(Juliana Yamada / Los Angeles Times)
‘L.A.’s little secret.’ Why the South Bay is still the best destination for Japanese food
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On bustling Western Avenue in the heart of Gardena, Sakura-Ya and Chikara Mochi sit about 250 feet away from each other, frequented by South Bay residents for decades for fluffy mochi and cakey manju. They’re two of the only traditional Japanese mochi shops in L.A., with blink-and-you’ll-miss-it signage.
Just a block away is Meiji Tofu Shop, a nearly 50-year-old producer that churns out fresh soy milk and tofu daily. Cross the street to find Otafuku — where the Akutsu family has been serving traditional Tokyo soba since 1997.
You’ll find similar clusters of diverse Japanese food in strip malls across Gardena as well as Torrance, which has the largest East Asian population in all of L.A. The two neighboring cities are home to the biggest suburban Japanese community in the United States — and a decades-old restaurant landscape that feels like a time capsule, yet continues to flourish as a haven for classic Japanese cuisine and hospitality.
“It’s like we’re stuck in the ’90s,” said South Bay native Daniel Son, the chef and owner of Gardena’s Sushi Sonagi. “These days, when everything is monetizing and content creating has to be so fresh, they don’t care. They’re just gonna make great product and quietly do it.”
Japanese immigrants first came to the L.A. area in the late 1800s and early 1900s — many from San Francisco after the 1906 earthquake — as strawberry farmers. Unlike Little Tokyo, which has been subject to the whims of tourists and the changing landscape of downtown L.A., the suburban South Bay has maintained a more stable identity, according to Emily Anderson, a curator for Little Tokyo’s Japanese American National Museum.
“In places like Torrance and Gardena, you have the development and preservation of Japanese American food — it [has] layers of history and struggle, but food ultimately being a source of comfort and identity,” Anderson said.
When Torrance became the site of Toyota’s North American headquarters in 1967, more Japanese immigrants, and food, came with it. Over the next few decades, dozens of restaurants opened in Torrance and Gardena, along with a growing number of Japanese supermarket chains like Tokyo Central, Nijiya Market and Mitsuwa Marketplace, giving neighbors a taste of home.
By the time Toyota left Torrance for Texas in 2017, these businesses had proved themselves integral to the region’s culinary fabric. Their networks, once primarily composed of Japanese immigrants and descendant families, had extended to residents of all backgrounds.
“My plan is to be the last bastion of Japanese food prepared the Japanese way,” said former Tokyo resident Kristen McIntyre, owner of homestyle Japanese restaurant Fukagawa in Gardena.
Many Japanese restaurant owners in the area have a “serve what you want to eat” mindset, said Otafuku owner Mieko Akutsu. “We never adjusted the flavor for American people.”
In her case, that means serving three types of soba, including sarashina soba — a white noodle made using the core of the buckwheat plant — which became known as an upscale dish in Tokyo, where regular, darker soba became a popular working-class meal during the Edo period.
Today, restaurants like Sushi Sonagi, which opened in 2023, along with Michelin-starred Sushi Inaba in Torrance, lead the way in bringing Angelenos — and diners from across the country — to the South Bay, where troves of Japanese restaurants and shops, many immigrant-run and cash-only, shine in all their old-school glory. Many don’t have PR firms or flashy Instagram accounts; some will give you a handwritten receipt and others don’t have websites.
“I felt like [opening Sushi Sonagi] in the South Bay almost celebrates the diversity and the rich Asian American culture that’s very deep here,” said Son, who blends his Korean American heritage into his roughly 20-course omakase. “It’s just really cool to bring more life to an area that I feel like is L.A.’s little secret.”
But sushi is merely the cusp of the region’s offerings. Torrance and Gardena are L.A.’s storied destinations for every type of Japanese food imaginable: Yoshoku restaurants, which combine Japanese and Western cooking, coexist alongside traditional izakayas, yakitori joints and newer businesses that hail from Japan. Use these 18 spots as a starting point for some of the best — and some of the oldest — Japanese restaurants that have quietly put South Bay suburbs on the L.A. dining map.
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Chikara Mochi
Gardena Confectionery $
(Lauren Ng / Los Angeles Times)
Wagashi, or petite Japanese confections often colorfully decorated with or molded into the shape of a flower, shine at this cash-only Gardena institution, where a singular bamboo bench sits in the corner and your box of sweets comes labeled with a sticker. Since 1985, locals have flocked to an unassuming block of bustling Western Avenue for Chikara Mochi’s housemade delicacies, from fluffy daifuku — mochi stuffed with sweet, nutty red or subtle white bean paste — to cakey manju, which is made with wheat flour.
