"That was amazing. That brought a lot of life back. It kind of felt like a happy place where everywhere else was really quiet," he said.
I asked Nagareda how this Japantown differs from the other two remaining ones, San Francsico in particular. "Directly behind us is Roy's coffee shop, which used to formerly be a gas station and was converted to a coffee shop. And now the third generation of the owners is operating it," Nagareda said. Their business has become a family affair. Despite being closed for six weeks during the pandemic, which forced a reduction in operating hours, family helped them keep going.