New Santa Ana | Category Archives: Food

DTSA’s Little Sparrow cafe has closed for now and will become BlackBox

Posted on April 15, 2016 by Art Pedroza Posted in Alcohol, Business, Food, Restaurants, Santa Ana 1 Comment

Do you remember the Little Sparrow cafe in DTSA? They were opened just a few years ago in 2013, by Bruce Marsh and his wife, Naseem Aflakian, who live in Floral Park. At the time Marsh did not appear to have much experience in the restaurant business.

Apparently Marsh and his wife have closed the Little Sparrow and are going to keep it but change it to something they are calling BlackBox, according to their website.

Here are excerpts from the message Marsh posted on their website about their transition: Continue reading→

More than 3,600 O.C. food establishments receive 2016 Awards of Excellence

Posted on April 12, 2016 by Art Pedroza Posted in Food, Food & Health, Health and Medical, Orange County, Restaurants, Santa Ana Leave a comment

More Than 3,600 Orange County Food Establishments Receive Awards of Excellence

(Santa Ana) – The County of Orange Health Care Agency (HCA) has issued the 2016 Award of Excellence to 3,630 Orange County food facilities to recognize local businesses for their outstanding food safety and sanitation practices during 2015.

The annual Award of Excellence was created to provide an incentive for retail food businesses that consistently meet or exceed health and safety standards for food facility operations. In 1999, the first year of the program, 584 food establishments received the recognition. With increased outreach and improved compliance with food safety laws, the number of recipients has grown significantly since its inception. Continue reading→

The world’s leading discount supermarket, Aldi, is opening in Orange County on 4/21

Posted on April 7, 2016 by Art Pedroza Posted in Anaheim, Business, Deals, Food, Fountain Valley, Orange County Leave a comment

ALDI Arrives in Los Angeles and Orange Counties, Brings Quality and Freshness for Less

One of America’s Favorite Grocers* to Open 10 New Stores on Thursday, April 21

Batavia, Ill. – April 7, 2016 – Residents in Los Angeles and Orange Counties will soon be able to experience a whole new way to grocery shop at ALDI, one of America’s favorite grocers. On Thursday, April 21, ALDI will open 10 new Southern California locations, six of which are in Los Angeles County, three in Orange County and one new store in San Bernardino County. The easy-to-shop food market takes a simple approach to grocery shopping that translates into big savings for ALDI shoppers. In fact, shoppers have found that switching from national brands to ALDI exclusive brands can save them up to 50 percent** on their grocery bill. Continue reading→

Get a coupon for $4 off the Bowers Museum Mummies of the World exhibit at Chronic Tacos

Posted on April 7, 2016 by Art Pedroza Posted in Arts and Culture, Deals, Food, Orange County, Restaurants, Santa Ana Leave a comment

Get Wrapped Up with Mummies of the World and Chronic Tacos

Experience the World’s Largest Exhibition of Mummies and Savor California-Inspired Mexican Fare with New Cross Promotion

Aliso Viejo, Calif. – Chronic Tacos, the California-inspired Mexican Grill, and Bowers Museum, Orange County’s finest arts museum, embark on an upcoming cross-promotion that highlights the debut of the nationally recognized collection: Mummies of the World: The Exhibition. Starting now, guests who dine at any Orange County Chronic Tacos location will receive a coupon for $4 off an adult ticket for Mummies of the World. Guests attending the Mummies of the World exhbit at Bowers Museum will also receive vouchers with a special code to text to receive a free taco with the purchase of a drink.

“Now in our 14th city, we’re excited to finally open our doors in Orange County,” said Marcus Corwin, President of American Exhibitions Inc. “We are excited to be working with Chronic Tacos, a partner who shares our values in giving back to the local communities that we work in.” Continue reading→

Another hip DTSA restaurant closes as North Left goes the way of The Crosby

Posted on April 6, 2016 by Art Pedroza Posted in Business, Crime, Food, Restaurants, Santa Ana Leave a comment

The North Left, the downtown Santa Ana restaurant that replaced The Crosby after the awful murder of one of their patrons, who was literally kicked to death outside the restaurant by two women in 2014, has closed their doors according to the O.C. Register.

