Little Osaka

In contrast to the Jadetown, which immerses visitors in the exotic wonders of East Asia, the Japanese area of the Eastern District—dubbed “Little Osaka”—has a much more reserved style and character. To be sure, it’s by far the best place in Emerald City to get sushi, and its renowned Japanese Tea Garden brings in many visitors on its own. On the whole, however, the narrow roads, densely packed buildings, and the residents themselves remind visitors they are in the Eastern District. Even the latter is no longer the unambiguous sign that it once was, as the more recent immigrant populations from Korea and Indochina predominantly chose to settle here.
The differences are historical and economic in nature.
Prior to World War II, Little Osaka was unmistakably Japanese, but the wartime ouster of the Nisei handed the neighborhood over to the opportunistic gaijin, who remade it in their own culture’s image. When the Nisei returned postwar, there was little sentiment in their dispirited numbers to restore it, and thus Little Osaka remained in its Americanized state.
Business then became the neighborhood’s main pursuit, and for that reason not every shopkeeper in Little Osaka is actually a ninja or Zen martial arts master, although some tourists persist in thinking so. Ironically, this commerce-first attitude spurred the creation of two new popular hotels catering to businessmen and visitors from Japan, but as they strive to be authentically Japanese (as opposed to Japanese-American), most Americans find them off-putting—absent those with a taste for squid chips in the vending machines.

History

Japanese immigrants also began to settle in the district in the late 19th century, and built their own thriving (though smaller) community alongside Jadetown, which came to be known as “Little Osaka.” Like Jadetown, it was considered exotic and somewhat mysterious, but its now-famous Tea Garden attracted curious visitors from the start. The area suffered severe setbacks as a result of the Nisei relocations during World War II, but recovered from them surprisingly swiftly postwar, though Little Osaka still plays second fiddle to Jadetown in terms of size and public awareness.

Location under

Emerald City

Included Locations

• Japanese Tea Garden