Little Tokyo Taiyaki

Reviews

• Tim X.

  star star star star star 25 June 2026

  Taiyaki is a bit of a dessert guilty pleasure of mine, I'm always on the hunt for the best. To me, the perfect taiyaki should be hot and crunchy on the outside, yet soft on the inside. Unfortunately, nearly every place I've tried taiyaki at in the Bay Area and Orange County premakes their taiyaki waffles and just reheat them, producing odd textures and uneven temperature. This little unassuming stand hands-down makes the best taiyaki I've had outside of Japan.
  
  I was in downtown LA for a few days for work and decided it was worth the walk to Little Tokyo to try this place out. After I ordered, I was told it'd be about a 10 min wait. I didn't mind, since it looked like everything was being made fresh! They give you these little electronic buzzers that light up when ready.
  
  Two older Korean ladies ahead of me in line had legitimately ordered 4 full boxes of these...promising sign! When I got mine, it was everything I had dreamed about. Freshly flaky on the outside, slight mochi soft texture and red bean on the inside.
  
  Seriously, if you love waffles, red bean, or Japanese dessert, you have to come here. It's that good. Note cash only.

• Pina P.

  star star star star_border star_border 19 June 2026

  Parking: Great  had to go shopping at a near by store so grabbing a bite to eat was easy.
  
  1st time trying it, I purchased mango apple and it was tasty but the dough was undercooked. They have a store similar to this inside but I wanted to give this small business a try. I think if it was cooked just a couple of seconds longer I would have not been undercooked.  i really was craving it since I purchased a coffee inside.
  
  You can also preorder 909 630 8002
  
  Taiyaki
  Flavors Red bean, custard, apple mango, sweet potato and chocolate.

• Vic C.

  star star_border star_border star_border star_border 18 June 2026

  Little Tokyo Taiyaki is a small food stand that is located at the side entrance of Little Tokyo Market Place. They do valid for 1 hour of parking in case you wish to come visit this shopping plaza just for these desserts.
  
  I came by here with my husband this afternoon with our little girl dog around 2 pm. After looking over the menu, I ended up ordering:
  
  (CASH ONLY)
  
  Taiyaki, $5 for 3, tax included (please note that if you wish to just purchase one, it is $2). I ended up getting apple mango, custard and red bean. Each one was warm, with the taiyaki made just perfectly. Since this was freshly made (as it is recommended to eat this fresh), the filling was pipping hot so just be careful so you do not burn yourself. My husband really liked the apple mango and so did I.
  
  Please note that there is a Yelp check in offer that if you spend $10, you can get one $2 item for free.
  
  It took 15 minutes for our order to be made. I was given a pager that eventually beeped and lit up when my order was ready. While I waited by a bench near this food stand, I was actually really upset when I saw one of the workers eating one of her taiyaki's in the back, with her gloves on (she did not use a utensil so her gloves touched her mouth and the food she was eating). She did not change gloves and used those same gloves to get a pen and take down an order from a customer at the window. Then she used those same gloves to pull out my taiyaki from the mode that finished baking them. And then gave it to the other employee to add the filling inside each of the taiyaki shells. Then the employee gave it back to the employee who did not change her gloves and placed them in white little paper bags to place the taiyaki in.
  
  I was very bothered by that and kept hoping the employee would change her gloves or at least see how concern and bothered I was was when I saw her (I know she saw me when she ate her taiyaki with those gloves. She looked embarrassed and looked away from my gaze).
  
  My husband also saw this and said not to think about it.... so we ate our dessert...
  
  From this experience, I would never, ever purchase taiyaki from this place ever again. This violates food sanitary policies (if a health inspector saw this, this would be considered a violation. Believe me, I am in this business so I know).
  
  Being that this is flu season, can you just imagine how one can get sick from this? I am not a fan of getting other people's germs. But if you do, then by all means, come on back and get your order with a side of something extra.
  
  If you disagree with my review, don't send me hate messages. Look at it this way, I am one less person for you to wait in line behind so you can get your food and hopefully build up your immune system.

• Ann T.

  star star star star star 12 June 2026

  Cheap, sweet treats!
  
  This little food cart is located outside of the Tokyo Galleria Mall, just outside of the market and Daiso.
  
  Honey Pancakes are $2, with 3 for $5
  The Cheese Pancakes are $3, with 2 for $5.
  Taiyaki come in custard, cheese, apple mango, chocolate, and sweet potato. It's $2, with 3 for $5.
  
  You can easily get your stomach's fill of desserts without spending over $10!
  
  We got the:
  1) Honey Pancake:
  -Very delicious!
  -After you take a couple bites, it starts oozing honey.
  -The chewiness of the dough, sweetness of the honey, and the crunch of the seeds make this a very delicious pastry!
  
  2)Taiyaki:
  -All the taiyaki had nice chewy, tapioca like texture within.
  -Despite getting sweaty from being in the bag, they didn't start getting too soggy.
  
  Custard Taiyaki:
  -This is a classic. The custard had the right texture and wasn't overly sweet.
  -If you like cream puffs, I'd recommend this.
  
  Chocolate Taiyaki:
  -Sweet, rich chocolate-y flavor! The chocolate is a bit thicker, so you don't have to worry so much about it oozing out everywhere.
  
  Apple Mango Taiyaki:
  -I didn't have high expectations for this flavor, but it's really good!
  -You can get the slight crunch of the apples.
  -The very slight tartness of the fruits and the sweetness of the mangos and batter work really nice with each other.
  -A real treat.
  
  This is definitely worth a stop if you're in the area!

• Juan F.

  star star star star star 7 June 2026

  How come I never knew this place existed?! I have always gone to Mitsuru Cafe for Imagawayaki but this place is way better. Everything is made fresh to order so it may take some time, but the wait is well worth it. Its a bit hidden if you are not familiar with the area but just look for the Little Tokyo Market and its right outside. Aside from Imagawayaki, they also have the most amazing hotteok.