Asa Bakery & Cafe

I came in the AM for their pastries and there's a reason why there's a line outside. I had the matcha croissant, curry bun and melon pan!! The curry bun is a must here! I wanted to try the melon pan because it reminded me of Japan and it's not quite like Japan, but it'll do. I also had hojicha latte which I enjoyed a lot and it goes well with their pastries. You can make your drink large for $1 more and add boba for $1 more. Pastries are until 2pm or until they run out. I'd love to try out their food here in the future.

Blown away by the Japanese pastries here! They are super picture worthy but also taste delicious too. I super appreciated that their pastries aren't overly sweet, it is just the right balance of sweetness. The cafe is located in East Village of Downtown San Diego so street parking is the way to go, I was able to get a spot fast but could imagine downtown parking being inconvenient. There was a line out the door when we visited around 11:00am on a Saturday morning, but moved faster than expected, we waited around 20-25 minutes and it was DEFINITELY worth the wait.food ordered:- Strawberry Naruto Croissant: This croissant has a special swirl/circular shape, filled with rich cream, and dipped in a flavorful icing on the outside. The outer layer was crisp and had buttery layers. I usually dont like cream-filled pastries but this was exceptional and I couldn't stop eating it. I really liked that the cream wasn't too sweet. The strawberry icing on the outside was on the sweeter side so it was a good balance overall. Apparently only available after 10am so glad I was able to snag one before they sold out.- Matcha Croissant: such a picture-worthy pastry with its distinguishable green stripes! The matcha filling tasted great. The matcha flavor was prominent and had a good balance of sweetness. The croissant also had such yummy buttery layers.- Bacon and Cheese Lava: I also love savory pastries and this really hit the spot. We got it warmed up and it was delicious. I wouldn't say it was very lava-y since the cheese didn't melt/flow out but it still had yummy flavor with the cheese and chunks of bacon (it was more like ham).- Chicken Kastu Sando: we ordered lunch a little early - lunch starts at 11:30am so we ordered at the register 7 minutes before then and just had to wait a few extra minutes for our order. This was a really yummy sandwich! The chicken was fried to perfection, and was a good size. The tonkotsu sauce and mustard flavor was strong, and the cabbage balanced it out all on super soft shokupan (japanese white bread). I made it a combo with half lemon pepper salad, half truffle fries for $3 more. Overall a nice little lunch! Since I had eaten some of the pastries as well, I was stuffed.- we also tried a couple of their coffee drinks: Iced americano - not bad but a little on the bitter side, and hot latte - super good with whole milk! I'd say their espresso is average, but I know that's not their specialty/focus.Overall, super super impressed with the food and pastries here. I definitely will return to try more :)

I LOVE THEIR MOCHI BAGELS!!Mochi Bagel: 9/10 - worth the waitMelon Pan: 8/10 - maybe worth the wait if you've never had good melon panCurry Pan: 7/10 - not worth the waitMatcha: 4/10 - don't get it. Save yourself the money and go to Rikka Fikka down the street.Bakeries are always a tough one to review because there's so many options, and everyone likes different things. My friends and I waited in line, and as we got closer to the front, I started panicking because I didn't know what to order. What's good? What are they known for? What do I like? What should I eat fresh in the store? What will still be good if I take it home? Croissants are every where these days, and I was tired of always trying croissants and they all taste the same more or less.Anyways, my friends and I arrived at the bakery around 9:15am (they open at 9am) and there was already a long line of maybe 20-ish people. The bakery has a variety of pastries, lunch items, and drinks. At first I was interested in the lunch items, but my friend told she had them before and they were alright. So then I decided to go with a set of pastries.The melon pan was the best melon pan I've had in the US. Better than your average asian bakery. The top sugar crust was nice and crusty, great texture. The inside of the melon pan was airy - more airy than melon pan at regular asian bakeries. My main critique is that you can taste the slight sourdough taste in the melon pan, which is not something I want. The best melon pan I've ever had was in Tokyo at Katgetsudo Asakusa. If the Tokyo melon pan is a 10/10, then this Asa melon pan gets a 8/10 for texture and a 7/ for taste. I'd give regular bakers like 85c a 6/10 for texture and a 7/10 for taste.The curry pan was as average as the curry pan from 85c or Paris baguette, which is kinda disappointing considering we waited so long in line. I should have asked them to heat it up for me.The star of the show was definitely the MOCHI BAGEL. I would come back and wait in line only for the mochi bagel and to try other pastries. I almost didn't get it, but I know I love mochi and wanted to give it a try. Initially I was going to take a few bites and save the rest for tomorrow, but I ended up eating the whole thing because it was so good. It probably tastes even better heated up! Next time I come to this bakery, I'm going to buy 3 mochi bagels.I'm a matcha snob, and I had a feeling their matcha was not going to be tasty so I didn't get it. I tried a sip of my friend's matcha and it was super grainy, and the color is very drab (not vibrant) which is an indicator of quality matcha.Staff was friendly and great!

