Minnano Japanese Grocery

Recently, DC Eater wrote an article about fried octopus balls which had nothing to do with stuffing great mollusk sex organs in your mouth and more to do with the awesomeness associated with coating various octopus parts in batter and deep frying it into an unhealthy masterpiece. Think the Japanese equivalent of Cajun boudin balls. Anyhow, top these guys with some kewpie mayo, seaweed, and bonito flakes, and you have yourself some legit tasty Japanese street food.
You can get all these lovely things at Minnano. And you can find other fun food items as well: fermented rice crackers, odd flavors of Japanese candy, CALPICO… i did see someone had posted a photo of green tea Kit Kat, but sadly, I wasn’t able to find that item. Still, for such a small store, the selection was more than sufficient.
Minnano covers far more than just grocery as well. Almost 40% of the store is devoted to Japanese trinkets though admittedly I spent very little time glancing through this part of Minnano. I was far more interested in octopus balls, apparently.
If you’re the type of person that likes Japanese oddities or, like me, might be reaching back to experiences within the country, this is a good place to go for all non-​alcoholic endeavors (sadly, they aren’t selling Nikka 21 over here). I’d certainly come back.

Standing in the middle of the store, in-​between Japanese kitchen products and snack food, hearing J-​Pop music playing overhead and the employees speaking Japanese, it almost made me feel like I was back in Tokyo (but with way more room haha). I even found a replacement mixing bowl that was identical to the one I had bought years ago at a ¥100 store in Roppongi that broke. What a nice surprise!
Wonderful little shop that caries a good selection of Japanese products that can be somewhat difficult to find in the US.

I love love love this store. I haven’t tried green tea kit Kat til now (it’s ok) but it had most of the Asian snacks I love. OMG. I have to go back when I plan on making sushi and hopefully I take as much photos next time:)
The non food items are extremely pricey though, example a rilakumma plastic pencil cases are expensive but still… the food items are the best here!
Very kind and helpful employees.

Always has some cute stuff and good place to pick up small things you need for cooking :3

This is one of two Japanese markets. It’s small and selection not much. Service is great though just not much of a selection.
I wish it was bigger. Also far from home. Bummer.

On my Japanese grocery tour of Texas, we had to go to one in San Antonio! There are two on Unilocal,but Minnano had many more reviews so we came here. Eric R. stayed in the car this time. Minnano was surprisingly large and had an impressive selection of kitchenware, serveware, cooking tools, cute little tchotchkes, sauces, noodles, and other food. There was very limited produce selection but many desserts and frozen seafood items. I was able to find mochi sheets and FROZEN YUZU PEEL!!! Yes indeedy! That last time I found this was at Shop Minoya in Plano in 2012. Be jealous as I bought the last 2 packages!!! The cashier wanted to know what I did with yuzu, so we had a nice chat about it. This is a really cool place to shop!

Try the Japanese cheese cake. It’s kind of like a chiffon cake and is so light it practically melts in your mouth. Mmm so good.

Minnano is very clean and organized with a selection of foods and knick knacks you won’t find for miles! All of the food will have labels with nutrition facts and ingredients in english. Non-​food items typically don’t have these, so you might be wondering what some items are even for unless you learn Japanese (which I have not, so im a little clueless as to the function of some products). All in all a great local place to find great imports.
Tip: If you’re going to buy the ice cream, pick it up last and eat it immediately after purchase! It will melt fast. This includes the mochi ice cream!

This is definitely one of my favorite Asian stores in San Antonio.
The store is super tiny but it is packed with stuff. I’m afraid of knocking stuff off the shelves because it is so packed. It has your range of standard items, all the sauces and spices you need to prepare a mean bowl of soba noodle soup or home made mochi. It has basic snacks: pocky (so, so many flavors), green tea everything, a variety of traditional sweets (yokan, dango, sakura wagashi, etc). Check out the sweets in the freezer section as well. These tiny freezers house mochi ice cream that you can buy in singles or packs as well as frozen taiyaki. I was hesitant to buy frozen taiyaki but these can be crisped up so easily in the oven at home. In the freezers, you will find a lot of frozen, ready-​to-​eat items like tempura shrimp and gyoza. They also sell a variety of drinks — very standard Ito En teas, Calpis, and even Royal milk tea (one of my favorites). And they sell good quality matcha here, something other Asian stores in San Antonio do not often carry.
One of the best things about the store is the super cute selection of bento boxes and accessories. You can use the little molds to make adorable bento boxes. And the bento boxes are shockingly inexpensive compared to other place. They also sell standard Japanese cosmetics/​skincare stuff like Hado Labo, something I have yet to see elsewhere in San Antonio.
Lastly, if you are looking for Japanese bowls, plates or whatever, this should be a last resort sort of place, unless you absolutely love the design. The pieces are very pricey. I feel like I have seen a few of the items at the equivalent of a dollar store in Japan. If you want basic Japanese-​looking serve ware, go to World Market instead.
The ladies who run the store are very friendly. They always offer me a cart to carry my items and are happy to suggest things for dinner.
Although I love the hard-​to-​find-​anywhere-​else items they sell, I hate how marked up the prices are. I guess since I live here in San Antonio, if I want shiso leaves, I should be prepared to shell out for it. That being said, I come here weekly because it really does have a lot of stuff that I like.

