(Gerry Furth-Sides, all photos courtesy of Go Little Tokyo) The history Little Tokyo section of downtown Los Angeles had undergone a renovation – just ask any of us who had to skirt around it in construction traffic. Now visitors will also get to enjoy all of the work at the Go Little Tokyo’s 4th Annual Delicious Little Tokyo. It is also a chance to see in its authentic setting, such current mainstream culinary darlings as matcha tea and even sushi.
Los Angeles’ largest annual Japanese curated culinary extravaganza returns to Downtown Los Angeles for two days of food tastings, demonstrations, and workshops on Friday, July 19 and Saturday, July 20. Authentic food and drinks from the streets of Little Tokyo in one area are paired with walking tours and other exclusive opportunities to experience diverse Japanese flavors.
The festivities will kick off Friday, July 19 from 7 p.m. – 10 p.m. with Sake on the Rock’s 13th Annual Sake & Food Tasting Event* hosted by the Little Tokyo Service Center (LTSC) at the Japanese American Cultural & Community Center (JACCC) Plaza. Experience more than 50 types of traditional Japanese sake provided by the Mutual Trading Company and sample small plates from over 20 of Los Angeles’ top restaurants and chefs.
On Saturday, July 20 beginning at 10 a.m., experience culturally immersive and interactive culinary workshops presented by participating Little Tokyo businesses and partners. Flavors, food demos, and tastings brand new to Delicious Little Tokyo this year including unique doughnut combinations like ube glaze and matcha pistachio from Donatsu, Little Tokyo’s newest handcrafted vegan donut hotspot.
donatsudoughnuts
Back by popular demand, learn about neighborhood landmarks from the first fortune cookie to LA’s first sushi restaurant, on the Historical Food Walking Tour presented by the Little Tokyo Historical Society (LTHS). Continue your foodie adventure with samplings from Kasih’s Indonesian Cuisine Demo & Tasting or decorate the most Instagram-worthy donut that tastes just as good as it looks with Cafe Dulce’s Donut Decorating Workshop.
Feed your creative appetite with returning fan favorites like the Floral Centerpiece Workshop led by Kuragami Little Tokyo Florist and “Furoshiki” Japanese Cloth Wrapping Workshop with Bunkado and the Little Tokyo Service Center. The Little Tokyo Food Stage at the Japanese Village Plaza sets the stage for live cooking demos and presentations.
More workshops, demos, and activations will be announced as Delicious Little Tokyo nears. To stay up to date on the latest Delicious Little Tokyo announcements and registration for culinary demos, hands-on cooking workshops, food tours, and more visit golittletokyo.com/delicious or like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter and Instagram. #golittletokyo #deliciouslittletokyo
Go Little Tokyo is a community-led effort aimed at highlighting the unique cultural programs, community events, and dining and shopping experiences found in Little Tokyo. As one of Los Angeles’ most vibrant cultural hubs, there is an abundance of destinations and landmarks in and around this historic walkable neighborhood and Go Little Tokyo will help you uncover them. Go Little Tokyo is a Little Tokyo Community Council (LTCC) project developed and produced by Community Arts Resources (CARS) and made possible with support from Metro. For more information, visit //www.golittletokyo.com/.
Backing the Everything from pickling to poke were in the AF&Co’s annual trends 2016 report about the hottest food trends in 2016 – that they saw coming. The report is compiled from extensive research, the report is intended as a preparation guide to help operators prepare for the coming year.
Tropical cocktails
Based in West Hollywood, Nuts About You is a popular line of almonds in creatively flavored coats. These include the Latin-trendy Sweet Sriracha and the Japanese Green Matcha Tea and tropical Coconut along with the very American Regional, Cookies n Cream. They are softer than raw or roasted almonds and are as satisfying as candy without the sugar shock or after taste.
We started the next day with Sweet Sriracha in a bowl of steel-cut oatmeal. Adding raisins makes it a brunch-worthy dish.
Recognized as a Latin product of East Los Angeles, few people realize that internationally popular Sriracha (nam phrik si racha) originated in a well-to-do fishing village outside of Bangkok, Thailand. It is famous for originating Thailand’s answer to Tabasco, and several of Thailand’s finest and traditional seafood dishes. Nuts About You’s Sweet Sriracha flavor is all the more extraordinary when you consider that the flavor is most famous in its city of origin as a dipping sauce for oysters (hoi nang rom) or mussels (hoi thot) sold at street food in the open-air markets along the waterfront.
Nuts about You came up with the flavors because they were, “always on the lookout for healthier snacks. We couldn’t not eat snacks, but didn’t always want to resort to chips and cookies. Specialty snacks are a large category out of a 100 billion dollar industry, but so many of the specialty snacks we tried was too healthy and not indulgent enough.” So it was conceived as “a bridge between the tasty snacks no one wants to give up and healthy foods.”
Gerry Furth-Sides 
Barbara Hansen 
Chef-owner Alain Cohen 
Roberta Deen 
Jose Martinez 
Nivedita Basu 