A super cute Asian cafe in downtown San Diego! We waited in a line for about 30 minutes and while they didn't have the cool croissants, the pastries looked so good! I also ordered yuzu hibiscus cooler and it was so good! My favorite pastry was the fruit tart. The chocolate croissant was good but the cream from the fruit tart was lovely! Just street parking but definitely check out this place if you have the time!

When this place popped up on my IG, I knew I wanted to try it out since ASA is a Japanese American bakery.I grabbed an iced matcha and a few pastries for the road. Everything was perfectly balanced and not overly sweet - just the way I like it. They were the perfect companions for my short drive to La Jolla.Not only did ASA make it to the IG for being so IG worthy, it was worth the stop for its delicious snacks. So the Q now is, you in???

I had seen a video of Asa Bakery on instagram and decided that I wanted to try it when I came down from Orange County to stay with them in Point Loma. We went around 2:30pm on a Sunday afternoon and were not sure if they would still have any pastries but to our surprise they still had quite a few. I picked up a Matcha Croissant and a Curry Pan. The curry pan was okay, I would've liked the curry to be more flavorful and for there to be more curry filling. The matcha croissant was a bit different than expected, it was a cream filled croissant instead of having the matcha incorporated into each of the layers (with the exception of the green stripes). I was so excited to try out the Hokkaido milk ice cream with the black coffee, but the flavor fell a bit short even when mixed with the coffee. Don't know if it was really worth the trip, but for people in Downtown looking for a cute/casual date spot, this might be a good option. I would come back if I was in town and someone suggested this spot, but I feel like there are better Japanese bakeries elsewhere (especially in Orange County).

A long time bookmark for us to try when we visit San Diego - we finally made it on a Sunday morning around 10:30am and waited in a moderately quick moving line for about 25min before ordering. They only allow 4 pastries per customer and 1 spiral croissant (Naruto roll) for now. We ordered a matcha spiral croissant, a few other pastries and a matcha and hojicha iced latte. Unfortunately we felt the drinks were incredibly disappointing with almost no flavor in the matcha latte and not very well blended grains of both matcha and hojicha in the drink - resulting it becoming chunky and uneven. The pastries themselves were nothing special - if anything they were really really sweet and felt a bit pricey given the quality of the bread and custards we had.

Asa Bakery & Cafe is a modern Japanese inspired spot located in Downtown San Diego. There is no parking lot, so street parking is the move here. Due to it being downtown, parking can be pretty challenging as it ended up taking us close to 30 minutes just to find parking. Be prepared for lines as well due to this spot being so popular. Once we found parking, we ended up waiting in line for about 15 minutes until we ordered. We got one of their limited time One Piece ube devil breads, a curry pan, a seasonal yuzu hibiscus cooler, an iced matcha tiramisu latte, a Nagoya karaage sando, and a beef hiyashi rice. Everything we tried was beyond delicious and flavorful! Overall, I would say this spot is definitely worth checking out despite the parking difficulties. The pastries, the meals, and the drinks exceed the hype and more! The staff here are very welcoming and efficient. You really cannot go wrong with anything you order here!

I once l saw a line driving by Asa Bakery. Curiously, I decided to check it out on Yelp and in person. Hoping to get a taste of their Naruto croissants, I was unfortunate to know they sell out quick! No wonder lines always form! However I did try their ice cream and it was delicious! * hidden tip. Though the ambiance of this Japanese bakery is cute and looks normal. There is a hidden bar and hidden omakase in this space.

Delicious and aesthetic Japanese bakery, I was so excited to try this! We came around 10:30 am on a Saturday and luckily we only waited around 10 mins to order and were able to find seats! Food: The melon pan was my favorite! It was perfectly sweet, fluffy and soft on the inside and slightly crispy on the outside. I also enjoyed the curry pan, which was nicely savory and crispy, and the everything mochi bagel, which was chewy and flavorful! The strawberry naruto croissant was slightly too sweet for me since it had lots of custard filling inside but it was nicely flakey and soft. The ribbon caramel croissant was pretty good and nicely crunchy but a bit sweet for me as well. Drinks: I had an ube espresso latte and I enjoyed it! It was perfectly sweet for a sweet tooth like me and the ube and espresso were nicely balanced. My friends had the matcha lattes but said the matcha taste was slightly off. I would definitely come back to try their other pastries and lunch items!