The chestnut-shaped kuri manju has a dense, sweet filling of white bean paste, made with lima beans, while the cannoli-shaped potato manju is stuffed with Japanese sweet potato. While the shop’s offerings rotate frequently — everything is made from scratch — recent confections include chrysanthemum, maple or sour plum wagashi, along with inaka manju (filled with whole red beans) and small doughnuts filled with bean paste. If you spot it in the shop’s glass case, don’t miss out on possibly the only savory item at Chikara: the yaki dango, or chewy mochi balls grilled yakitori-style and lathered in a thick, salty-sweet soy glaze.
The chestnut-shaped kuri manju has a dense, sweet filling of white bean paste, made with lima beans, while the cannoli-shaped potato manju is stuffed with Japanese sweet potato. While the shop’s offerings rotate frequently — everything is made from scratch — recent confections include chrysanthemum, maple or sour plum wagashi, along with inaka manju (filled with whole red beans) and small doughnuts filled with bean paste. If you spot it in the shop’s glass case, don’t miss out on possibly the only savory item at Chikara: the yaki dango, or chewy mochi balls grilled yakitori-style and lathered in a thick, salty-sweet soy glaze.
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Chinchikurin Hiroshima Okonomiyaki
Torrance Japanese $$
(Lauren Ng / Los Angeles Times)
L.A.’s most prominent okonomiyaki chain opened its third location in Torrance less than a decade ago, capitalizing on the city’s large Japanese community and thriving izakaya culture. Flip to the back of the menu to find a diagram of the 10 layers that each okonomiyaki is composed with — a few of the layers are condiments, namely dried fish powder, seaweed and tempura crisps. But every savory pancake at Chinchikurin is usually more than enough for a full meal yet still surprisingly balanced: Heapings of shredded cabbage and sometimes bean sprouts balance out the richness of the pancake, which is covered with a fried egg, your choice of protein and okonomiyaki sauce, should you make use of the provided sauce packets (you should). One of my favorites is the classic Chinchikurinyaki, the signature dish of the chain’s original location in Hiroshima — ground beef melds with soft cabbage for a savory but not too heavy bite. No matter which okonomiyaki you order, make sure to say “crispy” when you’re asked how you want your noodles.
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Fukagawa
Gardena Japanese $$
(Rob Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
Known for its traditional Japanese breakfast sets, this katei ryōri, or Japanese home-cooking restaurant has been serving Gardena residents for more than 35 years. Current owner Kristen McIntyre, who formerly lived in Tokyo, maintains the restaurant’s original character through the relatively untouched nature of its menu — with the exception of a few dishes, like the spicy edamame appetizer — and the preservation of wooden items handcrafted by Fukagawa’s original owner, a woodworker.
“We have people that come in [to Fukagawa] and say, ‘I came here with my grandparents, and it’s been a mainstay in their lives — it’s part of their home,’” said McIntyre, who ensures that at least one server fluent in Japanese is present during every shift.
Though McIntyre hopes to one day add more izakaya-style small plates for Fukagawa’s evening service, the restaurant’s extensive lunch and dinner menus of katsu, tempura, soba and udon sets, curry rice and hot pot have kept local families coming to a hidden corner of the Pacific Square Shopping Center for decades.
“It’s really important to me that this tastes like Japanese food — not Americanized Japanese,” McIntyre said. “I want it to be a trip to Tokyo.”
“We have people that come in [to Fukagawa] and say, ‘I came here with my grandparents, and it’s been a mainstay in their lives — it’s part of their home,’” said McIntyre, who ensures that at least one server fluent in Japanese is present during every shift.
Though McIntyre hopes to one day add more izakaya-style small plates for Fukagawa’s evening service, the restaurant’s extensive lunch and dinner menus of katsu, tempura, soba and udon sets, curry rice and hot pot have kept local families coming to a hidden corner of the Pacific Square Shopping Center for decades.
“It’s really important to me that this tastes like Japanese food — not Americanized Japanese,” McIntyre said. “I want it to be a trip to Tokyo.”
