A note on the words: a malasada is a Portuguese fried dough bun, brought to Hawaii by immigrants from Madeira and now a Hawaiian fixture — no hole, rolled in sugar, and best eaten warm. The Puff versions have cream piped into them after frying.
Leonard’s, Yokohama World Porters on Tabelog (English) — opening hours, payment details and the Japanese address are kept up to date there, not here.
Malasada fans, thank you for waiting. It is Hangover Meshi time.
Today I bought malasadas in Yokohama. Leonard’s, Yokohama World Porters. Leonard’s Bakery, founded on Oahu, Hawaii in 1952, and this is its first shop in Japan — and the popularity seems to catch fire more with every passing day. At weekends the queue is enormous and you can hardly buy any. But on a weekday, early evening…
If it has become this popular, one had better eat them while one still can.
The malasadas (no cream inside) come in sugar and cinnamon sugar, at 250 yen each. The Malasada Puffs (cream inside) come in custard and a seasonal flavour (this time mango cream), at 310 yen each. Buy the lot.
And so, one of each.
You are told to eat them the same day — but eating all of them at once would clearly be a serious business, so some were held over to the next day.
This is how you tell them apart.
The one wrapped in pink paper is cinnamon sugar. The one with cream showing is a cream one. If the cream is a stronger yellow, it is mango cream. The rest are sugar.
Malasadas, after a long while. I am looking forward to this.
| Type | Price | How to tell from the wrapper | Impression |
|---|---|---|---|
| Malasada, sugar | 250 yen | Not pink paper, and no cream showing | Almost no resistance from the skin, chewy spring, restrained sweetness |
| Malasada, cinnamon sugar | 250 yen | Pink paper wrapping | Same dough; cinnamon rises before you bite |
| Malasada Puff, custard | 310 yen | Cream showing at the side | Generous cream, and the ratio to the dough is just right |
| Malasada Puff, mango cream | 310 yen | The cream showing is a stronger yellow | Dense sweetness with acidity, fruit pulp inside / limited period |
By the time I got home and moved them onto a plate the crispness of the surface had settled down, but having just carried them back they were still warm.
The sugar has mostly melted, though some of it is still there as grains.
A bite, and the skin gives almost no resistance — it is very light. Then the chewy spring of the dough begins, and it is as good as ever. The floating lightness of the freshly fried thing turning into something denser and firmer, perhaps. For a fried bun the amount of sugar is restrained, and the sweetness never gets heavy. The oil lingers only faintly, light enough that you could have several in a row.
Yes, malasadas are good.
All that is added is cinnamon in the coating; the dough is the same as the sugar one. Even cold, enough softness remains that it changes shape under a little pressure from the fingers, and the cinnamon going up the nose before you bite is a pleasant difference from the plain sugar.
This is my favourite.
They are made by piping cream into the fried dough through a hole in the side, so the cream stays inside the dough all the way home. Bite in and, as the dough has cooled, the thick weight of the cream sits clearly on the tongue. Good. The sweetness is restrained and the amount of cream is generous, so the ratio to the dough is just right. It has more substance than the plain, and is thoroughly satisfying.
With malasadas, nothing begins until you have had the custard.
![[Limited period] Malasada Puff, mango cream](https://cimg.eat.hangover.work/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/27084404/DSC05374.jpg "Leonard's, Yokohama: All Four Malasadas, and How to Tell Them Apart 13")
For a limited period in summer, mango cream goes in where the custard would be. It is described as containing fruit pulp so that some texture remains, and the dense sweetness of mango with acidity over it does feel more tropical. In summer this is a fresh option too. They say it ends when the cream runs out, so it may not be long.
For a hangover, as with ramen, something with fat in it is the thing. Strong sweetness works rather well too. From that point of view, malasadas may well count as hangover food. Leonard’s has become so famous that buying them is difficult, but on a weekday you still can — so perhaps go while that is true.
I would be glad if they opened a shop in Tokyo soon.
May you meet something good to eat today too.
Leonard’s, Yokohama World Porters (doughnuts / Bashamichi Station, Minatomirai Station, Sakuragicho Station)
Tabelog lunch rating ★★★★☆ 4.0
I ate here and paid for it myself. Nothing on this site is a comped meal.
