Came for the hype and was not disappointed. Enjoy my banana cream Matcha. It was not too sweet and had the perfect balance. Got the regular soft bread as well as the salt bread with the red bean filling. I preferred the latter as the plain salt bread was a little too plain. It is also more of a Japanese milk bread soft texture rather than a flaky texture. We got a few more pastries to try as well. I really liked the takoyaki bread and the sausage bun. The Matcha mochi bun as well as the honey toast with red bean filling was just OK. Overall, really interesting selection of pastries. Will return again. read more

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Would have given 5 stars without the 40 minutes wait LOL. And I am talking about the line being up to Blick Art only', as I have seen some people seeing line up to the street corner. Their servers delivered top-notch service though. Warm welcome and very helpful even they didn't seem fluent enough in English, which was so appreciated. Decent despite not many sit-down spaces to dine indoor. We got their Takoyaki, Curry Pan, Japanini, and Anpan/red bean salt bread. The takoyaki was literally the octopus ball in soft fluffy bread with the sauce itself being so flavorful. The curry pan had generous filling and rich seasoning; bit greasy for my liking but expected as it's indeed fried one. Love the Japanini with chunks of bacon and abundant melted cheese; so tasty especially when served warm. My top pick though was the sweet one - red bean. Their salt bread being so moist with nice milky touch was certainly the key, but the twist of sweet red bean paste with salty bread top created stellar duo. read more

Wa-Iro - Takoyaki Curry Pan Red bean Japanini - Bakeries Near Me - Pasadena, California

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Wa Iro is a Japanese bakery like Okayama in Anaheim. They are open morning through lunch, but sell out and are closed for dinner. The line can be long, and I was surprised to find it only 5 people long on Memorial Day. That being said the bottleneck is the cashier, where the items are packed into a box, one is asked about drink options, and then items are rung up and paid for. I love their Salt and Butter Rolls, simply delicious! Especially when fresh and warm, just savory from butter and melt in your mouth texture, yum! On Memorial Day they had a Tomato Basil version, which I thought was not as good as the original. The sun dried tomatoes are an extremely strong flavor, and overpower the rest. The basil is more for visuals and aroma, and is just dwarfed by the tomato. I also really liked the Curry Pan. It was not oily, and had a savory curry filling at just the right proportions. The curry had some cubed vegetables included in, so there was a mix of textures inside of the bread that itself was soft but also rough texture from the cooking. The Matcha Mochi Anpan was very soft and chewy, expected for a mochi item, with a vibrant green color I would expect from matcha. The fish filet panini was a slight let down, it was the only item not hot and fresh like the others. It had a nice seafood flavor, a good crunch in the panini bread, just wish it had been warm. Maybe toasting in would have helped, I don't think a microwave would be appropriate to warm it up. read more

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Stood in line for about an hour on a late Saturday morning. It takes awhile for the line to go through because there's about one to two staff helping people box their treats while everyone else is making drinks or baking new treats. It's not the staff's fault: customers can be slow to pick things up! Salt butter - honestly thought it was overrated flavor-wise. The center texture is unreal in that it's perfectly baked, but buttery soft as if it's underbaked. It was high quality, but again the flavor of butter and salt can only take you so far lol. My hot take is it's worth a skip and go try the cookie or tomato/basil one instead. Cookie - no filler and same internal texture as the salt and butter one, but had a sweeter exterior. Not too sweet with a bit of a crunchy cookie bite. Perfect sweet treat for people who only like lightly sweet desserts. Cinnamon roll - good not great, but the frosting wasn't too sweet so that was a plus! Very soft. Takoyaki - no squid inside. Basically a ball shaped bread with all the flavor of a traditional Takoyaki. I liked it, but I can see how the lack of filling might be off putting for some. Curry - honestly the standout for us. The curry filling didn't include meat, but has onion and other veggies. Super flavorful and very satisfying. I regret not picking up the yakisoba because clearly the savory pasteries were far more superior than the sweet ones. Definitely give the various pasteries a chance and not be like the woman in front of us that bought 6 of the salt butter pastries. They were baking throughout the day so don't be discouraged if it looks empty while you're in line because by the time we got the front, the yakisoba, cinnamon roll, and salt butter roll were all freshly done! read more

Wa-Iro - Curry bread, Takoyaki, salted butter, cinnamon roll, and cookie salted butter roll - Bakeries Near Me - Pasadena, California