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Hakata Ikkousha Tonkotsu Ramen
Torrance Japanese $$
(Lauren Ng / Los Angeles Times)
Hakata Ikkousha’s first location opened in Fukuoka — the birthplace of Hakata-style ramen, or thin, firm noodles in a creamy tonkotsu broth — in 2004. In the last two decades, the chain has built a global empire of Hakata ramen joints, including three L.A. locations: Little Tokyo, Costa Mesa and Torrance, the latter of which is the only one with a monthly special (in August, it’s tsukemen). Order sheets offer eight types of ramen, from classic tonkotsu and mentaiko, another Fukuoka specialty, to black garlic tonkotsu and the “God Fire” doused with homemade chili paste. I always choose “hard” or “very hard” for my noodles, resulting in a satisfying al dente chew. Unlike some ramen chains, Hakata Ikkousha’s slices of chashu are not overly fatty but still melt in your mouth and are sliced thin. The restaurant also has great Hakata-style gyoza — which are smaller than most iterations of the dumpling, served with chili paste and yuzu kosho — and is next door to Torihei, a Torrance-favorite yakitori joint.
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Hisaya Kyoto Chestnuts
Torrance Desserts $
(Juliana Yamada / Los Angeles Times)
The freshly roasted chestnuts at Hisaya are a far cry from the smaller, drier ones you’ll find in bags at grocery stores. Since opening about a decade ago in a popular Japanese strip mall, the roastery has become a quiet South Bay destination for chestnut products of all types — but the star of the show is the whole roasted chestnuts. Hisaya sells two types: dense, dry Tianjin chestnuts from the titular northern China city and plump, tender Kyoto chestnuts, all of which are served piping hot in a small paper bag with their shells cracked. The Kyoto chestnuts, my personal favorite, are particularly moist, starchy and addictive. Other offerings at the shop include quaint chestnut pastries, including different flavors of baked chestnut doughnuts, cookies and cakes, along with chestnut ice cream, either mixed in or topped with candied chestnuts, and drinks like chestnut lattes and milk tea with chestnut boba. Hisaya is also a few doors down from Nozomi, which has an excellent $80 10-course omakase.
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I-naba
Torrance Japanese $$
(Lauren Ng / Los Angeles Times)
On a regular weekday evening, the tables at I-naba are occupied by families with children and Japanese businessmen grabbing dinner and a beer after work. Located off busy Hawthorne Boulevard (next to Ojiya, a great izakaya) with quiet jazz music and moss green walls, the restaurant runs a Michelin-starred sushi operation in the back.
In 2022, now-closed sister restaurant Sushi I-naba in Manhattan Beach moved its omakase operations into I-naba in West Torrance (its other sister, Ichimi Ann, serves excellent soba in Old Torrance and South Torrance). Six guests sit at the counter on select nights for the $280-per-person omakase, while the rest of I-naba is filled with locals feasting on the same excellent tempura, homemade soba and more that it has served since opening in 1999.
You can’t go wrong with anything on I-naba’s extensive menu of appetizers, hot and cold soba and udon combos, and specialty lunch sets. The grilled fish served in bento boxes is moist and tender, while the tempura is light and airy. As someone who grew up a few minutes away from I-naba, one of my comfort meals is the nimono appetizer, or tender chicken and vegetables gently simmered in dashi, with the bright ume oroshi soba — chilled buckwheat noodles in a dashi-soy broth topped with daikon, shiso, wakame, green onion and sour plum.
In 2022, now-closed sister restaurant Sushi I-naba in Manhattan Beach moved its omakase operations into I-naba in West Torrance (its other sister, Ichimi Ann, serves excellent soba in Old Torrance and South Torrance). Six guests sit at the counter on select nights for the $280-per-person omakase, while the rest of I-naba is filled with locals feasting on the same excellent tempura, homemade soba and more that it has served since opening in 1999.
You can’t go wrong with anything on I-naba’s extensive menu of appetizers, hot and cold soba and udon combos, and specialty lunch sets. The grilled fish served in bento boxes is moist and tender, while the tempura is light and airy. As someone who grew up a few minutes away from I-naba, one of my comfort meals is the nimono appetizer, or tender chicken and vegetables gently simmered in dashi, with the bright ume oroshi soba — chilled buckwheat noodles in a dashi-soy broth topped with daikon, shiso, wakame, green onion and sour plum.
