LITTLE TOKYO, Calif. – Delicious Little Tokyo is a festival where you can learn all about Japanese food and culture.

The kitchen has changed a little in the near century it has been around, but nothing has changed in the way Brian Kito and his family have been making mochi. Kito’s grandfather opened Fugetsu-Do 116 years ago in the Little Tokyo neighborhood of Los Angeles. Soon Kito’s only son will take over the family business.

“Over the years we’ve made the job easier. He won’t have it as hard as I did physically and mentally I hope,” said Kito.

Mochi are chewy Japanese rice cakes. They fit in your hand. They are sometimes brightly colored and filled with sweet bean paste.

Kito will make the special mochi for the traditional tea ceremony during the two-day Delicious Little Tokyo Festival. This is the culinary weekend’s fourth year. It brings a lot of attention to L.A.’s second oldest neighborhood.

Soon the spotlight will be even brighter. The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority is building a regional connector in Little Tokyo. It will take a few more years to finish, but the new rail station could mean more foot traffic.

To support the community the Metro pays for the festival. Delicious Little Tokyo is put on by the Little Tokyo Community Council.

“It’s really rare to have something that feels like a small village and a big city and that is what Little Tokyo is,” said Kristin Fukushima, the managing director of the Little Tokyo Community Council.

Every day thousands of mochi are made in the Fugetsu-Do kitchen.

“Hopefully new people that come to the community will get an idea how our community works and how balanced it is,” said Kito.

Kito’s son just finished his first year as a mochi apprentice. It will take nine more years to be fully trained. Kito’s retirement is the treat just out of reach. Little Tokyo needs its kneading mochi master until the next generation is ready to take the throne.