What's not to love about this bakery & cafe? Forget the hype because it's cute, Japanese-inspired, and an influencer convinced you to come here, but instead focus on the quality of the goods. The flour that they use produces airy, soft pastries that does go stale quickly if you don't eat it within a small window of time, but it is the best when its fresh out of the oven. My favorites thus far have been their plain salt bread, shumai bun, and their french toast. Their sea salt foam cold brew and banana cream iced matcha latte are so good. Pro-tip: if you don't like overly sweetened drinks, get it without any sugar since the foam or cream topping has enough sugar in it to balance out the beverage. I've been here during their early soft-opening phase where there was a line to the Blick art supply store before their 8 a.m. opening time and then wrapped around the corner when I left. Today, while they are still in their soft-opening, is much more calm with a couple of people ahead of me around 8:45 a.m. I was told by the cashier that it's slowed down a bit and the best time to get here are on weekdays when they first open. Thank goodness I live walking distance from here. read more

Wa-Iro - Takoyaki was too messy to eat and I'm not a fan of the sauce. - Bakeries Near Me - Pasadena, California

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What a beautiful quiet chill bakery that's in the heart of Old Town Pasadena! The wait isn't too long after day 5 (30minutes). Just be aware of line cutters and just be patient. Order the matcha bolo bread, jalepeños salt butter bread, red bean butter bread, salt butter bread, and Purin a la mode. Ordered a hot matcha latte and it was delicious. Roughly the pastries are roughly 4-5 dollars. Spent about 30ish$. Definitely worth coming again read more

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New Japanese bakery that has superb service and very tasty Croissants. That's all I get since we come in at 1:50pm and they closed at 2. I am dying to try the rest of their menu which I can only drooling about it from other yelper pictures. Betcha is tasty too but till next time. Place is small so I think mostly is for to go but there is few chairs and coffee tables. Oh yeah they do coffee and smells amazing too read more

Wa-Iro - Might as well get them all - Bakeries Near Me - Pasadena, California

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Newest bakery in Pasadena. The line was out the door. When we arrived around 11:30 am, there were prob 10 people ahead. By 12pm, one of the staffs came out to announce that they will be outta bread soon. We weren't part of the cutoff line so we stayed. There were only 3 or 4 options left when it was my turn. The salted breads were part of the new batch. Right when I got to the register, another different batch of bread came out. I m surprised that they didn't offer to those in line getting ready to pay. They headed straight to put the breads on the display. THEY SHOULD ASK since we all been waiting for breads!! Tried to call out to ask what kind of breads, but they walked by like no one was there. Service was really really slow. The staffs also looked worn out or something. Not to be mean, but they need to open up their ears. I get it that it could be loud there...however, I repeated myself like 5 times, but none of the staffs said anything. Basically all the customers behind me heard me lol maybe the staffs were too tired and chose to ignore...I dunno The breads were fresh. Salted breads were ok. The takoyaki exterior was too salty. The filling was somewhat bland. The square pastry was not bad, but also nothing special. The drinks were ok. A little more on the creamy/milky side. I would like to return to try the other breads. The savory ones looked good, but sadly they ran out of almost everything... read more

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Visited Wa-Iro during their soft opening and there was already a line. It moves on the slower side but granted this was during the soft opening. The menu rotates as items sell out and new ones get introduced, so keep an eye on what others are ordering while you wait. I tried the salt and butter which was so simple but so delicious, the zoof, the bacon, and the japanini. I also got the premium matcha latte, which they sweeten with Monin simple syrup. As someone who is particular about matcha, I was genuinely impressed. They hand whisk every order and the matcha quality is excellent. All the pastries were dangerous, I had to pace myself not to finish it in one sitting. read more

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A very welcome to addition to the Pasadena bakery and coffee scene. I was not disappointed- the service, the bread, and the coffee were superb! Definitely coming back. I ordered a variety of savory pastries, salted bread, and a s'mores puff - all yummy. Coffee was perfection. Service from the staff - amazing. Parking is street or on the nearby parking structures. read more

