Little Tokyo and the Arts District sit side by side on the east side of Downtown, with the Metro's Little Tokyo/Arts District station between them. One is Downtown's historic Japanese American neighborhood, packed with sweet shops, bookstores and record bins. The other is a district of former warehouses now holding galleries, design bookshops and big-format stores. Together they make a full, easy day.
Plan for Wednesday to Sunday. Hauser & Wirth is closed Mondays, Olive Ateliers opens Wednesday through Sunday only, and several Arts District shops close early in the week. Little Tokyo shops open around 10 to 11am and close between 6 and 8pm; the Arts District keeps roughly 11am to 6pm.
Morning: Mochi and Manga on 1st Street
Begin at Fugetsu-Do (315 E 1st St). The confectioner was founded in 1903 and appears to be the oldest food business still operating in Los Angeles. It is still family-run, making traditional mochi, peanut butter and chocolate mochi and rainbow dango. Get the 12-piece wagashi mix for the widest spread of fillings and textures.
A few doors down, Dear Vanilla (319 E 1st St) sells authentic kimono and accessories alongside Edo- to Showa-era craft objects, woodblock prints and old publications. It opens at 10am. On the same block, Okayama Kobo Bakery & Cafe (328 E 1st St), inside the Miyako Hotel, bakes curry pan and mentai salt butter rolls with Hokkaido flour; look for the Ohtani mural outside.
Then walk to Kinokuniya (101 San Pedro St, at 1st St), open daily from 11am. The Japanese bookstore moved here in July 2026 from Weller Court, into a flagship of about 14,000 square feet, more than twice its old space. Go for translated manga, Japanese stationery, and store-exclusive Ohtani and Ghibli goods.
Japanese Village Plaza is nearby. Cafe Dulce (134 Japanese Village Plaza) pours LAMILL coffee with matcha roti and donuts, and Japangeles (141 Japanese Village Plaza) prints Mt. Fuji, bonsai and maneki-neko onto tees and hoodies. This shop is the only place to buy them; there is no online store.
Midday: The 2nd Street Record Crawl
The 300 block of E 2nd St packs records and pop culture into a few doors. Salt Box Records (320 E 2nd St), inside the Hello Stranger event space, is funk-focused, with US classics, European 45s and Japanese city pop. Going Underground Records (356 1/2 E 2nd St) has new and used vinyl with deep punk and metal bins. Anime Jungle (319 E 2nd St) stocks figures, trading cards and games, and POP Little Tokyo (349 E 2nd St) sells tongue-in-cheek tees packaged like LP records.
For lunch, Marugame Monzo (329 E 1st St) rolls and cuts its udon in the window. Order the kitsune udon or the miso carbonara udon.
Note: The Japanese American National Museum and its store are closed for renovation until about January 2027.
Afternoon: Galleries and Art Books on 3rd Street
Head east into the Arts District to Hauser & Wirth Los Angeles (901 E 3rd St), open Tuesday to Sunday, 11am to 6pm. The galleries and garden are always free, with no booking. Current shows are Glenn Ligon (through January 17, 2027) and Jack Whitten (through January 10, 2027). Don't skip ARTBOOK @ Hauser & Wirth in the same complex, for exhibition catalogues, art and culture titles, magazines and children's books.
Book lovers have a second stop. Hennessey + Ingalls (300 S Santa Fe Ave, Ste M), in the One Santa Fe complex, is the specialist for art, architecture, photography, interior, graphic and landscape design books. Back on 3rd, Salt & Straw Arts District (829 E 3rd St) scoops daily until 11pm.
Late Afternoon: The Southern Warehouses
The last three stops sit farther south in the district. Olive Ateliers (1210 Mateo St) is a warehouse of antique and aged furniture, pots, planters, troughs and fountains, with new containers arriving weekly. It closes at 4pm, so go earlier if it is a priority, and sign up on its site for drop alerts. Dover Street Market Los Angeles (608 Imperial St) carries avant-garde designer and streetwear labels. 3sixteen (1320 E 7th St #114) is the denim label's LA flagship, with jeans, shirts and jackets.
Dinner
In the Arts District, Bestia (2121 E 7th Pl) serves pizza, pasta and house charcuterie, and Bavel (500 Mateo St) is Middle Eastern; order the lamb neck shawarma. Camphor (923 E 3rd St) is French, on the same stretch of 3rd St as Hauser & Wirth, and Hojokban (734 E 3rd St) does Korean between the two neighborhoods. For a special night, three MICHELIN-starred counters are here: Hayato (1320 E 7th St, Ste 126, two Stars), Sushi Kaneyoshi (250 E 1st St, B1, one Star) and Restaurant Ki (111 San Pedro St, one Star).
Metro, Lots and Street Parking
The easiest way in is the Metro. The A and E Lines stop at Little Tokyo/Arts District station (402 E 1st St), between the two neighborhoods, so you can start on 1st Street and walk east later.
If you drive, Hauser & Wirth points visitors to lots at 222 S Hewitt St, 713 E 3rd St, 830 Traction Ave and 606 E 1st St. There is also free street parking on Mateo and 8th Streets, near the southern warehouse stops.