It’s chewy, trendy, and pretty.
That’s everything to know about Mochinut wrapped up in a couple of bites. All food puns aside, this small restaurant on Pacific Avenue has garnered thousands of donut-lovers on Instagram and counting.
Feb. 3 marked the soft opening of the restaurant with limited flavors. The grand opening was Feb 19 for the location, with boba-milk drinks encapsulated into cans from a variety of mochinut flavors to korean-style hotdogs. Lines were long for the location.
However, Mochinut isn’t only a geographical coincidence, it’s a narrative about a passionate young business owner providing new opportunities to a city they live in.
Yalun Ain is a 31-year old business owner who owns the Stockton branches of T Percent, Tasty Pot, and Mochinut.
Moving from China to Stockton, California in 2012 with their mother, Ain is dedicated to improving and providing opportunities to make Stockton a better place.
However, what sets Mochinut apart from their competitors?
“Mochi Donuts are made with rice flour. The rice flour makes Mochi Donuts stretchy and chewy. There is a sticky addictiveness to each bite, a textural element that is completely different from yeast or cake donuts,” according to the Mochinut website.
These donuts grab the attention of Gen Z? due to unique flavors and eight-bite design.
“In the younger generation, they focus on the quality of the food, the freshness of the food, and they focus on the look of the food. It has to look pretty and taste good, fresh, and high quality,” said Ain.
With Stockton, a mixing pot, full of diversity and homes to various cultures; one wonders, why open-up a Mochinut branch in Stockton?
“First of all, my everything is from China. We have an Asian background, like Korean, Japanese, and Chinese food and we want to bring that to Stockton. Which I think represents more than traditional Asian food,” said Ain.
Stockton’s location along Interstate 5 makes it a perfect location for this sort of location, particularly in that now locals don’t have to venture out of town for this sort of food fare.
Mochinut in Stockton means locals don’t need to travel for forty minutes or more to either Sacramento or Livermore
The small store, at 6252 Pacific Avenue next to Tasty Pot , represents a Chinese-American dream to operate and provide opportunities for people to experience a diverse culture within our vicinity.
Ain has a dream and aspiration to give back to the community.
“Me and my wife live here in Stockton, since we live here we know the community and know that Stockton has the potential to grow and have a variety of high quality food,” said Ain.
Mochinut isn’t a passion project, but a symbolism that young Stocktonians have the power to make the future young generations have an enjoyable experience.