The 626 Night Market, the largest Asian night market in the United States, will hit downtown LA this Friday and Saturday.
The event’s organizer, Johnny Hwang, is a Taiwan native. When he started the 626 Night Market in Pasadena in the summer of 2012, he envisioned a recreation of the Shilin night market in Taipei.
Johnny Hwang has been living in the San Gabriel Valley, the 626 area, east of LA. He said there are a lot of Asian restaurants in the area; the only thing missing was the night market, so he thought it would be interesting to put one together.
In 2013, the 626 Night Market boasted about 80 vendors and drew such a large crowd that it was relocated to Santa Anita Park in Arcadia where more than 50,000 people attended. This year, the event has not only expanded to downtown LA, but the market has grown from food and merchandise booths to food trucks, art displays, music, dance, theatrical performances, film screenings, and contests.