Bringing the Spirit of Japan’s Traditional Fish Trucks to Family Style Fest
Before the marketplace, there was the truck.
In postwar Los Angeles, Japanese American fish truck drivers brought more than fresh seafood to neighborhoods across Southern California. They delivered mochi, rice, tofu, and other Japanese goods directly to Nikkei families at a time when dedicated Japanese markets were few and far between.
Hatakeyama Fish Truck
For many families, the fish truck was the marketplace.
The arrival of the truck was part of everyday life. Families knew the drivers by name. Neighbors gathered outside to shop, catch up, and share recommendations for the evening meal. The fish truck provided access to familiar ingredients, but it also helped strengthen the bonds that connected Japanese American communities throughout the region.
Inside Fish Truck
Family Inside Fish Truck
Before founding Yama Sushi Marketplace in 1984, Kenzo Yamada was a fish broker in Los Angeles. He worked closely with the people and businesses that supplied fresh seafood to Japanese American communities and understood the importance of quality, trust, and personal relationships.
Those experiences became the foundation for everything Yama would eventually become.
As the years passed, the fish truck tradition began to fade. Changing regulations, shifting demographics, and the growing availability of Japanese grocery stores made the trucks less common. By the 1990s, many had disappeared altogether.
What was lost was not only a way to buy fish. A piece of community disappeared with them.
Kenzo's answer was to build something permanent.
When Yama Sushi Marketplace opened its doors in San Gabriel in 1984, it carried forward the spirit of the fish truck tradition. Customers could still find fresh seafood, trusted expertise, and the personal connections that had once been built curbside throughout Southern California.
Decades later, that mission remains the same.
Today, Yama Sushi Marketplace has grown to three locations, serving generations of families, chefs, home cooks, and seafood lovers. While the trucks may no longer travel neighborhood streets, the values that defined them continue to live on through the people who walk through our doors every day.
On June 27, Yama Sushi Marketplace will join Complex Family Style Fest to honor the fish truck operators, brokers, families, and communities that helped shape Japanese American food culture in Los Angeles.
Our booth will pay tribute to this important chapter of history while sharing the fresh seafood and marketplace experience that continue to define Yama today. More importantly, it is an opportunity to celebrate the community that made it all possible.
Illustration of Green Fish Truck
The story of the fish truck has always been about people. It is about neighbors gathering around food, families preserving traditions, and communities staying connected through shared experiences.
Forty-one years after Yama first opened its doors, we are proud to continue that story.
Come find Yama Sushi Marketplace at Complex Family Style Fest on June 27 and follow @yamasushimarketplace + @familystylefest on Instagram & Tik Tok to learn more.
Yama Sushi Marketplace Mural at San Gabriel Valley
Yama Sushi Marketplace Nigiri