Fortune Cookie Origin: History, Production and Serving
Fortune cookie origin without the myths: Japanese roots and American rise, how they are made, allergens, where to buy them and how restaurants serve them free.
7 min readFortuners Team
The fortune cookie did not originate in China. Its ancestor, the tsujiura senbei, was baked around Kyoto in 19th-century Japan, and the modern version was popularised in California in the early 1900s by Japanese immigrants. Chinese American bakers took over production around World War II, which is why the cookies are now tied to Chinese restaurants, from the US to Europe. Below you will find the verified history, including the rival claims to who invented them, how fortune cookies are made, what they contain, where to buy them and how a restaurant can serve them to guests for free.
Where do fortune cookies come from? Japan, California and Chinese restaurants
The most thorough account of fortune cookie history comes from American journalist Jennifer 8. Lee. In an article for The New York Times published on 16 January 2008 (opens in a new tab) and in her book The Fortune Cookie Chronicles, released the same year, she presented the findings of Japanese researcher Yasuko Nakamachi. Here are the key stages.
Japan: tsujiura senbei
Folded fortune crackers called tsujiura senbei were baked in the Kyoto area from the 19th century. Nakamachi traced references to them in Japanese literature and art, including an illustration in a book published in 1878 that shows the cookies being baked. They were different from today’s version: larger, made from a darker dough flavoured with sesame and miso, and the paper fortune was wedged into the bend of the cookie rather than hidden inside. According to the English-language Wikipedia entry on fortune cookies (opens in a new tab), you can still buy them in parts of Japan, including near the Fushimi Inari shrine in Kyoto.
California: who invented the fortune cookie?
According to Lee’s reporting, California restaurants with Japanese owners introduced fortune cookies between 1907 and 1914. The name mentioned most often is Makoto Hagiwara of the Japanese Tea Garden in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park, who served cookies baked by the local Benkyodo bakery. He was not the only claimant. In Los Angeles, David Jung, founder of the Hong Kong Noodle Company, said he created the cookie, and Seiichi Kito of the confectioner Fugetsu-do made a similar claim.
The dispute even went to “court”. In 1983 San Francisco’s Court of Historical Review, a mock tribunal that stages debates over historical disputes, ruled in favour of San Francisco, which settled the rivalry in name only.
How fortune cookies became “Chinese”
The turning point was World War II. When Japanese Americans were forced into incarceration camps, Chinese American manufacturers took over production, and the cookies settled permanently into Chinese restaurants. Lee also describes how the dessert’s popularity soared after the war, when US soldiers returning from the Pacific by way of California asked for fortune cookies at Chinese restaurants in their home towns.
In China itself the cookies never caught on. Wonton Food, one of the largest US producers, tried to sell them there in the 1990s but gave up because they were considered “too American”.
How fortune cookies are made
The process is simple to describe and tricky to do, because every second counts.
- Batter. A thin batter of flour, sugar, egg whites, oil, water and flavouring such as vanilla.
- Baking. The batter is spread into thin discs and baked briefly until the edges turn golden brown.
- The fortune. A printed slip is placed on the hot, still-flexible disc.
- Folding. The disc is folded in half, then bent over an edge at the centre to create the familiar shape. This has to happen fast, because the dough hardens within moments as it cools.
- Cooling and packing. The cookies cool in a holder that keeps their shape, then go into bulk boxes or individual wrappers.
Fortune cookies were once folded by hand, often with the help of chopsticks. The automation of that step is credited to Edward Louie, who built a folding machine in the late 1960s. Today large producers bake them on production lines, and hand-folding survives mainly in small artisan batches.
The fortune slip
Fortunes are printed separately on narrow strips of paper. The content varies: a saying, a joke, lucky numbers, a word in another language and, for corporate orders, a logo, a slogan or an offer. A good fortune is short, warm and never promises things nobody can guarantee, such as good health or a lottery win.
The best conversations start over dessert.
Ingredients, allergens and storage
A classic fortune cookie usually contains wheat flour, sugar, egg whites, vegetable oil and flavouring. In practice that means typical fortune cookies contain gluten and eggs. Some recipes add other ingredients, such as milk powder, sesame or colourings, so always read the label of the specific product.
What this means for a restaurant:
- Allergen information applies to freebies too. In the EU, Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011 on the provision of food information to consumers requires businesses to give information about the 14 major allergens, including for food served in restaurants and cafés. A cookie added to the bill is still food served to a guest.
- Individual wrapping makes it easier. The ingredients and allergens are printed on every wrapper, and a guest with an allergy simply leaves the cookie unopened.
- Your staff should know the answer. One sentence is enough: “The cookie contains gluten and eggs. The ingredients are on the wrapper.”
Storage
Fortune cookies are thin and porous, so moisture is their worst enemy. Unwrapped in a humid room, they quickly go soft and lose their crunch.
- Keep them in a cool, dry place, away from the dishwasher, the coffee machine and kitchen steam.
