LA's Bakery

Love this place! Would rate it a 4.5 stars for the variety, price ($25 for 4), user friendly experience & labeling, and sheer deliciousness.

The only thing holding me back from a 5 star rating is that their staple flavors Eg mung bean and taro were a little lack luster. Taro flavor was not as strong and mung bean was a little too gritty in a bad way. I also wish these flavors were concentrated in the middle, surrounded by lotus paste instead of a homogenous mix.

Would definitely come back here but may possibly try other spots first before I come back.

I've been stuck on one of those brand named bakeries for our mooncakes. Then I became curious about this place after seeing posts from Yelper friends. I wanted to try something new. I normally would not drive out to SGV just for this but luckily we were in the area having dinner with friends.

I usually order two boxes for our parents every year. When we arrived, it was easy to spot LA's Bakery at the corner of Del Mar/Valley. The parking lot is ridiculous because there are no designated spots but just pull into the driveway and create a space. I would opt for street parking since it's easier to get out.

The interior of the bakery is very small. It must get so cramped in there during busy times. Upon entering, we were greeted by the shop clerk. There are pre-packaged boxes along the wall. You can also do the custom mix and match which I prefer. My usual picks are the mixed nuts and lotus seeds with no yolks.

After taking my first bite of the mooncake, I would say that it was authentic and tasty. The filling was fresh and not too sweet. I do like that they have a variety of unique flavors. I will come back next year to try something different. This bakery only takes cash, Venmo, or Zelle. They are open seasonally for a few weeks during Mid-Autumn Moon Festival.

I've only recently come across LAs Bakery and was excited to find a shop that only makes mooncakes!! I love that they only set up a retail front during this time of year cause you're pretty much guaranteed to get a fresh one. Still a couple of weeks left before the end so I'll prob make one last stop :)

We got a mixed box for 25$ which kinda sucks for us since individually priced woulda been cheaper cause we like the cheaper ones anyway lol

!!! Cash or Venmo only. !!!

They have the corresponding number imprinted on the top of the baked cakes so U can be sure you got the right one. I've def gotten wrong ones in the past from other places so I really appreciate that they do that so there's a lesser likelihood of a mistake.

::::: 17: banh dua tuoi (coconut sesame)::::: amazing! This is my first time seeing this one but now that I'm on the lookout I'm noticing it at a few other places but it's my new fav. If you're only getting one, get this one and eat the standard flavors elsewhere. 21$ for box of 4

::::: banh deo (chewy Mung bean) ::::: good, like 4 star good. We got it again. Chewy, sweet slightly floral from the grapefruit flower. 21$ for box of 4

:::; red bean one yolk::::: ehhh it's insides are really dry, nothin special.

Parking is really on street for free, but not plentiful. a ridic small driveway /lot that looks like it's for employees so don't depend on that. It was a quick in and out tho so someone can drop you off and take a lap it's pretty easy.

Hands down my favorite place for mooncakes!

LA's Bakery only opens during the Moon Festival season so you know that you are getting fresh mooncakes each year because they only make it when they are open for business. Their outside crust tastes soft yet firm enough to hold the filling. The filling is fresh, full of flavor, and the different textures just makes you want more.

I'm not a huge fan of mooncakes, but LA's bakery has changed my mind because of the unique flavors they offer and the freshness of the ingredients! I highly recommend the Scallop Sausage Mixed Nuts because I feel that the flavors are so good together and the ingredients are generously sized. I don't think that you could go wrong with any flavors you choose - the mung bean paste is so smooth and the salted egg yolk is the freshest I've ever had in a mooncake. Don't ever buy mooncakes that are prepackaged in a store, come here!

Last day they will be open this year is the last day of moon festival so come by and try!

LA's Bakery is only opened to public during the Mid-Autumn Festival season when they are selling mooncakes. Otherwise, they are closed to the public year-round. However, you can always call first to check before coming by (626) 280-2216.

If you go pass Hawaii Supermarket on Del Mar Avenue, LA's Bakery is just two stores down from Coffee Hanh Hoa and right across from them is the backlot of 99 Ranch Market.

Thanks to Yelper Mimi D., for posting her pictures and review of LA's Bakery. Also, special thanks to my Mom for not being on top of buying mooncakes this year (usually from the markets) due to the pandemic. This gave us an opportunity to try out the mooncakes here and I got a review out of it, hehe!