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Izakaya Hachi
Torrance Japanese $$
(Bill Addison / Los Angeles Times)
The pub-style restaurant, which opened in 2011 and was followed by a second location in Costa Mesa, has izakaya classics like mentaiko potato salad and fried pork ears, along with fresh sashimi and sushi, oysters, udon, hot pot and an excellent salad of yakiniku beef topped with a heaping of micro-greens — and yes, Hachi does all of those things really well.
The restaurant is always casual, never fussy, with a large sake and beer selection that appeals to crowds of Japanese businessmen coming from work alongside a variety of approachable Japanese dishes, like Jidori chicken karaage and negi toro rolls. For dessert, order at least a few of the pumpkin zenzai — a Japanese dessert of vanilla ice cream, mochi balls, red bean paste and a nutty-sweet pumpkin sauce.
The restaurant is always casual, never fussy, with a large sake and beer selection that appeals to crowds of Japanese businessmen coming from work alongside a variety of approachable Japanese dishes, like Jidori chicken karaage and negi toro rolls. For dessert, order at least a few of the pumpkin zenzai — a Japanese dessert of vanilla ice cream, mochi balls, red bean paste and a nutty-sweet pumpkin sauce.
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Kagura
Torrance Japanese $$
(Lauren Ng / Los Angeles Times)
You’ve probably seen the French mille-feuille pastry or mille crepe cakes at trendy cafes and bakeries across L.A. But at the original Kagura, which has been open for nearly a decade, you’ll find mille-feuille katsu — and yes, it’s as good as it sounds. This standout item from the katsu restaurant in Old Torrance (a three-minute walk from tempura star Tendon Tempura Carlos Jr., which has locations in Pasadena and inside Torrance’s Mitsuwa Marketplace) features about 12 layers of thin, juicy and fatty pork wrapped in crackly panko breading, making it one of the best tonkatsu in L.A.
If you don’t have a reservation, head to Kagura when it opens for lunch or dinner service at 11 a.m. or 5 p.m. to snag a seat at the counter or one of the dark wooden booths, where pitchers of thick, slightly sweet katsu sauce are placed on every table. Start your meal with one of the excellent veggie appetizers, such as the surprisingly umami cabekyu — pickled cabbage and cucumber with sesame and chicken bouillon — or the mountain yam and okra, which comes doused in salty-sour umeboshi, or Japanese salted plum. Each katsu is served gozen-style, or as a set meal on a tray, and comes with rice, pickles, a dollop of spicy mustard, a shredded cabbage salad and an earthy miso soup filled with chunks of carrot and daikon and small pieces of beef. Kagura also has locations in Gardena, El Segundo, Monterey Park and Costa Mesa.
If you don’t have a reservation, head to Kagura when it opens for lunch or dinner service at 11 a.m. or 5 p.m. to snag a seat at the counter or one of the dark wooden booths, where pitchers of thick, slightly sweet katsu sauce are placed on every table. Start your meal with one of the excellent veggie appetizers, such as the surprisingly umami cabekyu — pickled cabbage and cucumber with sesame and chicken bouillon — or the mountain yam and okra, which comes doused in salty-sour umeboshi, or Japanese salted plum. Each katsu is served gozen-style, or as a set meal on a tray, and comes with rice, pickles, a dollop of spicy mustard, a shredded cabbage salad and an earthy miso soup filled with chunks of carrot and daikon and small pieces of beef. Kagura also has locations in Gardena, El Segundo, Monterey Park and Costa Mesa.
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Kansha Creamery
Torrance Ice cream $
(Betty Hallock)
L.A. has its fair share of Japanese dessert spots, from fluffy cheesecake bakery chain Uncle Tetsu to matcha soft serve spots and newer businesses like Bread, Espresso & in Redondo Beach. Less frequently, however, do Japanese flavors and ingredients permeate traditional dessert formats, like the regular American ice cream shop — but Kansha Creamery finds that balance. Ten years ago, James Tatsuya and Elaine Yukari opened Kansha in a Japanese strip mall known for spots like Shin-Sen-Gumi Yakitori and Jidaiya Ramen Dining.
