Azay

05/29/2026

We are looking forward to seeing you all this weekend with new menu items!, along with our popular Japanese Breakfast and Daily Bento.

Tuesday-Friday: 11am-1:45pm last order
Saturday & Sunday: 9am-1:45pm last order

For reservations up to four people, please use Resy.

For reservations larger than four,
please call us at (213) 628-3431
or email us at [email protected]

After 6 years, we finally have merch! Beautifully illustrated by our dear friend Eri, and inspired by our previous t-shirt at our previous restaurant in Kyoto.

Purchase one the next time you come by Azay!

Our bento boxes are perfect for office meetings, parties, all celebrations, weddings, memorial services, etc.

We also offer buffet and full service catering as well, with our chef driven menus.

For catering inquiries, reach out to us at [email protected].

Dear Friends,

We are thrilled to announce our Juneteenth dinner, Friday, June 19, at 7:30PM. The Hirose family has generously agreed to host us once more at their Little Tokyo restaurant, Azay (226 East First Street). The feast will begin with a favorite of ours, a Chef Edna Lewis-inspired she-crab soup topped with salmon roe and tarragon. Next is fried green tomatoes with remoulade, pickled okra, and mustard frills. My classic Southern biscuits and cheddar chive biscuits will be on the table throughout. For our main, we’ll be smothering Peads & Barnetts pork neck and serving it with glazed turnips, oyster dressing, and turnip greens. While we cannot accommodate all dietary restrictions, we will gladly provide smothered Cornish hen and pork-less greens for this course. And for dessert: lemon coconut chess pie with vanilla ice cream AND a tbd berry ice cream.

It’s been far too long since we’ve put one of these together and we eagerly await your presence.

As always, the pleasure will be ours.

Danielle and Pablo

The enchanting golden era musical Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Flower Drum Song, directed by East West Players (EWP) Artistic Director Lily Tung Crystal, will serve as the grand finale for EWP’s Diamond Legacy season.

This captivating tale will receive a newly updated book for 2026 by the Tony Award-winning playwright, librettist, screenwriter, and EWP theater namesake David Henry Hwang. At a time when conversations about identity and cultural preservation are more important than ever, Hwang’s reworking of the book for the Spring 2026 production allows Asian Americans to reclaim this cherished story in a meaningful way, illuminating the complexities and richness of the community’s continuous evolution.

Rodgers and Hammerstein's Flower Drum Song pulls back the curtain on themes of assimilation and tradition in 1960’s San Francisco Chinatown as Mei-Li, a young Chinese opera artist fleeing communism, arrives in America, where she is immediately drawn into the dazzling world of the Grant Avenue nightclubs.

The primary election is

right around the corner!

Vote by mail ballots from the Los Angeles County Registrar Recorder/County Clerk (RRCC) entered the mailstream on April 30th, so you should have already received it. If not, re-register at registertovote.ca.gov and click “Register to Vote Now.” Actual vote-by-mail ballots will hit the mailstream starting April 30th. Depending on where you live, what might be on your ballot is below.

There primary election is right around the corner and there is a lot of information to sort through.

We think Knock LA does a pretty good job sorting through the items on the ballot: City of LA Mayor, LA County, LAUSD, Judges, Ballot Measures, etc.

Welcome back, Angelenos, to the 2026 Primary edition of the Knock LA Progressive Voter Guide. If this is your first time using our guide, thank you! We’re glad you’re here.

This midterm election is an opportunity for LA voters to double down on the progress our city has made, like the expansion of unarmed crisis response teams and ULA’s funding of more affordable housing. However, the same players as usual — corporations, police leagues, landlord lobbyists, billionaires, and more — are operating from the shadows, continuing to pull strings and leverage huge amounts of money behind their “Republican in everything but name” candidates.

So the choice is yours, voter. Will LA continue on this painstaking upward trend, or will the greedy hands of MAGA fools pull us back?

Our voter guide is a labor of love for a better Los Angeles. This guide reflects dozens and dozens of conversations with organizers, government staffers, lawyers, and everyday Angelenos. We pour in countless hours of research, writing, fact-checking, and editing to bring you these recommendations. A round of applause to the team that makes this possible!