Parking: Tiny, parking lot in the back. One space for regular patrons and one handicapped. You can also park along the driveway, so long as you are not blocking those trying to get in and out. There is also street and residential parking too (just watch out for signs).

COVID-19 Safety Procedures: All staffers wore face masks and gloves. Hand sanitizer is available and social distancing enforced. They also have large hanging plexiglasses behind the cashier table.

***CASH ONLY or VENMO***

Each mooncake box contains four pieces. You can either buy ones that are ready and packaged, or you can mix and match. Mom and I ended up buying the ready and packaged ones. The only one we placed an order for next day pickup was #10. Banh Dau Xanh (Mashed Mung Bean) since they sold out the day that we came in.

Here's what we got:

$25 - #04. Banh Dau Xanh 2 Trung (Mashed Mung Bean with 2 Egg Yolks): My Mom made a stink face when I brought home this one. I took a leap of faith in buying this one, and turns out, this was definitely the winning favorite between Mom and me. We also got #10 - the vegetarian version below. The mashed mung beans inside were soft and sweet, but savory tasting as well since there were two salted egg yolks inside. The overall cake itself felt heavy, but very tender and light to the taste. Best of all, we did not experience that heavy or greasy aftertaste that we usually get when eating mooncakes. Mom got in two pieces before I devoured the rest, bwahaha!

$21 - #10. Banh Dau Xanh (Mashed Mung Bean): Vegetarian style with just mashed mung beans and no egg yolks inside. The snow skin outer part is made with glutinous rice and it is pillow-y and chewy while the mung beans inside were soft, sweet and had a nice subtle grapefruit flower scent. This one was perfect for honoring Kuan Yin (female Buddha). It looked really beautiful when placed onto Kuan Yin's altar. I also loved how pretty the floral design was and the overall appearance - very delicate and pure looking. I will say though, this one is rather sweet and so best to have this with either coffee or tea. I enjoyed this one a lot, but my Mom thought it was rather too sweet.

$28 - #33. Banh Thap Cam 2 Trung (Sausage, Mixed Nuts with 2 Egg Yolks): Both Mom and I did not like this one as much. The crunchiness was fun, but everything was so crystalized with sugar, it ended up overpowering all the savory goodness (sausage pieces, salted eggs, mixed nuts, lotus seeds). We will not get this again.

Service: The staffers here are really nice and patience. They speak English, Vietnamese, Cantonese and Mandarin. Upon entrance, you are greeted, and they will stand back and let you check out the ones you want to get. Afterwards, they will approach you and ask if you need any (further) assistance.

Overall, LA's Bakery was a tasty place to try out the mooncakes. We will come back again next time. Hopefully, they will have #03. Banh Hot Sen 2 Trung (Mashed Lotus Seed with 2 Egg Yolks) and Banh Con Heo (Little Pig Cake) in stock.

Great mooncakes. Fresh ingredients and not oily. Right balance of sweetness and all flavors are good. Can't go wrong.

How is it that I never knew of La's before? Best mooncake I have had. I admit I have only tried the mixed nuts but it's amazing. I expect the other flavors will be as good. The crust is so thin, not greasy at all. Fresh! Last year I paid an ungodly amount for dry, mediocre mooncakes in GG. When living in another state, all I had were the greasy Costco ones. Never again!!

Fighting the urge to buy more boxes. Next year, I'll be sure to not go at the last minute so I can do a lot of gifting and support this business even more.

The customer service... so kind and patient. My Venmo wasn't working and they kept apologizing to me for making me wait! I kept saying it's my fault.

They're still selling mooncakes! I was worried I wouldn't be able to purchase any this year since it's later in their selling season. For all my peeps, who have moved and no longer within driving distance of this place: they can ship mooncakes in USPS boxes. A medium box can fit 5 mooncake boxes for a $15.50 shipping fee and a large can fit 7 mooncake boxes. You can pay them via Venmo or Zelle.

My favorite is the Lotus seed paste but their popular one is the mixed nuts version.

They have a bunch of Mooncake flavors available. We got one box of snowskin mooncakes and one of their variety box, which came with mungbean, coconut, lotus seed, and the five nut flavors. I liked how fresh they were and how it wasn't overly sweet.

They have a small parking lot, but thankfully, it was empty when I got there because there was definitely a handful of customers that came after me.

They are back for their annual 5 week stint of fresh yummy moon cakes! First time there (sold out last year by the time I tried to go) and so worth the wait!!