Category

Orange County

Sugar Cane Juice Orange County

Nuoc Mia Vien Tay Kumquat Sugar Cane Juice

Nuoc Mia Vien Tay is a rebranded Little Saigon sugar cane juice bar that dates to 1996, when Chuyen Nguyen and wife Thuy opened in a Westminster strip mall. I first wrote about Nuoc...
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Vietnamese Food Orange County

King Noodles 68 Hủ Tiếu Hoac Mi Kings Noodle

In the bathroom at King Noodles 68, the owners posted a surprisingly moving quote from Mahatma Gandhi on the mirror: “Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Love as if you were to...
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Coffee Orange County

Thunderking Coffee Bar Captain Save A Pistachio

Every once in awhile, a specialty coffee bar will serve one signature beverage that breaks the mold of a typical cafe menu. At Thunderking Coffee Bar, a daytime partner inside SOCIAL Costa Mesa, cold...
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Pop-Up Orange County

BoD Yam Apple Uni Ikura

Running Orange County’s best brunch restaurant is no small feat, but for Break of Dawn chef Dee Nguyen, that distinction is no longer enough. Every couple months, he opens the Laguna Hills restaurant for...
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Vietnamese Food Orange County

Garlic & Chives Caramelized Catfish & Pork Belly

The decision on where to eat at Garden Grove’s Mall of Fortune is no longer clear-cut. Starting in 1996, Brodard was the obvious choice. In 2015, chef Kristin Nguyen disrupted the paradigm by opening...
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Fish Orange County

Driftwood Kitchen Swordfish

Beachfront restaurants rely on the setting way too often, knowing that customers will still visit for the valuable view, food be damned. Thankfully, chef Rainer Schwarz and business partner John Nye aren’t so complacent...
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