Pluis. On the big island of Honshu, I had an unbelievable pizza that (featured Hokkaido corn) at 400℃ Pizza Tokyo.
Personally, if it’s ever up to me, I’ll go sparingly with the corn. It’s a tasty topping, but a very strong flavor, a bit too much on the Hokkaido Pizza at Circo.
The seafood flavor on this pizza was subtle. Adorned with both shrimp and crab, the fish flavor was faint but satisfying. An occasional burst of crab was surprisingly good.
As I had watched the pizzaiolo make this particular Hokkaido Pizza, I was initially underwhelmed as I saw him start by applying the sauce from a plastic bottle (like the kind used for salad dressing). The sauce was thin, and the color was an orangey-red (like hot sauce). After I’d had a few bites, and was loving the flavor, I asked about it; the sauce is tomato, garlic, and butter; they called it an “American sauce.” Okay. Delicious, by any name.
The crust at Circo is very, very good. Great texture. Just salty enough. A flavor worth remembering.
That was my first experience, and I knew I would be back.
A few weeks later I enthusiastically set out for another pizza at Sapporo’s Pizzeria Circo.
Having had the extraordinary Hokkaido pizza, I wanted to try a plainer, more classically Italian pizza, to assess the shops ability to produce something simple and essential. However, apart from a Margherita (which they call the CIRCO Pizza) and the four-cheese (you cannot believe how much cheese they put on that pizza)… Pizzeria Circo Cocono doesn’t really do many typical Napoletana pizzas.
I scanned the menu and settled on the “most-traditional” looking pizza (beyond the Margherita): an almost-classical Genovese, but with chicken.
Chicken Genovese Pizza: Basil, Mozzarella, Chicken, Grana Padano, Tomato
— From the pizza menu at Pizzeria Circo Cocono Susukino
While the menu says “basil,” what it doesn’t say is “basil base” – which is the role the basil plays.
The name Genovese refers to the Italian city Genoa. I understand this basil sauce is a regional specialty of that part of Italy. A “green base” pizza is rare, and in this case excellent. This Genoa-style basil sauce at Circo Cocono reminds me of what I believe is the best pizza in Osaka – the Genoa Salame Pizza at Pizzeria Due Sette (oh, my, that is a world-class pizza that CIRCO can only aspire to).
Again on this visit, I sat at the counter, and again, the pizza was made with almost comical quantities of toppings. Again, the pizza arrived it was beautiful and tempting.
I could smell the crust before I even took a bite; which is always a good sign. First taste: a warm, gooey combination of cheese and potato, with the basil sauce providing concentrated contrast. On a second bite, there was a gamey chicken flavor. The last bites of my first slice were fresh tomato, cheese, and that wonderful crust.
I didn’t like the chicken. It is chicken thigh, and as served has a strong, distracting, gamey flavor; if you told me it was duck (or wild boar) I would have believed you. My guess is that the chicken is cooked with too much fat? The chicken fat (and the skin?) perhaps creating a fatty flavor (is that what I am tasting?)? I will write (soon) about the Diavola Pizza at Orzo in Sapporo; that pizza substitutes the usual salami for chicken thigh, and it is also not a particularly successful idea. The Diavola Pizza at Tony Tony Pizza in Nagoya also does a dark-meat chicken pizza, and I’m not a fan (bad idea).
I pulled the bites of chicken off the pizza and sampled them separately; the flavor was not at all great for my tastes. I like chicken thighs, we cook thighs in our home, and my chicken is better than whatever is on this pizza.
I pulled all of the chicken off the slices, and truly loved what was left over. Without the chicken, this (too) was a delicious pizza. The chunks of boiled potato were plentiful and soft, with a taste that was almost buttery (reminding me of mashed potatoes). They were wonderful when paired with the thick cheese and salt and green basil base.
One more time for the crust – it is excellent. Really surprising to get such an excellent crust “at the mall.” The flavor itself, and those blackened bits.
And even though the topping are “takusan,” the crust is sturdy, you can pick up a slice, and this pizza passes the patented Pizza Czar Pizza Test.
The open food court seating, with cheap plastic seats, and people moving about everywhere is the low-point of this location. It’s a low-bro environment, better for kids, better for a “quick lunch,” a better fitting for a NYC-style pizza slice place than a proper Naples-style pizza experience. You may enjoy it, but it is my opinion it is hard to relax in a space like this.
With that said, I like the looks of this walk-up shop. I enjoyed all the colors; the reds and greens and yellows on my pizza, the kitschy, bright-tiled oven, all the colors of the station where the pizza were made. Being by the windows (at the counter) was nice; I bet the view at night is fantastic.
The fine ingredients and excellent flavors have corrected my attitude about this shop. I don’t like the environment of a “food court,” but the pizza is very good.
I’ll be back myself, and can easily recommend Circo for one of the tastiest bites in Susukino.
Pizza in Sapporo
— For an outstanding garlicky Marinara pizza, check out Da Massimo in Shiroishi-ku, Sapporo
— The Savoy Pizza in Sapporo is a great choice (in Chuo-ku)
— The farmers from Makino Farms make wonderful little Neapolitan pizza at Makino Pizza (one or two days a month, only)
— A very formulaic Napoletana pizza at Dalsegno Pizza in Chuo-ku, Sapporo
— A new downtown location for the chain store Osteria Salvatore Sapporo Pizza is in this same neighborhood
— Quirky neighborhood style pizza at the American-theme Smile Kitchen Pizza Diner
— In Sapporo’s Nishi-ku, you’ll find Pizza e Svago di Pluis
— The only New York pizza slices at Pizza Joint Pike in Chuo-ku, Sapporo
— There is a full menu that includes good Neapolitan-style pizza at Agora Pizza in Chuo-ku, Sapporo
— One of the worst Chicago pizzas in all of Japan can be found at The Craft in Susukino in Chuo-ku, Sapporo