Wa-Iro - Bakeries Near Me - Pasadena, California

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Came to check out Wa-Iro before their grand opening but they're still ironing out some details with soft opening. I arrived promptly at 7:55am to get in line as they open at 8am but sadly they didn't actually open their doors until 8:25am (not sure if they're trying to create a buzz with the line or what). The girl that helped me actually couldn't answer a lot of my questions (what's inside this bread, is it savory or sweet) as it was her first day at work. I got 6 breads - 3 of their salt breads (original, red bean, and jalapeño), their curry bun, ham panini, and shumai bun. The salt breads are where it's at for me - my favorite one was the red bean - it's not too sweet and has a great texture. My least favorite was the shumai (not memorable) and curry bun (very greasy). All the breads came out to under $30 - it's about $4-5 per bread and all of their signature drinks are $7. If you're in a rush in the morning, I wouldn't come here because the actual opening time is hard to gauge. Weekend lines seem long and I hear they tend to sell out before noon. They have seating indoors but only for parties of 2 and the tables are very limited. Theres also one gender neutral restroom. Parking is generous as it's on the corner of Old Town Pasadena - so lots of metered street parking or you can park and walk over from one of the garages. I actually came on Tuesday but nowhere said they were closed on Tuesdays until I saw it on their instagram story. They later added it to their instagram bio but still sucked that I had to make the drive twice. To be honest, it's yummy but I'll probably wait for the hype to die down before visiting again. read more

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First time trying Wa Iro. Plenty of street parking in Old Town at 7:50am on a Saturday. Arrived about 8mins before opening and there were about 6-8 people in front of me (some invited their friends to join them in line so it grew by about 4 people before we got in). It took 30ish minutes to get through the line, order, and pay for/receive my pastries. Did not order drinks this time. Here's what I tried: Salt and Butter roll - this was the crowd favorite. Lightly crisp, salted exterior. Soft, butter flavored interior Honey Butter Toast - this was sweeter than I wanted it to be. The filling is a slab of butter and red bean paste. The exterior is crunchy and honey-coated Cheesy Jalapeño Panini - filling is exactly what it sounds like, though it's in a bun not a pressed panini. It's ok Sausage Panini - again not pressed like a panini, there's mayo and mustard under the sausage and cheese which I wasn't expecting. Also just ok for me. Spent about $25 on 6 pastries. Service was cheerful and welcoming. It was a touch slow but I think they were taking time to answer questions and offer suggestions. read more

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Sooo yummy. Definitely worth the wait. They're constantly baking and restocking so you can try (most) of their breads. I believe the more complicated breads don't get restocked. We had the salt and butter, takoyaki and the sausage panini which isn't pictured. Staff is nice! Will definitely come back to try more read more

Wa-Iro - Salt & butter, takoyaki bun - Bakeries Near Me - Pasadena, California

They were all sold out of every bakery item, but we did get to try two drinks... their iced banana crème matcha latte and their iced cloud ho-jicha latte. Both drinks were fantastic. They were the perfect level of sweetness and beautifully prepared. They are among the best matcha and ho-jicha drinks we've had anywhere. We will definitely be back and hopefully we will get to try some of their baked goods on our next visit. read more

Wa-Iro - Banana matcha - Bakeries Near Me - Pasadena, California

Another great bakery opened up in Pasadena and I ventured here for its soft opening. Limit is 6 as of now per person and I was in line for 45 mins for the highly anticipated Yums. I got their salt butter, red bean salt butter, French toast, jalapeño cheese and spicy curry. The famous salt butter lived up to the hype, a must get! The spicy curry bun was tasty and jalapeño cheese was a jalapeño cheese bread lol. The French toast was crispy buttery on the outside but didn't make me sing inside. The hojicha latte was of high quality and worth getting if you like hojicha. The people who worked there was great with the demand and nice even though their were a few grouch folks in line. I will be going back to try the other stuff! Can't wait read more

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The salt and butter bread stopped me in my tracks. I intended to only eat about a third but inhaled the whole bread. It was lightly crisp on the outside, tender in the middle, with a slight saltiness. I loved the texture. I also picked a salt and butter chocolate bread, fish filet panini, japanini, sausage, s'mores Danish to round out the box. I'll definitely be adding Wa-Iro to my bakery rotation. read more

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I've been waiting for Wa-Iro to open and learned that they had a soft open yesterday! They're currently open from 8am-2pm and I highly suggest you go try it out! The majority of the staff there today are from Japan and definitely brought the vibes that everyone who is completely obsessed with Japan is craving. I came a little before 8am and they opened their doors around 8:05am- please be patient since it's their soft open. Everyone here is sooooooo sweet and excited about their food. One of the workers was even outside just chatting with everyone and answering questions. Inside the store there's limited seating and I can imagine it filling up pretty quickly. Not much of a study place but a place to catch up with a friend. All of their tables are seating for two. No outlets Salt & Butter - Don't sleep on this. One of the store owners recommended it and I only bought one but it was SO good. It looks like a croissant but it's more of of a bread roll. Very light and fluffy with a soft and crispy exterior. I had it while it was still warm and I'm pretty sure I could eat these all day. Highly recommend! Banana Creme Matcha - Wow, so I don't know how they're going to keep up with this but they're hand whisking the matcha and this drink was so smooth. I think the next time I get it, I would ask for it half sweetened. It wasn't overly sweet but I do prefer my matcha drinks with a little bite/ bitterness. I think this is a lovely mid-day treat to have! It comes iced only. Parking - It's old town so parking always stinks but there's ample street parking if you come when they open. Service - A bit on the slower end but again, they're just opening and working out their kinks. From walking in and leaving it took me about 20 minutes with 3 people in front of me. Can't wait to come back and try other things on the menu! Random Note: I liked the matcha so much and asked if they sell the powder to go. As of now, they only sell coffee beans. I asked one of the owners and he said they may expand and sell matcha powder in the future but don't have any as of now! read more