I’ve shopped here a couple times and while it is small, it is the cleanest Asian grocer I’ve visited anywhere in the country and one of the few that stays true to its advertised region. Everything is Japanese.
Minnano really is more than just a grocer, they also have gifts, household items and appliances, and Asian beauty supplies. Everything is well organized too.
I appreciate their various sushi making offerings, particularly the pre made tamago. It’s good just over rice at home for a quick lazy bite. I also keep buying their matcha. The price is phenomenal compared to where I’ve looked elsewhere, including in Amazon. They package it in house so maybe the lack of frufru packaging cuts down on the cost.
Over all it has proved to be satisfying enough as an Asian grocer for my Asian husband and I to not venture much elsewhere.

I lived in japan for 10 years and this little shop anyways leaves me so nostalgic. The storefront is pretty tiny but there’s a huge variety of products they carry. Kitchenware, stationary, beauty products, character wares, and some great import grocery products. The cheesecake and melon breads near the front register are to die for and I always stock up on the spa masks.

The only cons about this place is that there isn’t a lot of space to move around and the make up items are a bit pricey. Everything from here is so cute though and the snacks are yummy

Oh my gosh this place is my favorite place in town, no lie.
I personally love everything in this place.
The staff is nice and they all speak English well but will great you in Japanese.
I’ve had several candies, drinks, and ramen that have all been delish!
Their false eyelashes work well and I’ve tried the soothing face masks.
I’ve gotten a coloring book from here and I color in it it!

A very cute and clean store. They have a nice variety of kawaii little stuff. Plus his and other stuff was way overpriced! It’s cheaper if you order and pay shipping from Japan! Foods and other stuff average pricing. The ladies are friendly and helpful. They giggled when they seen all the little things I purchased for myself and daughters. I was bummed not to be able to buy any pushes due to the outrageous orices!

This was a trip down memory lane! I’ve been missing all things Japan since I visited in 2007. Found this here in Unilocal and read some reviews (thanks for all the photos) then headed over after work. This store is well stocked, clean, and the staff is very friendly. I even flashed some Unilocal photos for them to help me find some of the snacks other reviewers have posted.
They have labels on the racks that describe in English what some ingredients are (I will be back and post photos of those) this helped me out since its been so long. Also, they get a huge truck full of goods on FRIDAY, today! So while I was there new items were being restocked on the shelves so even mor things to buy! Then when I went to check out, all things TOTORO! Right near the register. I almost teared up when I saw him.
I will definitely be returning for more and look forward to remembering all the good things I ate in Osaka, so keep posting photos of your favorites, and I will too.

It never fails — I walk into Minnano telling myself that I’m *only* there for sushi-​making supplies and tips from the supersweet ladies, all «Ima stick to my list like a mofo this time, for realsies! No wandering, getting distracted by sparkly things or totes adorbs baby-​panda-​head bento boxes, will happen.. no! In and out, 10 minutes max! I got this! «
Cut to 74.5 minutes later, and I’m walking out the door loaded down with seaweed potato chips, chopsticks topped with carved lotus blossoms, cheesecake Pocky, green tea Kit Kats, and a pack of mini mochi ice creams that I *have* to eat in the car right then because I forgot a cooler and they’ll surely melt and go to waste before I can get them home.
Only then do I realize that I forgot the freakin nori, and begin the cycle again.

This Japanese grocery store is very cool! There are so many things here I’ve seen before, and many many more I haven’t. Like green tea kit kat… yikes! And oddly enough if like to try it. This shop has a little bit of everything not just food items. There’s an area for hair care, serving/​kitchen utensils and table settings. Some small toy items, clothing, gift items, and of course the food and beverage items. The place was clean and honestly it’s a small store but there’s so much they were able to get in without the place seeming over crowded. I’ll be visiting again, and since they have all the components needed to make sushi. Think that will be on my grocery list very soon. The hours are Mon — Sat 10a — 7p and Sun 12a — 6p

I know i probably shouldn’t compare this Japanese store to the one in SF Japan town but for SA it is the best you could get. It is actually on my way home from work so I stop by once in a while to pick up some yummy snacks.
I am hooked on the koala’s march chocolate crème filled cookie. I know Tim’s Asian market has it too but Minnano has this big family pack i like. I also got wasabi peas (HEB has it too), some dried squid snack and yakisoba. Next time I will try the green tea ice cream, the japanese version dumplings, and the takoyaki several reviewers mentioned. I think they actually have this particular Japanese rice I really liked but didn’t see at Tim’s.
Every time i visit the store, i like to spend some time browsing each section to see what they have b/​c I am not very familiar with Japanese stuff. I find it quiet interesting and get excited if I discover something new. Next time I will spend more time to look at their makeup and utensil sections.
For a store that size, they actually are pretty well stocked and carry a ton of stuff. I wish they had more fresh products though such as meats and veggie. Overall, it is well worth of my time!