A Day in San Juan Capistrano

San Juan Capistrano is a small town located in Orange County. I am a resident of San Juan Capistrano and thought I would share my favorite things to do here. This is a charming town to live in but also a fun town to visit and explore.

1. Visit the Mission of San Juan Capistrano

This historical landmark and museum was founded over 200 years ago and is the birthplace of Orange County. The Mission offers many awesome events to attend with friends and family as well as scheduled tours. I highly recommend visiting!

2. Have Dinner at One of These Restaurants

Mayfield

Located in downtown SJC, Mayfield offers Mediterranean inspired Californian dishes. It features indoor/outdoor seating with a full cocktail bar. Mayfield sources most of their ingredients locally and provides seasonal dishes which makes their food even more spectacular. They also have a marketplace where they sell products made in-house, natural wines, and homeware.

Trevor's At The Tracks

This restaurant sits right next to the train station! With a charming but large patio with great music, Trevor's is a fun and hip place to dine. They use good quality ingredients for their dishes and source locally as much as possible. They also have a wide variety of gluten free, vegan, or vegetarian options.

Ciao Pasta

If you love Italian food, Ciao Pasta is a must try! Their pastas and pizzas are delicious and their Entrees are even better. I absolutely love their Branzino dish. This is a great restaurant to go with family.

3. Shop on Los Rios Street and Camino Capistrano

San Juan Capistrano has many antique and vintage shops. You will be surprised by what you find. You can spend hours walking down either Los Rios St or Camino Capistrano browsing through the different antique shops.

4. Grab Coffee or Tea on Los Rios Street

Also on Los Rios St you will find a super cute small town vibe coffee shop called Hidden House Coffee. This is a special place to come sit with a coffee for a few hours while you catch up with a friend or bring your laptop to do some work. Their coffee is so incredible, you will most likely go back for seconds.

If you are more of a tea person, Los Rios St has an outdoor tea house called The Tea House. They offer a variety of teas and a full menu for lunch or brunch on the weekends. This is the perfect spot to organize an event or celebrate a special occasion with friends and family.

Laguna Beach's Culinary Delights

There’s an old saying that goes a little bit like this: the way into one’s heart is through their stomach. Well, in Laguna Beach that can be the case for foodies of all kinds. Yes, of course, the main lure to this area is the shoreline. Which is completely understandable! The ocean comes in dozens of shades of blue and green; long walks on the beach fill the lungs with crisp Pacific air and the mellow vibes emanating from such a relaxing atmosphere is exactly what people from the world overcome to experience. However, we all have to eat, right? And Laguna does eating right!

It may surprise visitors that despite Laguna Beach’s relatively small size – it’s got just 23,000 people living there – an amazing array of eateries are laid out to take a taste of. Naturally, there are plenty of beach town joints to be found. But that doesn’t mean there aren’t fine dining options to be had for those who like to dress to the nines and step out on the town. And those who prefer to do their own cooking have access to plentiful high- quality ingredients.

Ready to take a bite out of Laguna? Let’s follow our noses to some of the epicurean delights the city has to offer.

Click here to read more! This article is written by PACIFICSIR.

Welcome to San Clemente!

San Clemente is located in Southern Orange County, on the coast of California. It is a beautiful beach town to visit or move to! Ever since I relocated to Orange County, San Clemente is one of those towns I can't seem to get enough of. I often find myself there a few times a week walking around the downtown area, at the beach watching the sunset, or having dinner at one of their amazing restaurants. I hope you fall in love with San Clemente just like I have!

San Clemente Pier

Watching the sunset in San Clemente offers one of the prettiest views I have ever seen! You can grab food at the pier and sit on the beach as you relax and enjoy some time with your family and loved ones.

Downtown District  

Downtown San Clemente, on Del Mar Street, you can explore the many local boutiques, delicious restaurants, juice bars, and wine or cocktail bars. I also love coming to Cafe Mimosa for brunch on Sunday's!

Beach Trail

There is a fabulous 2.3 mile beach trail along the San Clemente beach to jog, bike, or walk with your kids. It is also dog friendly with great views of the ocean. The trail starts at the North Beach train station and ends at State Beach.

Beach 

T Street Beach in San Clemente is the perfect spot for a beach day with the family, surfing, bodyboarding, or a picnic. This beach is known to be one of the best surf spots in Orange County.