10 great holiday gifts you can find at San Francisco’s Stonestown Galleria

Stonestown Galleria, an increasingly popular mall located on the city’s southwest side, has garnered media attention recently as many new shops have come in while Downtown malls are struggling with retail vacancies. Asian businesses, particularly Japanese shops, are thriving in the mall, too, driven by the large Asian populations in neighborhoods on the west side and down the Peninsula.

Here are The Standard’s Stonestown gift recommendations for everyone on your list.

At the popular Taiwanese bakery 85°C, customers routinely line up for fresh sweet tarts, marble taro buns and boba tea. But the shop also has holiday gift options like nougat candy, a classic chewy milk candy with roasted almonds in it. Not to mention, the package box is a cute dairy cow.

What’s the best way to instill some local pride in today’s younger generations? Let them wear the Golden Gate Bridge and Sutro Tower! Handmade in CA, a gift and clothing store that stocks tons of locally made items, has a kids’ section selling clothes printed with the city’s landmarks, along with a wide selection of bilingual and multicultural books. Don’t miss the Muni-themed adult clothes, either.

Walk through the aisles at Miniso, a Chinese brand that sells affordable gifts, you can see a variety of colorful stuffed fruits and animals, which are perfect for anyone of any age. You have plenty of options to choose from, ranging from watermelons to sleeping pandas.

Who hasn’t had to eat their words from time to time? Lolli & Pops’ “Write and Eat Candy Paper” is good for spy-themed parties as you can write down your secretive notes to others — and they can just eat it after reading it, so no one else will ever know what you write.

In less than 20 minutes, you can have a brand new T-shirt with whatever you want printed on it—including an image of a group of friends or your family. Customania, located on the mall’s second floor, can bring any special moment to life.

You may have read some articles or seen the TikTok review videos about the Uniqlo shoulder bag, which has been among the hottest products from the trendy Japanese brand all year. And if you bought one months ago, take another peek because there are new color options.

If you have a friend who’s an anime fan, check out this cool Pop Mart Robo Shop, which sells many figurines and small toys from the beloved Japanese medium. Best of all, they’re already packaged to be presented as gifts.

On the shelves of Daiso, the irresistible Japanese chain famous for its affordable prices, you can always find some unique flavors of Pocky. Fancy-packaged snacks, like strawberry or matcha-flavored cookies, are always great stocking stuffers. 

At Typo, a store that sells a variety of gift items, scented candles are beautifully presented in an octahedral box. And the scents themselves can be downright fascinating, from passion fruit colada to sparkling bellini. 

When all else fails, there’s always the movies. Stonestown’s relatively new Regal Cinemas screens all the latest flicks, and gift cards are on sale for Black Friday, too. For every $50 you spend, you get a $10 bonus.