This little shop is located in an unassuming plaza. They sell top quality knives and some Japanese kitchen items but I came for one of their expert services: knife sharpening. I had a couple of kitchen knives that needed sharpening, one a high-end knife and the other a cheap one. The owner, an elderly gentleman who gave off an aura of a supreme master of knives, carefully examined each knife and said he could sharpen both. I paid the fee and was told they would be ready in a couple days. Four days later I called and was told the knives were ready for pick up. Both were sharpened nicely, like new. The cheap knife, which originally had some damage to the blade, was repaired and looked like the day it was bought 20 years ago. We are happy to have both of these knives back in our kitchen, ready to slice away. While I was there, I asked if they had any kitchen scissors and I was shown a couple of options. The differences between them were explained so I could make the best choice. I bought a pair and have been very happy with them! read more

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I went here with my family to have a knife (a switch blade to be exact) sharpened. The gentleman that helped us was very patient and kind. He checked to make sure if they were able to sharpen the blade or not. I love how the store was very unique and have an old school feeling. The price for the blade to be sharpened was not overly expensive either. read more

Hitachiya USA - Chopstick rests - Knife Sharpening Near Me - Torrance, California

I had a great time shopping around here. Masa is very kind and helpful. if you're looking for quality japanese homegoods, this is the place to go to. I'm so happy I found this gem during our visit. I will definitely come back and shop here again! read more

I found Hitachiya while searching Yelp for knife sharpening services for my Japanese kitchen knives. The reviews seemed extremely positive, with a few negative reviews about the knife sharpening services. But, my knives are high quality and there aren't a lot of options around for a proper hand sharpening. So, I took the plunge. I brought them by on a Tuesday (normally closed on Tuesday) and the owner was very friendly. It was $75 to have two medium sized chef's knives sharpened. I thought this was a bit on the expensive side, but figured it would be worth it to have them properly hand sharpened. I also assumed at this price they would clean up / polish the metal. The owner said it would be 2-3 days and he'd call me when they were ready. Weekend came and I never heard back. Late on Monday afternoon I called the shop and they said the knives were ready and apologized that nobody called. I picked up the knives and was immediately disappointed with the quality of sharpening that was done. The edge had been properly set on both knives, but neither was very sharp. The blades were not polished or cleaned up at all. Looking at reviews,, there are a few other reviews with the same experience. Most of the overwhelming positive reviews for the shop are based on the friendliness of the staff or the availability of imported japanese kitchenware. The shop selection is definitely unique and the staff is friendly. But my experience was not worth the price of admission. Seems like a typical case of a business being overhyped because of its niche business with limited competitors. read more

They sharpened a knife and a pair of ikebana (Japanese flower arranging) shears. The shears were extremely dull from years of use, but after their hand-sharpening, are now exceptionally sharp. Service was courteous and fast. read more

I went all through little Tokyo looking to replace all my equipment from Eaton fires.. not much down there. But I knew if I came here even though a drive it would be so worth it! Yes they had all I could hope for! Plus they are the best people! The owner had sharpened my knives before I went to Tokyo Sushi Academy! Such fine workmanship! Today was a wonderful day due to them making it so fun! And I'm ready to start cooking again! read more