Their menu of creamy, Straus milk-based ice cream rotates weekly, though mainstays include vanilla, the Mr. Universal, which contains pieces of oatmeal cookie and caramel, and matcha, which also comes as a parfait with balls of mochi and red bean paste. Other flavors like strawberry yuzu, houjicha kinako (roasted green tea and soybean powder) and kuro goma (black sesame) highlight Japanese ingredients, though Kansha’s range expands to flavors like pistachio ripple, Brazilian dark cocoa and Earl Grey toffee. Tatsuya and Yukari donate 75 cents of every purchase to a variety of charities, most recently including Miry’s List, a nonprofit for refugee families in America.
Their menu of creamy, Straus milk-based ice cream rotates weekly, though mainstays include vanilla, the Mr. Universal, which contains pieces of oatmeal cookie and caramel, and matcha, which also comes as a parfait with balls of mochi and red bean paste. Other flavors like strawberry yuzu, houjicha kinako (roasted green tea and soybean powder) and kuro goma (black sesame) highlight Japanese ingredients, though Kansha’s range expands to flavors like pistachio ripple, Brazilian dark cocoa and Earl Grey toffee. Tatsuya and Yukari donate 75 cents of every purchase to a variety of charities, most recently including Miry’s List, a nonprofit for refugee families in America.
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Kotohira
Gardena Japanese $$
(Lauren Ng / Los Angeles Times)
“Kotohira’s combination dinners might include scrambled chicken and eggs over rice,” Jonathan Gold wrote in 1992. “Warm udon are served dry in a bowl, garnished with ginger, green onion and wisps of freshly shaved bonito, with a tiny pitcher of soy alongside.”
More than 30 years later, Gold’s descriptions hold true — a testament to udon spot Kotohira’s consistency and timelessness. Before being served a complimentary dollop of Japanese potato salad, you’ll find yourself looking around at the hanging paper lanterns, geometric wooden accents and booths with tatami mat backs. In addition to just over a dozen izakaya-style appetizers, nearly every dish on the menu has udon.
In combination sets, Kotohira’s impeccably chewy noodles sit in a light broth topped with tempura crisps, green onion and fish cake alongside dishes like grilled fish or a rich beef curry over rice. Even in a la carte bowls like the kakuni udon with braised pork belly or the creamy tarako udon with pollock roe, shiso and grated daikon, the noodles refuse to be an afterthought — rather, their flavor and texture shine alongside the many ingredients Kotohira expertly pairs them with.
More than 30 years later, Gold’s descriptions hold true — a testament to udon spot Kotohira’s consistency and timelessness. Before being served a complimentary dollop of Japanese potato salad, you’ll find yourself looking around at the hanging paper lanterns, geometric wooden accents and booths with tatami mat backs. In addition to just over a dozen izakaya-style appetizers, nearly every dish on the menu has udon.
In combination sets, Kotohira’s impeccably chewy noodles sit in a light broth topped with tempura crisps, green onion and fish cake alongside dishes like grilled fish or a rich beef curry over rice. Even in a la carte bowls like the kakuni udon with braised pork belly or the creamy tarako udon with pollock roe, shiso and grated daikon, the noodles refuse to be an afterthought — rather, their flavor and texture shine alongside the many ingredients Kotohira expertly pairs them with.
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Meiji Tofu
Gardena Tofu shop $
(Juliana Yamada / Los Angeles Times)
Many prominent restaurants and nationwide wholesalers turn to Meiji for all their tofu needs — but South Bay residents have the luxury of going to Meiji’s only in-person tofu shop for soy milk and four types of tofu made fresh daily. L.A.’s only Japanese tofu producer, Meiji Tofu was initially founded in 1979; Shogo Sato became its owner in 2000, and his sons Kurato and Koki, who learned how to make tofu from his father, now run Meiji themselves. The process starts in the early hours before morning and wraps up before the tofu shop opens at 8 a.m. In a shop that essentially functions as a window (customers can only wait outside for their tofu), it’s easy to overlook the many steps ‚ from the grinding of soybeans to the time-sensitive addition of coagulant to hot soy milk — of tofu production.
Meiji’s tofu is nutty, creamy and slightly sweet, served alone in all its jiggly glory. In addition to its soy milk, which can be found at Japanese grocery stores across the South Bay, Meiji Tofu sells soft, medium and firm block tofu, along with a few types of extra soft tofu — the “supreme” contains double the amount of soybeans and the zaru is served in a small draining basket. The shop also sells bags of okara, the pulp byproduct of the tofu making process.