We hope that this guide leaves you with the knowledge to navigate the politics of Southern California, and the confidence to get involved even after your ballot has been counted.

TUESDAY NIGHT CAFE JUNE SECOND 2026.
FEATURING



glowcone
Always free, open to the public, no tickets or assigned seating. Come through, make plans with a friend, like, comment, share, etc etc.
DJ
🎤Want to perform for our Open Mic? Make sure to sign up for our lottery by 7 PM, there will only be 3 spaces available, two performances per performer per season please! We may ask to review your content. Please read the rules at
tuesdaynightproject.org/how-to-perform (https://www.tuesdaynightproject.org/how-to-perform)
🤿As a reminder, masking is required in our space, and we will have masks available on site. If you can’t join us in-person, we will continue to stream our shows on YouTube in our link in bio.

This month, join a workshop at Nellita's (https://nellitascraft.com/) , Little Tokyo's neighborhood craft shop.

Click here for an update from Azay!

05/21/2026

This weekend Anzen Hardware will be hosting their
first Spring Sale!

They are excited to offer special pricing and new items, and new items, and give the community a first look at a new evolution of Anzen Hardware.

Anzen Hardware is Jo Ann and Philip Hirose's newest venture, envisioning the future of our father/grandfather's store.

This Sunday, we will be serving premium tea ceremony grade matcha from Ryuouen, a Kyoto tea purveyor founded 1875, which still uses the traditional method of stone-milling to grind and measure their tea in-house.

Our late father/husband Akira is related to this fine tea family and their matcha is one of Jojo’s favorites.

We are open for brunch!

Tuesday-Friday: 11am-1:45pm last order
Saturday & Sunday: 9am-1:45pm last order

For reservations up to four people, please use Resy.

For reservations larger than four,
please call us at (213) 628-3431
or email us at [email protected]

After 6 years, we finally have merch! Beautifully illustrated by our dear friend Eri, and inspired by our previous t-shirt at our previous restaurant in Kyoto.

Purchase one the next time you come by Azay!

Our bento boxes are perfect for office meetings, parties, all celebrations, weddings, memorial services, etc.

We also offer buffet and full service catering as well, with our chef driven menus.

For catering inquiries, reach out to us at [email protected].

Nikkei Movie Night

Join us for an evening of film screenings featuring stories and filmmakers from the Japanese American community.

Saturday, May 23, 2026
5:30 p.m. - Doors Open (Photo Gallery and Food)

6:30 p.m. - Film Screenings (with brief intermission)

8:30 p.m. - Q&A Session with Directors

9:00 p.m. - Event Ends

-—————————————————————

Venice Japanese Community Center

12448 Braddock Drive, Los Angeles, CA 90066

*Tandem parking at the VJCC will be available as well as street parking in the surrounding area.

-—————————————————————

ADMISSION IS FREE, BUT RSVP IS REQUIRED. LIMITED SEATING.

*Light food will be provided for additional purchase by Jon Kenzo Okeya from The Shokudo.

The enchanting golden era musical Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Flower Drum Song, directed by East West Players (EWP) Artistic Director Lily Tung Crystal, will serve as the grand finale for EWP’s Diamond Legacy season.

This captivating tale will receive a newly updated book for 2026 by the Tony Award-winning playwright, librettist, screenwriter, and EWP theater namesake David Henry Hwang. At a time when conversations about identity and cultural preservation are more important than ever, Hwang’s reworking of the book for the Spring 2026 production allows Asian Americans to reclaim this cherished story in a meaningful way, illuminating the complexities and richness of the community’s continuous evolution.

Rodgers and Hammerstein's Flower Drum Song pulls back the curtain on themes of assimilation and tradition in 1960’s San Francisco Chinatown as Mei-Li, a young Chinese opera artist fleeing communism, arrives in America, where she is immediately drawn into the dazzling world of the Grant Avenue nightclubs.

Celebrate Asian American, Pacific Islander, Native Hawaiian Heritage Month, Children’s Book Week, and Kodomo no hi (Japanese Children’s Day) with our second annual Nikkei Children’s Book Festival. This year’s festival highlights heroes of all ages who have strengthened our community and made it special in big and small ways.