I had their private knife sharpening class and it was amazing!!! The price seemed premium, but after experiencing it, it was worth it. During Covid shut down, I picked up sharpening knives for fun and watched a bunch of YouTube. Some knives I got really sharp, where it effortlessly cut newspaper. Some I couldn't for the life of me get the same results. Needless to say, I'm a total beginner. Yano was my instructor. Masa (owner and knife sharpening master) was also there. He would check on me and give me pointers as well. It started with me reading a simple 4 page high level overview about knife sharpening. They share that English isn't their 1st language. But I found their English fine. I totally understood them and so many times we laughed together on stuff. They teach you how they sharpen knives, but aren't judgmental of other ppl's methods. I'm glad I went in with some basic knowledge, so that I didn't need him to spend too much time on explaining the terms and I got to ask questions I always wondered more explanations on. You bring your knives to use for the class. They show you the way and then you sharpen. Yano sat next to me and watched me sharpen the WHOLE TIME. I received feedback & hands on experience of sharpening on various whetstones. He was very patient, respectful, light hearted, yet professional. He was very attentive and engaging. I learned news tips, high level pros & cons with repairing western and Japanese blades, got a better grasp of what details to notice when repairing & sharpening. I also felt validated that what I've done so far wasn't that bad :P I'm glad I brought knives I already tried to sharpen myself and with their guidance, they helped me get the knife extremely sharp. I'm glad I brought my grandpa's knife to learn how to care it. They didn't pressure me to buy anything from the store after the class, even though you get 10% off your entire purchase for that day. Yano and Masa are super endearing. They're like fun uncles I wish I had. Here's showing before and after: https://www.instagram.com/reel/Ctm4sixIyND/?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA== *disclaimer: chipped knife wasn't completely repaired by me manually working on it ^_^ because the class is limited with time, after I manually worked on repairing it a bit, to expedite the process he worked on it a bit, so I can work on sharpening it during our class time :P read more

I'm very pleased to have found Hitachya. I have been looking for a good place to sharpen my knives for years. Years ago I used someone at the Farmers Market. He butchered my knife using a big grinding wheel. I figured since this place runs classes for knife sharpening, that I was in the right place. They charge by the length of the knife, and if it is damaged. I brought 4 knives including my boning knife and paid a reasonable price and got it back quickly. They only needed it for about 4 or 5 days, much better than some places which keep the knives for over a week. I figured since sushi chefs earn the money by properly cutting fish, this place has to be good! read more

First time here. I brought two knives to be sharpened. It had not been sharpened since I purchased new two years ago. The gentleman who helped me, Masa, was friendly and informative. The turnaround over the weekend was great. The edges are beautifully sharp now. read more

My mom wanted to have her knives that she bought over 50 years ago fixed. The handles were pretty beat up and there was some rust. The man working there took them apart and said that he could repair them. It took about a week. They did a good job and my mom can use the knives again without any concern for the handles falling off. They also have a pretty good selection of knives if you're looking to purchase one. read more

A small gem in Torrance/Rolling hills. They specialize in high end Japanese knives and kitchenware. They also sharpen knives, the traditional way by hand which is far more superior than any machine capable of. The owner, "Masa" San and his partner, Hiro San run the place. Masa San has even designed his own brand of Japanese kitchen knives "Gokkaden"' which I bought 2 (see pics), they can only be rivaled by master knife makers such as Saji. They also have a knife sharpening class which I also took. If you are into cooking, cutting sushi, appreciate high end knives (which will last you a lifetime), then i recommend you to stop by. read more

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Beautiful shop! Hubby and I have absolutely been meaning to come down to this shop for years if not at least a decade or two. They are south of Torrance and away from the freeways, but it's worth coming down here :) Meticulously organized with a huge amount of products, and yet ideally spaced out, it's very fun to shop at this location. You can feel by the mood/tone of the store that it is a very professional store with very knowledgeable staff. I would suggest to not be intimidated by the products or the staff, but do ask questions if you have them. I can see this place probably not being the first place that a beginner cook would go to, but definitely someone who has done their research and they want better products than what basic kitchen stores would supply. If you are a beginner and will be passionate in your cuisine, then I would definitely suggest visiting; it's always great to see what a shop has to offer! As mentioned above, they have a huge amount of products. Quality chef knives, teapots, Japanese tea ceremony items, konro grills, proper tools for sushi rice, chopsticks (including smaller ones for children), knife sharpening stones, proper pots/pans/woks, cooking utensils, etc., are just a small amount of what they have. Prices are MSRP, for the most part. But they have a number of things that I wouldn't be able to easily find elsewhere, and I would probably purchase when I make subsequent visits. They also do knife sharpening! read more

