It’s all about traditional Japanese breakfast at Little Tokyo mainstay Azay. The late chef Akira Hirose opened the French Japanese restaurant in 2019, and since his passing in 2024, it has been under the care of his wife, Jo Ann Hirose, son, Phillip Hirose, and their team of hospitality pros. Azay recently reopened after an eight-month closure due to a fire that caused extensive water damage to its 1st Street building. The good news spread quickly among Azay’s loyal fans and the neighborhood’s tight-knit community, drawing crowds back to the beloved restaurant for impeccable Japanese breakfasts. Though Azay offered dinner service before it closed for repairs, it currently serves only breakfast and lunch.
Spend the day in Little Tokyo bopping around its many shops, markets, and confectioneries. Find household items at the 80-year-old Anzen Hardware, located next door to Azay and also owned by the Hirose family. On the same block is Marukai Market, a well-stocked grocery store full of Japanese provisions. Legendary mochi shop Fugetsu-Do is across the street.
If planning to dine during peak lunch hours, get a reservation to avoid a wait on weekdays and weekends — the cozy restaurant fills up fast.
The Japanese French menu at Little Tokyo’s Azay represents the path its founding chef, Akira Hirose, took to opening the restaurant. Born in Kyoto, Hirose trained in Azay-le-Rideau, France before moving to the U.S. to work as an apprentice at L’Orangerie in the early 80s. Hirose opened a French restaurant in Kyoto in the late 80s before debuting the now-closed Maison Akira in 1998 in South Pasadena. Azay distills Hirose’s life experiences into a menu that includes what may be the last traditional Japanese breakfast in Los Angeles, plus a daily bento, omurice, duck confit, beef Bourguignon, and more. The dinner menu changes weekly but often offers dishes like miso black cod, branzino, and charred octopus. After Hirose’s death in September 2024, chef Chris Ono took up the mantle, leading the restaurant alongside Hirose’s son Philip and the rest of the family. — Rebecca Roland, associate editor
Dining and Cooking