Sakuraya

Located off a busy street in Gardena, this Japanese confectionary has been around since the 1960s. There’s a charming, hand-painted sign out front with bright-red lettering, and inside, you’ll find a counter stocked with hand-made mochi and manju. There’s also a shelf behind the cash register displaying lucky cat and daruma dolls, and, quite frankly, we can’t tell if they’re for sale or not.

The prices here are pretty reasonable - a box of 12 is about $26 - and a helpful salesperson will fill it up with soft-textured white mochi, flaky Maruyaki manju studded with chocolate chips and peanut, and our favorite - a silky smooth kinako mochi that’s dusted with a subtle, nutty, roasted soy powder. All wrapped up, it’s the kind of box you’d want to bring someone you want to impress, like your boss during the holidays, or your sort-of-boyfriend’s parents when meeting them for the first time. Cash only.

photo credit: Andrea D'Agosto