Japantown s oldest business to be sold or closed, after 115 years of making mochi
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The exterior of the Benkyodo in San Francisco.Douglas Zimmerman/SF Gate / Douglas Zimmerman
The owners of Japantown s oldest business are retiring, after generations of making mochi, reports KQED.
Benkyodo owners Ricky and Bobby Okamura have fulfilled a 115-year-old family legacy by shaping 1,000 handmade balls a day since 1990 in the small shop on Buchanan Street, but have decided to call it a day at the end of the year.
The mochi shop was opened in 1906 by Suyeichi Okamura, Ricky and Bobby’s grandfather, on nearby Geary St.. He named his place Benkyodo, meaning affordable, to let the community know their confections wouldn t price them out.
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