Meiji’s tofu is nutty, creamy and slightly sweet, served alone in all its jiggly glory. In addition to its soy milk, which can be found at Japanese grocery stores across the South Bay, Meiji Tofu sells soft, medium and firm block tofu, along with a few types of extra soft tofu — the “supreme” contains double the amount of soybeans and the zaru is served in a small draining basket. The shop also sells bags of okara, the pulp byproduct of the tofu making process.
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Otafuku
Gardena Japanese $$
(Juliana Yamada/Los Angeles Times)
When Mieko Akutsu and her parents immigrated to Torrance in the mid-1990s, the South Bay’s Japanese food scene was already beginning to bloom. But Mieko’s father, Seiji, saw an opportunity for a restaurant dedicated to soba. Otafuku offers the same menu of traditional Japanese appetizers, sashimi, noodles and mixed rice dishes that it did when it opened in 1997. Mieko, who became the owner when her father died last year, still sources most of Otafuku’s ingredients from Japan, including the flour used to make three types of soba. The seiro soba contains 30% wheat flour and 70% polished buckwheat, which gives the noodles their white color. The other two variations, classic zaru and kikouchi, use 80% and 100% buckwheat, respectively, providing an increasingly nutty flavor for the noodles.
“Even in Japan, there’s so many cities, and they all have their unique flavoring and food culture,” said Tokyo native Akutsu, who uses saltier, richer soy sauce at Otafuku, as opposed to the lighter version found in Osaka. “My goal is to keep the authenticity, including service.”
“Even in Japan, there’s so many cities, and they all have their unique flavoring and food culture,” said Tokyo native Akutsu, who uses saltier, richer soy sauce at Otafuku, as opposed to the lighter version found in Osaka. “My goal is to keep the authenticity, including service.”
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Sakae Sushi
Gardena Sushi $$
(Mariah Tauger / Los Angeles Times)
Six types of sushi for 63 years. That says it all for Sakae Sushi, the cash-only takeout spot off Redondo Beach Boulevard where the receipts are handwritten and the boxes of sushi are hand-wrapped in paper and green twine. Next door to 41-year-old yoshoku restaurant Spoon House, Sakae has been owned and operated by three generations of the Tani family. The menu has stayed nearly identical with the exception of when, in the ’80s, Sakae added its version of the California roll to the menu: rice on the inside, seaweed on the outside and a filling of fresh shrimp, avocado and roasted sesame seeds.
Today, Sakae remains so popular that orders can be made up to weeks in advance. All six items on the menu are delicate in texture — without gentle chopstick technique, the sushi will fall apart — and relatively sweet for sushi, as Sakae’s rice is traditionally seasoned with vinegar and sweetened. The sweetest of the bunch is the inari, or rice stuffed in a pouch of sweet, almost juicy fried tofu. Sakae also offers two oshizushi (pressed, rectangular sushi) with a thin layer of either ebi (shrimp) or saba (salty pickled mackerel). The nori maki and tamago roll are both filled with sweet egg and a variety of vegetables, but the latter is wrapped in an extra layer of egg. If you’re lucky, you might catch one of the end pieces of a roll — you’ll know if you see a piece of maki overflowing with rice and extra-long pieces of spinach, shiitake mushroom or avocado.
Today, Sakae remains so popular that orders can be made up to weeks in advance. All six items on the menu are delicate in texture — without gentle chopstick technique, the sushi will fall apart — and relatively sweet for sushi, as Sakae’s rice is traditionally seasoned with vinegar and sweetened. The sweetest of the bunch is the inari, or rice stuffed in a pouch of sweet, almost juicy fried tofu. Sakae also offers two oshizushi (pressed, rectangular sushi) with a thin layer of either ebi (shrimp) or saba (salty pickled mackerel). The nori maki and tamago roll are both filled with sweet egg and a variety of vegetables, but the latter is wrapped in an extra layer of egg. If you’re lucky, you might catch one of the end pieces of a roll — you’ll know if you see a piece of maki overflowing with rice and extra-long pieces of spinach, shiitake mushroom or avocado.
