Downtown Shuffle

You’ve waited until the 11th hour to do your holiday shopping, and the idea of going to a mall, spending an hour looking for a parking spot, and schlepping from store to store while swimming through a wall of humanity just makes you want to shoot yourself.

Sound like you?

It certainly sounds like us, and a lot of the people we know. Which is why we put together an offbeat itinerary of holiday shopping destinations that replaces that sense of chore and dread with adventure. By eschewing the big malls for offbeat destinations in and around LA’s historic core, you’ll save yourself some stress, end up with unique gifts, get a little exercise, and have a ball. Not to mention you’re supporting local retailers. So put on some comfy shoes, make sure you’ve got some cash in your wallet, and let’s get started.

BOX CITY: Santa's Workshop, Toy District-style. 

The starting point: 2nd and San Pedro.  You’ll want to park around here, since it’s closest to both the Toy District and Little Tokyo. There’s metered parking on the street – two hours might be enough, but there is also an abundance of lots, some offering rates as low as $3 for all-day parking. Park the car, then hoof it couple of blocks south on San Pedro.  Hang a right on 4th, and you’re in the Toy District. There are dozens of stores – and by stores we mean no-frills hole-in-the-walls, often without shelves, that instead simply have stacks of boxes displaying the wares.

We’re not gonna lie: this ain’t FAO Schwarz. You may not find much for children over the age of 8 (except for BB guns – the first store we went to offered at least 20 different models ranging from semi-automatic to what looked like a machine gun). And there are plenty of “Engrish” style typos on some of the boxes.  But if you’re looking for gifts for small fries, there’s plenty to choose from. Stuffed animals, dump trucks and miniature cars.  We saw a really sweet giant miniature playhouse, with GI-Joe sized plastic dolls and furniture for every room in the house, for $14. When we were five, we would have gone nuts for it. But it is in a box emblazoned with the confusing description, “More in keeping with several children plays together.” Have a little snicker then get over it, since most four years olds aren’t especially big on reading. Other winners included a keyboard/guitar that played tunes, tones, and animal noises ($12); pint-sized acoustic guitars ($20); and a balsawood dinosaur skeleton puzzle that stands 5 feet tall ($10). Since this is a wholesale district, not only are prices crazy-cheap, you don’t play sales tax, either. Cash money talks, so it’s not out of the question to negotiate a couple of bucks off your purchases. Get far enough down the street, and you’ll also find stores that offer wrapping paper, ribbon, balloons and other adornments for next to nothing – one of the stores we visited offered a package of 50 sheets of holographic wrapping paper for $6.

Hungry? On the way back to the car, get some food at the critically acclaimed Lazy Ox Canteen (241 S. San Pedro St., L.A. 213-626-5299. laxyoxcanteen.com) Suck it, crappy mall food courts!

FAR EAST: Sushi, shabu shabu and streetwear on 2nd Street in Little Tokyo. 

Next stop: Little Tokyo.  You can’t go wrong by hitting any one of the shopping centers – there’s Weller Court, Japanese Village Plaza, and the Little Tokyo Galleria. If you want to avoid any kind of mall scene, take a stroll along 2nd Street to find retailers like Raggedy Threads, Popkiller, American Apparel (if you must), and Love Number A. One of the under-appreciated gems is Kimski Makes, a store that offers a fun mix of new and vintage clothing, jewelry and accessories. When we checked them out on Saturday, we found dresses by Jack by BB Dakota dresses for $20 on the sales rack – lots of good buys here. If you have readers and culture-hounds on your list, you’ll want to hit in the Kinokuniya Bookstore in Weller Court Plaza. The store sells manga and assorted Japanese publications, but they also stock a wide selection of art books and just plain curious items (“Crafting with Cat Hair”).  In Japanese Village Plaza you’ll find Maneki Neko, which is a little bit like a Japanese equivalent to Ulta – not to mention OG Sanrio shops, as well as a few bakeries.