Explore the breadth and diversity of children’s literature across the Nikkei community with author and illustrator storytimes, signings, and meet-and-greets, arts and crafts for all ages, and a special pop-up bookstore from the JANM Store.

Featured guests include Stan and Julie Sakai (Chibi Usagi), Maggie Tokuda-Hall and Yas Imamura (Love in the Library), Mia Wenjen (Barbed Wire Between Us), Jolene Gutiérrez, Chris Sasaki, and John Tonai (Unbreakable), and Korey Watari and Mike Wu (Kimi the Ballerina).

This month, join a workshop at Nellita's (https://nellitascraft.com/) , Little Tokyo's neighborhood craft shop.

Click here for an update from Azay!

04/28/2026

Mother’s Day meant gathering at the family temple’s pancake breakfast and then running over to the restaurant (Maison Akira/Azay) for Mother’s Day service. It also meant sending a card/gift to our mother, mother-in-law, grandmother overseas where it is not celebrated as much.

Come treat mom at Azay for Mother’s Day, to honor and celebrate her!

Sunday, May 10th
9am-1:45pm last seating

Limited seating, online reservations.
If you are unable to place a reservation online, please give us a call.
*we will be only offering this menu on this special day.

We are open for brunch!

Tuesday-Friday: 11am-1:45pm last order
Saturday & Sunday: 9am-1:45pm last order

For reservations up to four people, please use Resy.

For reservations larger than four,
please call us at (213) 628-3431
or email us at [email protected]

After 6 years, we finally have merch! Beautifully illustrated by our dear friend Eri, and inspired by our previous t-shirt at our previous restaurant in Kyoto.

Purchase one the next time you come by Azay!

Our bento boxes are perfect for office meetings, parties, all celebrations, weddings, memorial services, etc.

We also offer buffet and full service catering as well, with our chef driven menus.

For catering inquiries, reach out to us at [email protected].

Help our friends at Gu Grocery (https://www.gu-grocery.us/) build their awaited Community Market!

"Our community of Chinatown has been without a grocery store for over 6 years, and we are working hard to fill that gap with our neighborhood market. The permitting and construction process has been full of expensive setbacks and delays outside of our control, and these challenges have taken us through nearly half of our 5-year lease. In our second year, we were confronted by a mountain of expenses beyond the basic planned buildout, including rent payments, storage and moving fees for equipment, and paying for the replacement of major equipment due to a change in Building & Safety inspectors. The icing on the cake was waiting on our landlord to comply with requests from LA Department of Building & Safety.

Our expenses have been piling up dramatically before we are able to make regular income, and we are doing everything we can to keep our dream alive. The funds we raise will help us recover from these unexpected costs and go toward supporting our team and operations, so we can finally open our doors and serve the community. We knew we were biting off a lot more than we could chew on our own when we started this whole thing, but we really need some help with chewing right now! Your support means the world to us, and together we can bring a much-needed grocery store and deli back to Chinatown.

Thank you Daniel Nguyen Photography for the family photos of us at our storefront and at our LA RIVER farmers' market day."

The enchanting golden era musical Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Flower Drum Song, directed by East West Players (EWP) Artistic Director Lily Tung Crystal, will serve as the grand finale for EWP’s Diamond Legacy season.

This captivating tale will receive a newly updated book for 2026 by the Tony Award-winning playwright, librettist, screenwriter, and EWP theater namesake David Henry Hwang. At a time when conversations about identity and cultural preservation are more important than ever, Hwang’s reworking of the book for the Spring 2026 production allows Asian Americans to reclaim this cherished story in a meaningful way, illuminating the complexities and richness of the community’s continuous evolution.

Rodgers and Hammerstein's Flower Drum Song pulls back the curtain on themes of assimilation and tradition in 1960’s San Francisco Chinatown as Mei-Li, a young Chinese opera artist fleeing communism, arrives in America, where she is immediately drawn into the dazzling world of the Grant Avenue nightclubs.

