Mumu Bakery Cafe

Croissant taiyaki, sweet and savoury

The order at this Koreatown counter is croissant taiyaki: a fish-shaped pastry built from croissant dough rather than waffle batter, with Japanese rock sugar pressed onto one side so the shell shatters sweet and crisp. Mumu Bakery Cafe opened in Los Angeles in 2018 around Korean-style pastry, dessert and craft drinks made with organic ingredients, and the taiyaki has carried it since.

The filling list runs in two directions. Sweet fillings include red bean, cream cheese, mochi, custard, sweet potato, brown sugar seed, Nutella, crunchy cookie butter, Dubai chocolate and apple mango. Savoury keeps it short: cheese, a pizza version with chicken sausage, and a hot dog version. Beyond taiyaki the case leans Korean bakery. Cheesecakes are made for a jiggly, bouncy texture, King Castella is the fluffy sponge, often taken with whipped cream, and mini roll cakes come in strawberry, Oreo, green tea, mocha and chocolate. Smaller bakes cover madeleines, butter cookies, almond tuile, a rice cookie and Korean-style doughnuts.

A small room built for a pastry and a drink

Mumu suits a short Koreatown stop for pastry and a drink rather than a savoury meal. The interior is small and colourful, lit with neon, so most visits centre on choosing from the case and carrying the order out.

Drinks matter as much as the bakes. House-made milks are prepared fresh each day, with strawberry the one most tied to the shop, alongside banana and milk tea. Fruit ades are built on sparkling water and fresh fruit in green grape, grapefruit, mango and blueberry, and the lemon slushies come in mango, grapefruit and strawberry. Coffee is Groundworks, organic and fair trade, and the Cream Cheese Iced Americano is the drink the house points to.

How to build the order

Decide first whether the visit is for taiyaki, cake or drinks. For taiyaki, a classic filling such as red bean or custard shows the dough clearly, while Dubai chocolate, apple mango or crunchy cookie butter push it into dessert. For cake, pair a jiggly cheesecake or a slice of King Castella with a mini roll.

Then match the drink to the sweetness. Cream-filled and chocolate taiyaki sit well with the Cream Cheese Iced Americano or another Groundworks coffee, while fruit-forward bakes suit strawberry milk, banana milk, a mango slushie or the green grape ade. A good sampler is one croissant taiyaki, one soft cake and one house-made milk: flaky pastry, sponge and a fresh drink in a single visit.