Fukagawa

I've always loved the Japanese breakfast here for years and I can't wait until breakfast hours again. I used to drive down for the city to meet my family here. This review is really for the fantastic outdoor seating that they brought back! Heated, blocked from the wind, great service and not busy on a Friday night. First time ordering something on the menu besides breakfast. The katsu was well fried and piping hot. My partner said something akin to "wow, Kagura levels of great katsu". I got the steak combo and enjoyed how much food it was. Udon was great, California rolls were wonderful with soft rice. Enjoyed everything with a hot tea and a cold beer in a frosty mug. Would've been an even better deal at happy hour (5-6:30)

JAPAN 🇯🇵 Dispatch from Gardena, South Bay: When staying in the South Bay city of Gardena, eating some Japanese is a must. The community survived the WWII internment regime and repopulated this area that had seen immigration start back in the 1900's. Today, nondescript and unflashy Japanese restaurants are everywhere here, making it the go-to destination for Japanese-Americans with good, traditional meals available from breakfast to late-night slurps. ° Hidden in the back corner of the mostly-Japanese business-occupied Pacific Square Shopping Center, Fukagawa serves four similar bento-style breakfasts in the morning hours and nothing else. At these hours it is very quiet and mostly patronized by Japanese who come alone or in pairs. Until 2014, the US census cited the City of Gardena as the place with the highest percentage of Japanese-Americans in California. A large selection of Japanese alcohols and a happy hour mean this place is crowded with tables of salarymen in the evening.