Orange County Restaurant Week returns in March, giving locals a chance to taste some of the county’s best restaurants. The culinary event will feature specially curated, prix-fixe menus available at participating restaurants.
OC Restaurant Week founder Pamela Waitt said the annual event is about more than dining out on deal.
“OC Restaurant Week has never been just about specially priced menus,” said Waitt, who is also president of the OC Restaurant Association, Inc. in a statement. “It’s about how it feels to dine out and connect with family and friends.”
The event is scheduled for March 8-14, with more than 150 Orange County restaurants participating. With so many eateries to visit, deciding where to dine can be overwhelming.
What’s the best way to dig into OC Restaurant Week?
Start planning by visiting the “Celebrate Your Way” section on the Restaurant Week website. Restaurants are sorted into categories like “Wine Lovers Menus” or “Girls Night Out,” making it easy for diners to find options that fit the type of experience they are hungry for.
More than 150 Orange County restaurants will participate in OC Restaurant Week, like Verdant in Costa Mesa, offering vegetarian items like roasted sweet potato.
(Don Leach / Staff Photographer)
Under “Brunch and Breakfast,” there are details for special morning offerings. One is a choice of breakfast entrees like Santa Fe eggs benedict or coconut French toast with a latte for $25 at Plums Cafe in Costa Mesa. Great Maple, which has locations in Anaheim and Newport Beach, is offering a $35 brunch menu that includes coffee, tea or a soft drink and an entree course with choices that include chilaquiles made with chorizo, eggs, salsa verde, onions and roasted peppers or modern American breakfast with eggs any style, your choice of protein, and vegan smashed avocado toast followed by a choice of dessert with flourless chocolate torte or a maple bacon doughnut as options.
Those looking for vegetarian dishes will find special menus from places such as Shorebird in Newport Beach, Summit House Restaurant in Fullerton or Veggie Grill by Next Level in Tustin. Verdant, a vegetarian restaurant in Costa Mesa, will offer a $20 three-course lunch menu with choice of homemade ricotta cheese with roasted beet or hearts of palm tostada for first course and Koji roasted yam with crema, salsa macha and toasted sesame seeds or a quinoa salad with cucumber, citrus, jicama, radish and chipotle mezcal sauce as an entree. The meal ends with a tres leches cake with strawberry sorbet for dessert.
Launch party planned
OC Restaurant Week kicks off with a VIP Launch Party on Saturday, March 7 at the Marriott Irvine Spectrum. The 21-and-over event will feature food samples from many of the week’s participating restaurants like CUCINA enoteca, Casa Ramos, Lola’s by MFK, Ospi, Scratch Bakery, the Crack Shack and Villa Roma. The samples will be paired with sips from Paso Robles Wines, along with premium cocktails and mocktails from High West Whiskey, Licor 43 and tequila brands, Mi Campo and Casa Noble.
OC Restaurant Week kicks off with a VIP Launch Party on March 7 at the Marriott Irvine Spectrum.
(Sarah Mosqueda)
Proceeds from the party will benefit California Love Drop, an organization that started during the COVID-19 pandemic as a way to provide meals to healthcare workers and first responders but has continued to serve meals at community events. Since it began in 2020, California Love Drop has delivered over 70,000 meals. Waitt said its mission closely aligns with events like OC Restaurant Week.
“There’s a shared understanding that something meaningful is happening across our community as we celebrate the many individuals who are the backbone of our culinary community, from owners and chefs, to cooks and servers,” Waitt said.
For tickets to the kick-off event and a complete list of participating restaurants and their menus for the week visit ocrestaurantweek.com.