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Sakura-Ya
Gardena Confections $
(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
Going on 65 years in business, cash-only Sakura-Ya remains as unassuming as it is legendary. Other than a single piece of painted signage, the shop’s metal screen door and blinded-up windows make you wonder if it’s open. Inside, however, you’ll find a glass case filled with colorful rows of mochi and manju made daily by brothers Mas and Yuki Fujita, whose father opened the shop in 1960. Mas sometimes starts pounding mochi dough and simmering bean mixtures at 4 a.m., making a thousand pieces in one shift. The result is mochi that jiggles when you pick it up, oozing with thick red bean paste and occasionally dusted with nutty kinako, or roasted soybean flour. The imo manju is warm with cinnamon, while the maruyaki manju has pieces of peanut or chocolate chips, the latter of which Yuki added to cater to the sweet American palate. Refer to the shop’s menu to the left of the case for descriptions of the 12 items.
“There’s never a line, but they almost always sell out,” Frank Shyong wrote in The Times about Sakura-Ya last year. “They’ve never done advertising, not even the free kind.”
“There’s never a line, but they almost always sell out,” Frank Shyong wrote in The Times about Sakura-Ya last year. “They’ve never done advertising, not even the free kind.”
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Shin-Sen-Gumi Yakitori
Torrance Japanese $$
(Lauren Ng / Los Angeles Times)
The South Bay’s yakitori scene is unlike almost anything else in L.A. There aren’t many neighborhoods where the hottest post-work hangout is a charcoal-grilled skewer joint, but this Gardena institution makes every meal a fun one. When you walk into the 33-year-old restaurant, you’ll be greeted with a chorus of welcomes from every member of the staff. Start with a few appetizers, like the black sesame-doused goma spinach, and a Sapporo or Asahi draft, but save your appetite for dozens of skewers, almost all of which are doused in addictive tare sauce.
Like at any yakitori spot, chicken is the star: Order at least a few of the tsukune, or tender chicken meatball, and chicken thigh with green onion, along with crispy chicken wings and tender chicken breast with shredded shiso and umeboshi. Other standout skewers on Shin-Sen-Gumi’s vast menu of classics include vegetables wrapped in pork belly, the shiitake mushroom and the grilled rice ball with shiso and dried bonito.
Though its roots remain in a strip mall off Western Avenue, Shin-Sen-Gumi’s empire has spread across L.A. and to Japan — Gardena alone has three other Shin-Sen-Gumi restaurants, including a Hakata-style ramen joint, a shabu-shabu spot and a drive-through.
Like at any yakitori spot, chicken is the star: Order at least a few of the tsukune, or tender chicken meatball, and chicken thigh with green onion, along with crispy chicken wings and tender chicken breast with shredded shiso and umeboshi. Other standout skewers on Shin-Sen-Gumi’s vast menu of classics include vegetables wrapped in pork belly, the shiitake mushroom and the grilled rice ball with shiso and dried bonito.
Though its roots remain in a strip mall off Western Avenue, Shin-Sen-Gumi’s empire has spread across L.A. and to Japan — Gardena alone has three other Shin-Sen-Gumi restaurants, including a Hakata-style ramen joint, a shabu-shabu spot and a drive-through.
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Sushi Sonagi
Gardena Sushi $$$
(Stephanie Breijo / Los Angeles Times)
“As much as I’ve tasted the glitz and glamour of the celebrity world and clients in West Hollywood, I just wanted something that was home,” said Sushi Sonagi chef-owner Daniel Son. “South Bay feels so much like that.”
Son describes himself as the South Bay’s biggest cheerleader. His parents emigrated from Korea to Gardena, and he attended nearby Torrance High School as a teenager, where he found “melting pot” cafeteria lunch tables of Asian American cuisine. The Sushi Sonagi chef-owner has trained with acclaimed Japanese sushi chefs and even had stints at Spago and Noma — but his heart has always belonged to the South Bay, where he gives back to his hometown with a Korean American-inspired $250-per-person sushi omakase.
In the two years since Sonagi opened, diners from all over L.A., and even the country, have begun flocking to an old strip mall on Artesia Boulevard for Son’s meticulously crafted nigiri and other dishes, from the Japanese mackerel sando (Son is also the owner of Katsu Sando in Chinatown) to corn chawanmushi topped with uni and shiso flowers. A South Bay restaurant through and through, Son gets his tofu from nearby Meiji Tofu, which he delicately shapes into a flower for suimono, a simple Japanese soup, and tops with chrysanthemum.
Son describes himself as the South Bay’s biggest cheerleader. His parents emigrated from Korea to Gardena, and he attended nearby Torrance High School as a teenager, where he found “melting pot” cafeteria lunch tables of Asian American cuisine. The Sushi Sonagi chef-owner has trained with acclaimed Japanese sushi chefs and even had stints at Spago and Noma — but his heart has always belonged to the South Bay, where he gives back to his hometown with a Korean American-inspired $250-per-person sushi omakase.
