anime
San Diego's Anime & Manga Scene: Convoy Street and Beyond
A guide to San Diego's anime and manga community: Convoy Street shops, local conventions, import stores, and how to connect with anime fans in San Diego.
San Diego has a real anime and manga scene that flies under the radar compared to LA’s Little Tokyo. The Kearny Mesa neighborhood, and Convoy Street specifically, is the center of it, but anime culture in SD extends from local conventions to university clubs to import shops scattered across the county.
Convoy Street: San Diego’s Japan Town
Convoy Street in Kearny Mesa is packed with Japanese restaurants, bubble tea shops, Korean BBQ, Asian supermarkets, and import shops. For anime fans specifically, the area has shops selling figures, manga, trading cards (including Japanese OCG Yu-Gi-Oh and Pokemon), and imported goods.
- Mitsuwa Marketplace: Japanese supermarket and food court, with a books and import goods section
- Nijiya Market (3860 Convoy St): Japanese grocery with snacks, bento, and imported goods
- Figure and collectible shops along Convoy: check Yelp for current listings, since they turn over
- Bubble tea: Ding Tea and a half dozen others within a few blocks
Anime Conventions in San Diego
San Diego picked up two anime conventions worth knowing about. Anime San Diego runs at the Convention Center downtown in early September, and San Diego Anime Con runs at the DoubleTree in Mission Valley in November. Both are smaller and more manageable than LA’s Anime Expo, which honestly makes for a better weekend if you care more about the hobby than the spectacle.
- Anime San Diego (September): artist alley, vendors, and cosplay contests downtown
- San Diego Anime Con (November): three days at the DoubleTree, Mission Valley
- San Diego Comic-Con (July): a significant anime and manga presence in the exhibit hall
Current dates and links are on our events page.
University Anime Clubs
UCSD and SDSU both have active student anime clubs, and some screenings and events are open to the public. Check their current social media pages for schedules, since club names and officers change year to year. These are good ways to meet fellow fans if you’re new to the city.
Trading Card Games: Japanese Import Scene
If you play the Japanese OCG versions of Yu-Gi-Oh or Pokemon TCG, Convoy Street shops carry Japanese import booster packs. The competitive TCG scene is active in San Diego. Game Empire runs Yu-Gi-Oh locals, and independent OCG locals advertise through the official Yu-Gi-Oh Neuron app.
The SD anime community is more active online than you’d expect. Search Reddit for the current San Diego anime Discord invite to find screenings, group watches, and meetups.
What to Eat on Convoy
While you’re in the neighborhood, the food is the other half of the trip. Tajima Ramen, Chopstix (teppanyaki), and Shan Xi Magic Kitchen (Xi’an Chinese) are local favorites. Mitsuwa’s food court has solid Japanese fast food and a proper sit-down ramen counter. Budget a full afternoon, and finish with karaoke: HIVE and Melody are both on Convoy.