A gigantic bluefin tuna brought in a record $1.76 million at an auction in Tokyo on Jan. 5, 2013.
The 489-pound tuna, used for sushi and sashimi, was auctioned off at the Tsukiji fish market in Toyko.
According to NBC, the best slices of the bluefin tuna can sell for as much as 2,000 yen ($24) per piece at upscale sushi bars in Tokya.
Who paid $1.76 million for the giant bluefin tuna? The president of Kiyomura Co., Kiyoshi Kimura won the bid for the prize fish.
Kimura is the owner of the restaurant chain Sushi-Zanmai and plans to serve the expensive fish at his restaurants on Saturday.
The Kyodo News agency reports that Kimura stated that "the price was a bit high," but he "wanted to meet expectations of my customers who said they wanted to eat Japan’s best tuna again this year ... With this good tuna, I hope to help cheer up Japan."
Although bluefin tuna can command big prices in sushi restaurants, Kimura plans to charge customers a more reasonable price of 398 yen per portion, or approximately $4.56 each.
That would be a loss for Kimura, but perhaps a savvy business move, bringing more customers in to his restaurants to get a bite of the giant bluefin tuna.