In the two years since Sonagi opened, diners from all over L.A., and even the country, have begun flocking to an old strip mall on Artesia Boulevard for Son’s meticulously crafted nigiri and other dishes, from the Japanese mackerel sando (Son is also the owner of Katsu Sando in Chinatown) to corn chawanmushi topped with uni and shiso flowers. A South Bay restaurant through and through, Son gets his tofu from nearby Meiji Tofu, which he delicately shapes into a flower for suimono, a simple Japanese soup, and tops with chrysanthemum.
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Torimatsu
Gardena Japanese $$
(Stephanie Breijo / Los Angeles Times)
Shoji Ishikawa opened Torimatsu in 1990 with the same tare sauce — the thick, savory and slightly sweet glaze used for yakitori — that he continues to use today. But unlike other Japanese skewer spots, Ishikawa’s kushiyaki (the Japanese word used for all types of skewers) isn’t served dripping in tare. Ishikawa creates balance in his skewers, letting the natural flavors of his ingredients shine.
Located next door to Sushi Sonagi, Torimatsu offers some of the most unique skewers in the South Bay: kitsune (deep-fried tofu skin), shiitake mushrooms, bell pepper and thick pieces of lotus root are stuffed with chicken and charred on the edges. Other dishes are more simple: Snag a counter seat to watch Ishikawa put chunks of Yukon gold potatoes on the grill until their starchy flesh crackles, served with large slices of butter. Give your skewers a kick with the provided condiments, namely numbing sansho pepper powder and salty-spicy yuzu kosho.
Located next door to Sushi Sonagi, Torimatsu offers some of the most unique skewers in the South Bay: kitsune (deep-fried tofu skin), shiitake mushrooms, bell pepper and thick pieces of lotus root are stuffed with chicken and charred on the edges. Other dishes are more simple: Snag a counter seat to watch Ishikawa put chunks of Yukon gold potatoes on the grill until their starchy flesh crackles, served with large slices of butter. Give your skewers a kick with the provided condiments, namely numbing sansho pepper powder and salty-spicy yuzu kosho.
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Wagyu Butcher
Torrance Japanese $$$
(Lauren Ng / Los Angeles Times)
With less than a year in business, Wagyu Butcher is challenging the notion of pre-fixe dining as an upscale affair. In a small waiting area before the restaurant’s looming black curtain is a sign with tips: “Enjoy your meal and laugh a lot!” and in parentheses, “We are not formal restaurant!” Wagyu Butcher has two dinner services per day and a lunch seating on weekends, maintaining the unmistakable, relaxed ambience of a South Bay Japanese restaurant — diners still have personal grills for their meat — with the refined butchery and Wagyu preparation of a pricey hot spot.
Watch head butcher Takeshi Yamakawa, who hails from Osaka, slice fresh Wagyu to the tune of ’80s hits for $50 eight-course and $70 10-course sets — a steal in L.A. Kimchee, sesame-dusted vegetables and a Wagyu sashimi with minced onion and lemon juice are followed by cuts of Wagyu accompanied by progressively stronger sauces. My personal favorite is the marbled, thinly sliced chuck roll, which comes with a green onion-daikon ponzu. The $70 set ends with a bang: Slices of A5 Wagyu, the only course where the meat is cooked for you, are touched lightly on the grill before being placed in a bath of sukiyaki sauce aerated to look like whipped cream. For $10, you can swap out the curry rice course for A5 sushi blowtorched by Yamakawa.
Watch head butcher Takeshi Yamakawa, who hails from Osaka, slice fresh Wagyu to the tune of ’80s hits for $50 eight-course and $70 10-course sets — a steal in L.A. Kimchee, sesame-dusted vegetables and a Wagyu sashimi with minced onion and lemon juice are followed by cuts of Wagyu accompanied by progressively stronger sauces. My personal favorite is the marbled, thinly sliced chuck roll, which comes with a green onion-daikon ponzu. The $70 set ends with a bang: Slices of A5 Wagyu, the only course where the meat is cooked for you, are touched lightly on the grill before being placed in a bath of sukiyaki sauce aerated to look like whipped cream. For $10, you can swap out the curry rice course for A5 sushi blowtorched by Yamakawa.
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