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Is it weird to say I liked their salt bread more than Pain Maison? It was goooood. The special takoyaki roll was also delicious! Melon pan was just okay. I thought the line moved relatively quickly for soft opening, not sure if they will be adding another person behind the counter. Best of luck to Wa Iro! We're so happy to have you in Pasadena! read more

Wa-Iro - Drink menu - Bakeries Near Me - Pasadena, California

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This place is still in its first soft opening week, so theres a rotation of items that dont show up every day or maybe later in the day including the takoyaki bun, the curry puffs, various red bean pastries, etc I like the japanini (egg, ham, some basil pesto) and the red bean butter toast. Everything here is pretty fresh, expect ~5$/item , 7$/drink read more

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We did get to the bakery about 30 mins before closing and we were told they're making a milk bun with custard inside which would come out in 30 mins. I get to the cashier to order and another staff told me it's limit 1 per person. I just wanted 3 and ended up with 2. Had the initial staff that greeted me at the door would tell me there's a limit, I would've not waited and come back another day. There were a few more people behind me but the bakery also didn't stop people coming through past their closing time. Their estimated time a WAY off too. We nearly waited an hour and my friend had to keep adding more time to the parking meter. I think I'll come back when the crowd dies down. read more

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I give their matcha 2/5. Service and ambiance are good. I don't recommend their matcha drink. Salted bread isn't that good. Out of ordi is better. read more

Food seemed authentic and tasted very good. Service was pleasant, if a bit slow (waited almost 2 hours in line). Limit of 6 items. I was disappointed because their curry pan wasn't ready yet, so I missed getting the one item I went there for. I'm definitely going back! read more

Wa-Iro - Bakeries Near Me - Pasadena, California

Wa Iro is another fantastic bakery addition to the Pasadena area. It's conveniently located right across from the Green St. parking structure, where you can get 90 minutes of parking for $1. The bakery recently had its grand opening and is currently super busy, so be prepared to wait about an hour to get in. Once you're inside, what you see is what you get. If something isn't out, you unfortunately won't be able to order it. This brings me to my first annoyance. We got there around 9 a.m., about an hour after opening, and the line was already super long. It stretched past Blick and almost to the entrance of Copa Vida, about two storefronts down from the bakery. After waiting around 15 minutes with the line barely moving, a whole group of people showed up and joined the people in line in front of us. At that point, we had already been waiting about 20 minutes. Normally, I wouldn't mind a person or two joining their group, but this was basically two families' worth of people cutting in. They also each entered the bakery as separate parties, so it really felt like we got cut by two groups. It was frustrating, though I can't fully blame the bakery for that. The bread itself was really yummy. Salt Bread Plain: 4.5/5 Cookie Butter Salt Bread: 5/5 (This was my favorite) Red Bean: 3.5/5 -- I'm not a huge fan of red bean, but if you like red bean, you'll probably enjoy this. Yakisoba Bread: 4/5 Jalapeño Bread: 5/5 Japanini: 4.5/5 Matcha bread (I forgot the name): 3/5 After I paid, they brought out the curry bread and melon bread. I saw the party that cut in front of us go back and order more bread, so I tried to do the same. They told me I couldn't. When I mentioned that the party in front of us had just been allowed to buy more, they first told us that didn't happen. We said we saw it happen, and then they told us it was because they were friends and family. Honestly, that's fine. I understand friends and family may get special perks. But don't lie to me about it. Also, if they're going to be allowed to do that, maybe don't do it right in front of other customers who are being told no. The whole thing felt disrespectful. That being said, the bread was really yummy, and I would definitely come back. The drinks were a bit on the sweeter side. We asked for half sweetness, and they were still very sweet. We got the Sakura Latte, 4/5, and the Banana Cream Latte, 4/5. Ultimately, annoying experience but good bread. read more