- Once a bulk box is open, seal it well or move the cookies to a container with a lid.
- Do not store them in the cold room, because condensation forms on them when you take them out.
- Keep an eye on the best-before date. Individually wrapped cookies stay fresh much longer than loose ones.
Where to buy fortune cookies: shops, wholesale and custom orders
Where to buy depends on how many cookies you need and whether you want your own fortunes inside. The categories below apply in Poland and in most European countries.
| Where to look | Best for | What to watch out for |
|---|---|---|
| Asian grocery stores (in person and online) | A dinner at home, a small party | Small packs, ready-made fortunes, often in English only |
| World food aisles in larger supermarkets | A one-off occasion | Availability can be seasonal |
| Food service wholesalers | Asian restaurants, serving them regularly | Cartons of several hundred, check the packaging and label language |
| Online marketplaces | Comparing many offers | Quality and shelf life vary between sellers |
| Custom fortune cookie producers | Companies, events, weddings, campaigns | Minimum order quantities, lead times, approving the copy |
Before you order a larger batch, ask the supplier:
Questions to ask a fortune cookie supplier
- Are the cookies individually wrapped?
- Are the ingredients and allergens printed on the wrapper in the local language (Polish, for venues in Poland)?
- What is the minimum remaining shelf life on delivery?
- What is the minimum order and how long does production take?
- Can I use my own fortunes, and who is responsible for printing them?
- How does delivery work, and can I order in smaller batches?
If you are planning cookies with your own fortunes, a logo or a QR code, we cover production and distribution in detail in custom fortune cookies: from promo gift to ad campaign.
A cookie with the bill: why it’s a good end to a visit
In Chinese restaurants in the US, a fortune cookie traditionally closes the meal and often arrives together with the bill. The custom makes sense in any restaurant or café, whatever the cuisine.
- It sweetens the moment of paying. The bill is the only part of the visit where the guest gives something away. A small, unexpected gesture changes how that moment feels.
- It creates a shared moment of fun. People read their fortunes out loud, compare them and take photos. Moments like that stick, and they give guests something to tell their friends about.
- It puts no strain on the kitchen. A cookie needs no preparation and no plate. Your staff just add it to the bill tray.
- It works for every guest. Everyone at the table gets one, whatever they ordered.
A few serving rules: one cookie per person, always wrapped, served with the bill or just before it, away from hot plates. If there are children at the table, hand the cookies to the parents. For more on how the end of a visit affects a venue’s takings, see our guide on how to increase restaurant sales.
How a restaurant can serve fortune cookies for free
Buying cookies for every guest is an ongoing cost that eats into your margin. There is another model: the cookies are paid for by a brand that wants to reach your guests, with its offer printed on the slip below the fortune. For the brand, this is a form of ambient marketing that reaches people at a pleasant moment instead of interrupting their meal.
This is how Fortuners works:
- we deliver classic fortune cookies from a Polish bakery, individually wrapped, with ingredients and allergens on every wrapper,
- your staff add a cookie to each bill, with no training and no change to how they work,
- the cookies, deliveries and the counter stand are paid for by the brand, and your venue pays nothing,
- you approve every brand and every fortune before launch, and it is never a competing restaurant or café, alcohol, gambling or politics,
- we top up your stock as you go, and you can opt out at any time.
Guests get a free dessert and a moment of fun at the end of their visit, and you do not touch your menu or your margin. If you represent a brand and want to see how the format works from your side, visit the Fortuners home page.
Frequently asked questions
Are fortune cookies Chinese?
Not by origin. Their ancestor is the Japanese tsujiura senbei from the Kyoto area, and the modern version was popularised in California in the early 20th century by Japanese immigrants. They became linked with Chinese restaurants because Chinese American bakers and restaurateurs took over production around World War II and spread the cookies across the United States.
Who invented the fortune cookie?
Nobody can be named with certainty. Makoto Hagiwara of the Japanese Tea Garden in San Francisco is most often credited with serving the modern cookie first, made by the Benkyodo bakery. David Jung of the Hong Kong Noodle Company and Seiichi Kito of Fugetsu-do, both in Los Angeles, also claimed the invention. Research into Japanese sources shows similar cookies existed in Japan decades earlier.
What is inside a fortune cookie?
A small paper slip with a short fortune, a saying or a joke. Some slips also carry lucky numbers, a word in a foreign language or an offer from the company paying for the cookies. The cookie itself is usually made from flour, sugar, egg whites, oil and flavouring.
How long do fortune cookies stay fresh?
Check the date on the packaging, because shelf life depends on the recipe and how the cookies are packed. Individually wrapped cookies stay crisp far longer than loose ones. Once opened, they absorb moisture quickly and go soft, so keep them in a dry, airtight container.
Do fortune cookies contain gluten?
Classic fortune cookies are made with wheat flour, so they contain gluten, and usually egg as well. Recipes differ between producers, though, so always read the label and pass allergen information on to your guests.