Celebrate Asian American, Pacific Islander, Native Hawaiian Heritage Month, Children’s Book Week, and Kodomo no hi (Japanese Children’s Day) with our second annual Nikkei Children’s Book Festival. This year’s festival highlights heroes of all ages who have strengthened our community and made it special in big and small ways.

Explore the breadth and diversity of children’s literature across the Nikkei community with author and illustrator storytimes, signings, and meet-and-greets, arts and crafts for all ages, and a special pop-up bookstore from the JANM Store.

Featured guests include Stan and Julie Sakai (Chibi Usagi), Maggie Tokuda-Hall and Yas Imamura (Love in the Library), Mia Wenjen (Barbed Wire Between Us), Jolene Gutiérrez, Chris Sasaki, and John Tonai (Unbreakable), and Korey Watari and Mike Wu (Kimi the Ballerina).

This month, join a workshop at Nellita's (https://nellitascraft.com/) , Little Tokyo's neighborhood craft shop.

Click here for an update from Azay!

03/14/2026

Thank you and ♥️♥️

03/14/2026

"As reporter Thomas Curwen wrote a while back (https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2024-08-02/we-need-to-define-our-future-little-tokyo-evolves-and-survives) in a deep dive on the neighborhood, many historic Japanese businesses in Little Tokyo are disappearing or at risk of closing, making the revival of Azay and Anzen Hardware especially important."

We love and appreciate the write-ups from Laurie Ochoa (of Los Angeles Times) and Cathy Chaplin (of Eater LA)! It bring us warmth to see our staff's love and attention to the craft of food and hospitality be recognized.

Click here for an update from Azay!

03/06/2026

Join us next Sunday (March 15) to celebrate and honor Chef Akira's legacy and impact in the culinary landscape of Los Angeles and beyond.

We are incredibly grateful for the generosity of chefs, Ray Hayashi, Roy Yamaguchi, Chris Ono, Gary Matsumoto, and Charles Namba, to name a few, the entire service staff, the Japanese American Community and Cultural Center for hosting this event, and our vendors (Fish King, Paul Young Fine Wines, La Grenouille Wine, Dolphin Event Rentals, Morgan Linen, etc.).

Proceeds from this evening benefit the Grateful Crane Ensemble, Institute of Culinary Education, and Little Tokyo Nutrition Services.

When
Sun, Mar 15, 2026

4:30 pm-10:30 pm
First Seating: 4:30 pm - 7:00 pm
Second Seating: 8:00 pm - 10:30 pm

Where
TWCCC/Japanese Garden
244 South San Pedro St., Garden Level, Los Angeles, CA 90012

Price
5-Course Dinner: $195.00 (includes fees)
Optional Wine Pairing: $50.00 (includes fees)

We are open for brunch!

Tuesday-Friday: 11am-1:45pm last order
Saturday & Sunday: 9am-1:45pm last order

For reservations up to four people, please use Resy.

For reservation larger than four,
please call us at (213) 628-3431
or email us at [email protected]

After 6 years, we finally have merch! Beautifully illustrated by our dear friend Eri, and inspired by our previous t-shirt at our previous restaurant in Kyoto.

Purchase one the next time you come by Azay!

Our bento boxes are perfect for office meetings, parties, all celebrations, weddings, memorial services, etc.

We also offer buffet and full service catering as well, with our chef driven menus.

For catering inquiries, reach out to us at [email protected].

Hi everyone!

For those who have already filled out the survey, thank you!

For those you haven't, we'd love to hear from you!

Link below.

Click here for an update from Azay!

02/21/2026

Thank you to at for the love 💓

01/21/2026

Thank you for the love .ochoa and 🤗♥️

12/27/2025

Azay swag is now available!

After six years we are releasing our first shirt that pays an homage to our previous shirt for our previous restaurant, Azay-le-Rideau in Kyoto. The salamander is our logo as a reference to François the first's emblem as well as the restaurant grill Chef Akira used to live above in the town of Azay. The rose on the back represents Chef Akira being called the "Rosé de la Touraine" by his loved ones in the Touraine region, playing off of his last name Hirose and how he turned red went having a little bit of wine 🍷😊

Designed and illustrated by ♥️♥️

12/24/2025

We prepare osechi ryori (Japanese New Year’s) food as a way to come together, reflect on the past year, and continue the traditions that are passed by those who came before us while creating new ones with the addition of new friends and family.

