Tucked into the corner of the second floor of this open air mall, across from the Pasadena Convention Center, is a little place called Daily Needs: Mini Mart. It's next to the movie theater, so it seems like it'd be a great place to go to snack on something before watching a movie.
For me, I was at Nerd Expo (2019) at the convention center. I was helping my buddies sell art at the con, but none of us had eaten all day. We live pretty far from the area, so due to some circumstances, we ended up having to rush up to Pasadena without breakfast. I was going to bring both of them some food as I usually do, but we found out that we weren't allowed to bring food into the convention center. I offered to take one of their spots at their table so we could each take turns to go eat, but it was a bit busy and they felt it'd be best if they stayed. People had some art commission questions after all, and that's not something I can answer. They pretty much decided that we'd all eat a huge meal when we were done. That was hours away, so I reluctantly went off, trying to find snacks for myself. I climbed the stairs and spotted Daily Needs.
I instantly spotted the protein bars and such on the side. I've been trying to eat healthy, so that was something I was really happy to see. They were getting hit by the sun, so I was afraid they would be melted. Thankfully, the bar I got was fine, delicious, and relatively healthy! I looked around and found some other nice snacks, like fruit by the foot sold individually for just a few quarters, some Oreos, cereal, fruit snacks, and so on. Pretty diverse selection of snacks, really! I bought a few. There were also Dippin' Dots and freshly baked pastries!
Other parts of the mini mart had important things for the home like paper towels, detergent, spray, cups, plates, etc. It was a really nice set up, and nothing seemed too expensive. If the convention had been more than just one day and I needed to stay in a nearby hotel, I'd have definitely gone to Daily Needs for the little things I always seem to forget.
Also, the owner was so sweet! If I lived in the area, I'd love to pop in more! read more