Never coming back. I had such high hopes for this shop... I paid an arm and leg for knife sharpening services for over 8 knives and while some are expertly done, others don't even remotely pass "The Tomato Test". I feel sick to my stomach because of the wasted money and time. Was told I could bring them back within a week if there was problem...but I wasn't told that until the week was up. Gee, thanks. Not exactly a way to build up a customer base of loyal fans. I really wanted to be a "regular". Alas, customer service was astonishingly cold and unfriendly. I felt like I entered a world where I wasn't welcome. The experience I had doesn't resemble any of the glowing reviews listed below. There are other places in town that offer sharpening services for Japanese Knives. Good luck staying in business! read more

A little expensive but absolutely top quality Japanese culinary gear straight from Japan I bought a hangiri and traditional rice pot and could nt be happier with them read more

Awesome little shop focusing on knife sharpening as well as sales of knives and kitchenware. Took our 3 heavy rotation knives for a tuneup and ate very impressed with the service! $85 IS more expensive than the quick farmers market job, it you get what you pay for! read more

Came here because I saw how they supplied yakitori cookware and charcoal and decided to make the drive to Torrance to check it out. I came and ask for kishu binchotan and upon learning that they don't have it now but can import it. I decided to try their ogatan instead and I am amazed on the difference their ogatan is compared to the ones I've bought on Amazon. It heats ups nicely and retains heat for longer. It is also not as smokey as the competitors. Will come back and try ordering some binchotan as well as try their knife sharpening classes. read more

This is a well stocked with nice high-end cookware and knives. The owner is a very kind and a brave person. How someone can say such hateful things to this store is beyond me, it is the crazy world we live in now. All the items are well-made and high end. If I win the lottery, I would buy all my kitchen knives and cooking pots here. The cookware is useful for all types of cuisines, not just Japanese or Asian cuisine. The tea set and dishes are adorably cute! I am not a chef or a cooking aficionado, but I plan to purchase some nicer utensils and cookware now that we are cooking more at home. read more

Great little shop to find kitchen and table goodies from the homeland. We bought these owan bowls many years back and they are doing well. read more

Hitachiya USA - Owan bowls - Knife Sharpening Near Me - Torrance, California

Hitachiya USA is a really cool store that sells specialty cookware and food from Japan. We wandered into their store in Tokyo and purchased Katsuobushi or dried skipjack, and a shaving device for cutting the skipjack. The salesperson told us about the Torrance store and we perused it for items imported from Japan. We purchased a ceramic stovetop rice cooker (looks like cast iron because of the glaze). The flavor of the rice cooking it in an old fashioned way as opposed to an electric rice cooker was qualitatively so different. It's the same flavor you might expect from a stone pot cooked rice. At any rate I digress. If you want to see some cool cookware and also sushi chef grade cutlery, have a gander at Hitachiya! The gentleman working there was friendly and helpful. They also have knife sharpening on site too. read more

Dear Mango G., thank you for helping me get busy and write this review. Please read on, you might learn something. Dear Everyone else, if you have fine kitchen knives, scissors, etc and you want them sharpened by a master craftsman definitely seek out Hitachiya. My wife and I visit Hirota san several times a year to have him sharpen her (expensive and not so expensive) kitchen knives and my Japanese utility knife that I use everyday for my work. His work is impeccable. Absolutely the finest knife sharpener I have ever run across. And please don't confuse my opinion with that of some amateur. In my work sharpening tools to perfection is part of my daily life. I know what goes into it. It isn't easy. It requires years of dedication, education and refinement of technique. Consequently you shouldn't expect to have it done at a bargain price. Yes, earlier this year Hirota san raised his prices. It was a fair increase, not excessive. Something I'd like to point out to Mango G. is that larger knives take more time to sharpen (duh). That's why they're more expensive. The condition they're in will also affect the price. There are people who are satisfied with the job the guys at farmers markets do sharpening their knives. What they don't know is that every time you let those guys grind away on your knife they take a few years away from its life expectancy. Bet you didn't know that. Hirota san preserves the quality, integrity and life span of your fine knives. In the long run his work is a bargain. As far as the prices of the kitchenware at Hitachiya goes... Most of it is top quality goods. A lot of it you can't easily find somewhere else. Sadly the dollar sucks compared to the yen. Still, it beats the cost of a plane ticket to Japan. Check out Hitachiya. It's like going to a Japanese kitchen store in Japan. I've been to Aritsugu in Kyoto. It's a little more high end than Hitachya. Virtually everything there is made by hand. But the knife sharpening? It's the same. It's the best. read more