Like the previous years, we are preparing a selection of traditional Japanese osechi, each promising good fortune, health, etc. This year, we are reintroducing some hits of last year and introducing new items that we feel reflect the warmth of our restaurant and community.

This year, we are also preparing Ozoni, traditional Japanese new years mochi rice cake soup, and Toshikoshi Soba, new year’s eve buckwheat noodle soup as add-ons. Ozoni symbolizes good fortune, prosperity, and longevity, and Toshikoshi Soba symbolizes letting go/(noodles) breaking away from the past year’s hardships and welcoming the new year with wishes for longevity, resilience and good fortune, thanks to the noodles’ long strands.

Preorder now until Wednesday, December 24.
For a pickup on Wednesday, December 31 at Azay

Click here for an update from Azay!

12/16/2025

After nearly 8 months, we are back open! for brunch service starting tomorrow with our regular hours of:

Tuesday-Friday: 11am-1:45pm last order
Saturday & Sunday: 9am-1:45pm last order

For reservations, please call us at (213) 628-3431
or email us at [email protected]

We really appreciate everyone's support during this temporary closure when our communities and the restaurant world experienced unimaginable challenges with attacks against immigrant family, friends and neighbors in our communities and the state of our economy, to name a few. Your continued support inspires us to continue building the world we want to see

12/16/2025

After nearly 8 months, we are back open! for brunch service
with our regular hours of:

Tuesday-Friday: 11am-1:45pm last order
Saturday & Sunday: 9am-1:45pm last order

and with our crowd favorites below.

For reservations, please call us at (213) 628-3431
or email us at [email protected]

We really appreciate everyone's support during this temporarily closure when our communities and the restaurant world experienced unimaginable challenges with immigration and the state of our economy. Your continued support inspires us to continue building the world we want to be in.

We prepare osechi ryori (Japanese New Year’s) food as a way to come together, reflect on the past year, and continue the traditions that are passed by those who came before us while creating new ones with the addition of new friends and family.

Like the previous years, we are preparing a selection of traditional Japanese osechi, each promising good fortune, health, etc. This year, we are reintroducing some hits of last year and introducing new items that we feel reflect the warmth of our restaurant and community.

This year, we are also preparing Ozoni, traditional Japanese new years mochi rice cake soup, and Toshikoshi Soba, new year’s eve buckwheat noodle soup as add-ons. Ozoni symbolizes good fortune, prosperity, and longevity, and Toshikoshi Soba symbolizes letting go/(noodles) breaking away from the past year’s hardships and welcoming the new year with wishes for longevity, resilience and good fortune, thanks to the noodles’ long strands.

Preorder now until Wednesday, December 24.
For a pickup on Wednesday, December 31 at Azay

Click here for an update from Azay!

12/15/2025

We prepare osechi ryori (Japanese New Year’s) food as a way to come together, reflect on the past year, and continue the traditions that are passed by those who came before us while creating new ones with the addition of new friends and family.

Like the previous years, we are preparing a selection of traditional Japanese osechi, each promising good fortune, health, etc. This year, we are reintroducing some hits of last year and introducing new items that we feel reflect the warmth of our restaurant and community.

This year, we are also preparing Ozoni, traditional Japanese new years mochi rice cake soup, and Toshikoshi Soba, new year’s eve buckwheat noodle soup as add-ons. Ozoni symbolizes good fortune, prosperity, and longevity, and Toshikoshi Soba symbolizes letting go/(noodles) breaking away from the past year’s hardships and welcoming the new year with wishes for longevity, resilience and good fortune, thanks to the noodles’ long strands.

Preorder now until Wednesday, December 24.
For a pickup on Wednesday, December 31 at Azay

Click here for an update from Azay!

11/06/2025

Hi everyone,

This Saturday, November 8, from 10am-2pm, we are holding a Daily Bento & Japanese Breakfast Fundraiser with profits going to community members and neighbors who are experiencing an increase of food insecurity due to their USDA’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) funding being either delayed or entirely cut off.

