1954 Egashira Bakery & Cafe
In Costa Mesa, Orange County's latest Japanese bakery is a direct export from the island of Kyushu
Less than a year after Blackmarket Bakery closed at Costa Mesa anti-mall The CAMP, signs went up announcing the imminent arrival of a new bakery named 1954 Egashira Pan – the first U.S. location of a Japanese bakery chain headquartered in Saga, Japan, which started in 1954 as a wholesale bread supplier to schools before shifting to retailing in 2004. Now known in Japan as 1954 Kusukusu (“Giggle”) or Ishigama Bakery Kusukusu, the chain has rebranded here as 1954 Egashira Bakery & Cafe, and is substantially unlike earlier OC Japanese bakeries Cream Pan, Hamada-Ya, and Okayama Kobo, focusing on a much narrower selection of baked goods that are actively replenished throughout the day, plus coffee and tea drinks.
Based on what we saw during 1954 Egashira’s soft and grand openings from May to June 2026, “much narrower” means around a dozen choices – assuming you arrive early. On our first visit just before 10am on a Saturday, a long line of people had already depleted most of Egashira’s signature loaves of block-shaped Shokupan milk bread, almost every savory item, and many sweet pastries behind the counter. Guests were left to pick through a handful of available choices, while handwritten paper signs indicated later times for “next batch” availability of select items. Like rival Japanese bakeries, most of the cafe’s seats were filled without much noise or dining space chaos, and the walls were covered with nostalgic photos, packaging, and other memorabilia spotlighting the history of Egashira Pan (bread).
Passing on a piece of peperoncio flat bread – the only savory item available at the counter – and a walnut/peanut bun called kurumi ($3.30) – we tried pretty much everything else that was available. Our favorite was a package of syrup-dipped mini croissants ($10), wonderfully buttery rolled crescent tips that were seriously elevated by their sweet, crispy glaze. Also unexpectedly very good were a matcha stick ($4.30) and a chocolate stick ($4), the former a split sweet matcha-infused cookie/breadstick with cream inside, and the latter a similar cookie/breadstick loaded inside and out with milk chocolate chips and chocolate ribbons. The least of the items was a 1954 Sunrise Cream ($4), a pre-wrapped sweet bun that was crispy and super sweet cream-filled on top – nearly one-note, but still not bad. A creamless version sells for $3.50, and could be a better choice for those with less sugar-focused palates.
On our second visit during the grand opening, everything was in stock, so we tried additional items, including their very good (though not distinctive) shokopan milk bread loaf ($5.50) and “Matcha Cube” half-loaf ($7) made by mixing matcha-based milk bread with light traces of white chocolate and small macadamia nut pieces – subtly sweet and savory in a decidedly Japanese balance. “Salt & butter” ($3), a small bread roll with unmistakably strong butter and salt notes, was probably the best version of the currently trendy salt bread we’ve found locally. We also ordered another chocolate stick, which was just as tasty as on our first visit.
Mentaiko-based rolls, paninis, custard chocolate chip buns, and buttercream sandwiches – all out of stock on our prior visit – were available this time, though it was clear from the line of guests and initial inventory levels of items (including bread loaves) that anything was subject to running out at any given time based on demand. Bakers were already preparing mid-day restocks behind the counter, however, and as early crowds ease up, so too should availability of pretty much everything.
1954 Egashira also offers a selection of coffees (all $5 or less) and matcha drinks (all $6 or less). We sampled the matcha sea salt ($6), an iced matcha latte finished with a thick, salted matcha cream top, and found the two layers to be interestingly contrasting – heavily milky and light on tea in the latte, strongly matcha, thick, and pleasantly salty in the cream. Our plan is to return in the future to sample coffee and other items; this article will be updated again whenever that happens.
Stats
Price: $
Service: Counter
Open Since: 1954/2004 (Japan), May 2026 (US)
Address
2937 Bristol St. Suite D100
Costa Mesa, CA 92626
Instagram: @1954.bakery