About 3 years ago, the LA Times ran an article about authentic Japanese cooking and where specialized equipment could be purchased. This store was mentioned, and had pictures of a Professional steel wok used by chefs. Although not a chef by any means, I wanted to learn more about Japanese cooking and the cookware necessary to make a semi-decent dish that would not insult traditional Japanese folks. Well, this store has pretty much everything a home chef would need to make a Japanese dinner an Issei would be proud of. The only problem is that the directions to use such equipment is in Japanese! On this occasion, a young 20 something Japanese man was able to speak in broken english and inform me of how to use a Japanese BBQ I was interested in. Being familiar with the American BBQ, I felt comfortable, but soon found out it's not that simple. First, heating the coals requires heating a ceramic bowl over a hot stove and waiting for the right temperture to get the coals hot enough to cook meat. In addition, a secondary bowl is partially filled with water to ensure the temperatures do not crack the bowl itself. I felt it was a class in thermodynamics! Anyway, I ended up purchasing the BBQ and was fairly warned that it'll take over an hour to heat up and that if I had friends over, everyone will be too drunk to eat. Noted! read more

Hitachiya USA - Japanese cookware - Knife Sharpening Near Me - Torrance, California

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Just a story, something memorable. They were closed for the holidays but we didn't know that. We went for lunch to the soba place across the way and our dessert would've been a visit to Hitachiya so my visitors from Minnesota could buy some tea mugs sold here. The CLOSED sign was a downer. But peering deep inside, we saw movement, a person, the man who owns the store! We tried telephoning but no answer. My friend knocked on the door and with her "Minnesota Nice" asked if we could come in for a moment, we knew what we wanted, we came all the way from... and he let us in. read more

My husband was looking for a yakitori grill and found this shop, which was one hour away from us. We called in advance to make sure they carry the grill we were looking for and they were super nice. This shop had everything we were looking for and more, and we can wait to use our new grill and visit again! read more

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First time customer ordered some cookware and binchotan. People were helpful and we did curbside pickup. Easy to shop and people are friendly, great selection of quality stuff. Highly recommend. read more

Amazing store, staff, and products, highest quality, fair prices, discounts for frequent shoppers, highly recommend ! Arigato gozaimasu, Chizuko-san! read more

Hitachiya USA - Knife Sharpening Near Me - Torrance, California

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One of my favorite stores in Southern California, I could spend hours here and never get bored! Their curated selection of Japanese specialty items and cookware is second to none, this is the perfect place to find special gifts or to upgrade your own kitchen! read more

Beautiful store, and they did a great job sharpening my knife. Knowledgeable staff, quality items (definitely not cheap!), but a great source of cooking supplies if you're into Japanese technique or want to learn. I have to stop myself from coming back too often or I might actually buy everything in the store! read more

Great high quality authentic cookware from Japan. It's just an amazing experience to shop here.

This is a hidden gem for Japanese cookware and knife sharpening. We have many high end Japanese knives in my family. For thirty or so years, my mom would take them back to Japan once a year to be sharpened by an old guy when we were visiting our family. I first discovered Hitachiya on Yelp. Somewhat nervously, I first brought only 3 or 4 knives to be sharpened. My mom called ahead to speak in Japanese about the knife sharpening and Hiro was so kind. We were very happy with the sharpening and have since brought back over ten knives to be sharpened up...they are good as new. The cost for kitchen knife sharpening ranges about 16-22 bucks each depending on the size and condition of the knives. Considering buying these new costs several hundred each, I think this is pretty reasonable. Highly recommended! read more

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Great sharpening service - delightful people. I will definitely come back to Hitachiya!