The pastries were chewy and delicious. Not overly sweet or salty. The matcha had the perfect balance with the milk and straw strawberries! Service was friendly. The bakery is clean and modern. Would definitely come back. read more

Wa-Iro - Cinnamon roll, sunrise and salt & butter - Bakeries Near Me - Pasadena, California

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We came during opening soft launch at 12pm. When we came, there were only three types of bread left, so we tried one of each. The salt bread came out fresh and was still hot. We ordered 3 drinks. Food: Turkey cheese croissant $4.25 It was cold as it was sitting there for a while. I think it would be nice to have a bread warmer but we understand that the service needs to be quick. We give it a 6.5/10. The flavors were subtle and we would much prefer it if it was warm. It would be much tastier with warm melted cheese and as a warm soft bread. It was a good flakiness l. Salt and butter roll: $3.85 The bread was fresh out of the oven so it was warm. We would give it an 8.5/10. You can tell they used high quality salt. It was good, but the color was a little pale. An egg wash on top would do wonders for the color- to make it more appealing. But definitely delicious, a very soft and fluffy bread. The bacon: $4.50 The bacon was okay. We would give it a 7/10. The bread would be much more delicious if it was warm. However, it was sitting out so it was cold. It was soft bread, but it would have been softer and would of melted in the mouth if it was warm. The bacon flavor was good, it was a decent savory bread. Overall, the bread is very fresh and soft. It might be better just to get take out and warm it at home rather than eat them in the store. Sakura Strawberry Latte: $7 We would rate it a 8.5/10. The strawberry flavor is very good and strong. The cream top is very delicious too. The sakura petals make the drink much more visually appealing and aesthetic, but when you accidentally drink the petals- the texture sucks (the price to pay for a pretty drink). It kind of tastes like strawberry wafers, its a little on the sweeter side. However, the strawberry flavor does disappear a little the longer you let it sit, and becomes more of a latte flavor. Still good though! Strawberry matcha latte: $7 A solid strawberry matcha latte. Again, the strawberry flavor was strong and yummy. Even with the foam mixed in, it was strong. Presentation was pretty. 9.5/10 Rose latte: $6 If you like a medium-dark coffee blend, I'd recommend the coffee here. The rose essence in this drink is very light and completely disappears as you continue drinking it. So at the end, it just tastes like a regular latte. But the espresso is good! 7/10 The ambience: 9.5/10 The space itself is beautifully decorated! Super cute! We loved the shelves that had very pretty pottery and plants! The sleek dark green and dark wood is a nice combination! The only concern is that tables are a little small and that seats are pretty close to each other. However, the store is small and they don't really have the luxury to make the tables bigger. The warm lighting is nice for pictures too. Overall a very cute place! A place to sit for a chat and a drink, but again, we recommend eating the bread warm! Edit: I forgot to mention, but to get the box, you must purchase 6 breads. That is probably why they ran out of bread by 12:30pm at soft opening. To get the box, you can also pay $1.50 - not too bad but we didn't want to do that. Everyone wanted the box so they bought more bread..so beware of that :) read more

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Finally tried this new Japanese bakery and WOW -- the salt bread absolutely lives up to the hype. Perfectly soft and fluffy inside with that buttery, slightly crispy exterior... dangerously addictive. Everything tasted fresh and perfectly made, and the drinks were also so yummy and paired perfectly with the pastries. So excited to have a spot like this nearby -- already planning my next visit! read more

Food and space was nice. The line was very long. Will come back once the hype calms down. Would love to try their other baked goods. read more

Wa-Iro - Salt & Butter, salt & butter cookie, sunrise, smores, curry pan, and takoyaki pan - Bakeries Near Me - Pasadena, California

There have been a lot of hot bakeries opening in Pasadena lately, but this one is actually worth the hype. Everything we tried was spectacular, can't wait to go back and try more! The bread is so light, fluffy, and fresh, and there are so many interesting varieties that it's hard to choose, like the yakisoba and fish filet paninis, which we loved! The black sesame latte was amazing too. We waited about half an hour in line a little after they opened on a weekend during their soft opening. They were sold out of some breads already but more were coming out, as they're constantly baking so that the bread is always fresh. Service was friendly even though they were so busy. The space itself is cozy and warm. There are a few small tables inside where you can enjoy your food, as well as a single restroom. read more

Literally amazing!! I love their banana matcha latte! I'm not the biggest banana fan normally but they make me love bananas! Also got their sesame latter the perfect strong coffee with sweet surprise! Pastries are delicious and the staff is kind and welcoming :) I can't stop craving this place!! read more