Fugetsu-Do

About the Business

Specialties

Fugetsu-do is the finest Japanese manju artisan in Los Angeles.

History

Established in 1903.

Fugetsu-Do has been a family owned and operated confectionery store in Little Tokyo since 1903. Japanese rice cakes, more commonly known as mochi (rice cake) and manju (sweet bean-filled rice cake), are the staple. The shop, which is currently operated by Brian Kito, is located on East First Street, in the heart of the Historic District of Little Tokyo.

Meet the Business Owner

Business owner information

Brian K.

Business Owner

Kito places great emphasis on the quality and craftsmanship of his products. He has a small corps of skilled workers who help him in the task, but during production Kito is usually right in the midst of all the action, stirring bean paste in a handmade copper kettle owned by his grandfather, kneading mochi (rice taffy) on the long wood table, deftly shaping the delicately colored confections with his fingers. Kito notes that training a worker to make the most basic of manju varieties takes approximately one year. In order to become a master, a Shokunin, one needs to train for about ten years. Kito has been practicing his craft for 21 years and he doesn't plan on on altering the way he has done things for decades.