Just had 5 knives sharpened here and though a bit expensive I will definitely return with other knives. Took 3 days and the knives are sharper now than when brand new. The service was polite and very respectful. Thank you for a well done job. read more

Awesome shop! Helpful and friendly staff. May have been the owner who I talked too. I was looking for a new wok, and they had the Yamada 36cm double handle wok, iron spatula, and iron ladle in stock. A very Happy Customer, that would definitely come back. read more

Their product is masterly handcrafted kitchen items. I have bought Chinese wok, sushi bowl and so on. It is pricey but these things are once in a lifetime item. It worth it a lot. read more

What a beautiful Fathers Day gift for my husband! He loves his new bread knife. It's beyond perfect, thank you! Highly recommend!

Unique Japanese imports. I bought a hand-hammered wok with accessories as well as a finely-crafted bamboo steamer. Not cheap, but very good quality. Wish the guy who helped me had brushed his teeth. I didn't like smelling his cigarettes on his breath. Kinda gross, dude. read more

I went to the store to sharpen my kitchen knives twice in the past year. First time they charged $15 for my Wusthoff (7"), $12 for a small one(6"). This time it cost me $19 for the bigger one while the smaller one cost $15. $19 for sharpening one knife is waaaaaay too expensive. I will NOT go back there any more. In addition, why do they charge different prices for the same knifes??? The goods they have are nice but overpriced. Maybe because I know what they cost in Japan. It is a little cute store, but just not for me. read more

A small Japanese kitchen store stocked with unique and specialty Japanese kitchen items imported from Japan. If you like to cook Japanese food this place should be on your must-visit list. Prices are not cheap but you know you are making a high quality purchase and supporting a great independent store. They also provide knife sharpening. I was intrigued by the huge selection of what looked like mini cookie cutters. They turned out to be hand made garnish cutters in amazing shapes such as bunnies, turtles, and leaves. How much was the bunny one you ask? almost $50. that's a serious garnish cutter. You won't find a store like this anywhere else. read more

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My review is of the knife sharpening only. I brought my Ka-Bar 1218 USMC Fighting Knife with 7" blade (4.5" straight edge with 2.5" seration) here because of the high reviews. I knew I was going to pay a little extra, was quoted $17 and agreed without complaint. As my ticket was about to be written the gentleman told me he couldn't sharpen the serated edge but rather the straight blade only. Needless to say, I grabbed my knife with a bewildered look on my face and left. Who needs only 2/3 of a knife sharpened? =/ read more

I shopped at Hitachiya for the first time last night - my friend purchased a Christmas gift for me there, and I was intrigued to go and discover the store for myself. I love Japanese cookware and Japanese food, so I went to check out Hitachiya with my 2 sisters and a friend. Hands down, they have the best assortment and inventory of Japanese cookware I have found in LA County. There are specialty utentils and supplies, fun and unusual gadgets that are difficult, if not impossible, to find in LA. If one is a Japanese cooking afficionado and enthusiast, I highly recommend Hitachiya to find interesting implements and supplies to add to one's collection. What is unique about Hitachiya is the good will and friendliness of the staff - - Hirota-san being not only an expert craftsman, but a personality as well. I have found some Japanese shop keepers and staff to not be particularly welcoming or helpful, however, this is not the case at Hitachiya. They were very helpful and patient with our questions, and their socialable personas made us feel welcome to browse and to ask for details. We purchased a number of things including bincho coals, a 'tawashi' natural scrub brush, fish scaler, chopsticks with the finest points; but our most uique purchase was a ceramic rice cooking pot - a Banko Yaki ceramic - and, we tried it this moring. Following the directions, the rice turned out to perfection -and, with the new crop Koshihikari rice, it was absolutely devine. I recommend anyone with appreciation for Japanese cooking ware, home goods and hard-to-find gadgets to try Hitachiya - you will encounter helpful, friendly ambience and hopefully more than what you went in search for. read more

Excellent work on sharpening my chef knife .. My knife is a German henckel Now it's super sharp thanks to this guys . Saving up for a nice Japanese knife .. Highly recommended! read more