Although we are not officially back open for regular service just yet, we are looking forward to serving our Japanese Breakfast and Daily Bento, our most popular breakfast and lunch items. There will also be some other treats available, which you can find in our online store.

We encourage everyone to preorder their bentos on our online store by tomorrow, Thursday, November 6, and will have a limited number of bentos available to purchase, day of.

SNAP provides additional and essential financial resources to low-income families to supplement their grocery budget, allowing them to afford nutritious food. Approximately 42 million people in the USA rely on monthly SNAP payments. In California, SNAP is implemented as CalFresh, and here in Los Angeles County, the program services over 1 million people.

Profits from this fundraiser will go directly to Jtown Action & Solidarity and the Little Tokyo Farmer’s Market. We have chosen these organisations in order to address food insecurity for our unhoused and housed neighbors alike.

JTown Action & Solidarity are distributing food, clothing, hygiene supplies, and harm-reduction supplies here in Little Tokyo. You can donate directly to JTown Action & Solidarity at this link: jtownaction.com/Donate

The Little Tokyo Farmer’s Market is run by Food Access LA, who are offering direct assistance to individuals and families affected by food insecurity. You can donate directly to Food Access LA at this link: givebutter.com/DELdHY.

Sources: SNAP benefits will restart, but will be half the normal payment and delayed
-npr.org/2025/11/03/nx-s1-5596121/snap-food-benefits-trump-government-shutdown (https://www.npr.org/2025/11/03/nx-s1-5596121/snap-food-benefits-trump-government-shutdown)
Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) - Key Statistics and Research
-ers.usda.gov/topics/food-nutrition-assistance/supplemental-nutrition-assistance-program-snap/key-statistics-and-research (https://www.ers.usda.gov/topics/food-nutrition-assistance/supplemental-nutrition-assistance-program-snap/key-statistics-and-research)

Hi everyone,

I hope this survey finds you well and rested during these difficult times.

As you may know, we have been temporarily closed for dine-in service since late April due to a fire that broke out above us, causing water damage to our dining room.

We have taken a step back to rest, spend time with loved ones, engage in our community, address leaky pipes and re-imagine how we as a restaurant can move forward during a time when so much change is happening in our neighborhood.

To begin, we would like to ask you all some questions that can help us to shape our vision and find ways to effectively serve our community.

Click the link below. We would love to hear from you!

Community Events!

Join Nikkei Progressives for their 2nd Little Tokyo Estate Sale on

Saturday, November 15, from 1 - 4PM.
° Centenary United Methodist Church, 300 S
Central Ave, Los Angeles, CA.
Free parking and admission. NP members and our friends have donated a vast array of stunning, one-of-a-kind Japanese pieces, including dishes, platters, vases, scrolls, tea sets, textiles, crafts, and so much more.
Proceeds will go to immigrant support and the continued needs of Eaton Fire Survivors. Come by on November 15 and take home some beloved family heirlooms. It’s the perfect opportunity to get a jump start on your eco-friendly holiday shopping!
米
Purchased items must be taken that day. All sales are final. Cash, credit cards, checks, Zelle, Apple/Google Pay accepted. !!

Join Sustainable Little Tokyo for a community forum!

On Thursday, November 6th, SLT partners (Little Tokyo Community Council, the Japanese American National Museum, Little Tokyo Service Center, the Japanese American Cultural & Community Center) and Great Leap will be hosting a community forum to begin envisioning the future of Toriumi Plaza!

Come and hear from our designer, who has prepared visual concepts of the site and possible infrastructure (benches, trees, exercise equipment, playground, etc). We want to know your thoughts!

Toriumi Plaza is an approximately 1-acre site located atop the Aiso Street Parking Facility at Judge John Aiso Street &, 1st St.

◾️Thursday, November 6th, 2025
◾️6pm-8pm
◾️Democracy Lab at the Democracy Center at JANM - 100 N Central Ave, Los Angeles, CA, 90012

So excited about this collaboration with and Neki Njuguna! (TikTok: ) Help us continue planting seeds of kindness for the community! 🌱🥰🛒

Want to get involved? We're always looking for volunteers!

Click here for an update from Azay!