The owners, Phil Nisco, Chris Alfaro and Marc Yamaoka, hired Ryan Adams, a Laguna Beach chef at Three Seventy Common, to oversee the new operations at North Left, which opened pretty quickly after The Crosby shut down. Continue reading→

Hometown Buffet has closed their location on South Bristol Street

Posted on April 6, 2016 by Art Pedroza Posted in Business, Food, Restaurants, Santa Ana Leave a comment

One of the Hometown Buffet locations in Santa Ana (at 2321 South Bristol St.) has closed down, just weeks after their parent company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, according to the O.C. Register.

HomeTown Buffet’s parent company, Ovation, third Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection filing in eight years last month. They may close up to 300 locations of restaurants that include Old Country Buffet, Ryan’s, Fire Mountain and Tahoe Joe’s, according to CNBC. Continue reading→

Waste Not OC named model public health practice by the National Assn. of County and City Health Officials

Posted on April 3, 2016 by Art Pedroza Posted in Charities, Food, homeless, Orange County, Santa Ana Leave a comment

Waste Not OC Named Model Public Health Practice by National Association of County and City Health Officials

Waste Not OC, a coalition working to combat food insecurity in Orange County, has been selected as a model practice by the National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO) after demonstrating exemplary and replicable qualities in response to a local public health need.

In Orange County, one in five people faces food insecurity on any given day. To address this growing social problem, the County of Orange Health Care Agency’s Public Health Officer spearheaded the creation of a coalition of food banks, health care representatives, restaurants, food distributors, and community leaders called Waste Not OC. The organization is a public-private partnership with the goal of eliminating hunger and reducing food waste by facilitating surplus food donations from food-producing facilities to local pantries. Continue reading→

Ratones found at several eateries at MainPlace Mall’s food court

Posted on March 8, 2016 by Art Pedroza Posted in Food, Health and Medical, Orange County, Santa Ana 5 Comments

There are still a few cultures in the world that enjoy eating rodents. For example guinea pigs are a delicacy in Peru, where many people eat them as their birthday meal. And hillbillies here in the U.S. still like to dig into squirrel stew. But for the most part, here in the U.S., Americans do not like the thought of mice in the kitchen, despite Pixar’s popular Ratatouille movie.

With that in mind, a recent inspection by the O.C. Health Care Agency, at the MainPlace Mall, which was recently sold, turned up rodent infestations at several of the food court eateries, according to the O.C. Register.

Here are the eateries that got busted: Continue reading→

Santa Ana’s boy scouts will host a pancake breakfast fundraiser this Sunday

Posted on February 13, 2016 by Art Pedroza Posted in Charities, Family, Food, Santa Ana, Youth Activities 1 Comment

Support your local boy scouts! Santa Ana’s historic Troop 28 is hosting their final pancake breakfast fundraiser for this year this Sunday, February 14, 2016 from 8 a.m. to 10 a.m., at the First Congregational Church, located at 2555 Santiago Street, in Santa Ana.

Come on down and have a great breakfast cooked by the Boy Scouts!
Continue reading→

Super King Markets will replace the closed down Ralphs in Santa Ana

Posted on February 13, 2016 by Art Pedroza Posted in Food, Santa Ana 4 Comments

Super King Markets will replace a former Ralphs location at 2741 W. MacArthur Blvd. in Santa Ana which closed on Oct. 23. Super King Markets plans to open this summer, according to the O.C. Register.

I never heard of Super King. Apparently they have six locations including one in Anaheim. According to their website, they are the ” leader of international foods at the lowest prices and highest quality.” Continue reading→

Bill Medley to perform at a concert at S.A. High School to raise money for scholarships

Posted on February 13, 2016 by Art Pedroza Posted in Charities, Education, Food, music, Santa Ana, SAUSD, Youth Activities Leave a comment

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: February 2, 2016

Contact: Deidra Powell, Chief Communications Officer, (714) 558-5555 Office, (714) 673-4995 Mobile

Bill Medley from The Righteous Brothers to Perform at Benefit Concert at Santa Ana High School for Student Scholarships

(February 2, 2016) – