Nestled betwixt Downtown (proper), the Arts District and, ahem, Skid Row, to form a misfit tetrad of walkable neighborhoods, Little Tokyo is home to your next favorite restaurant coffee shop bar spot. Est. 1886 (i.e. in LA terms, pre-historic), it’s one of few remaining US Japantowns, and the well-documented taciturn cultural pride has protected its authenticity, skewing it less tourist-trap and more Taste of Tokyo.
With a “prideful but accessible” approach, Chado offers an authentic high-tea experience without the oft-associated posturing. The highlight is their “blooming teas”, a compact ball plopped into a glass teapot that gradually blossoms, unfurling and flexing until it has occupied the entire teapot, steeping into an intoxicating fragrance. And don’t be alarmed by the tanuki statues: traditional sculptures of raccoon-dogs with comically large testicles.
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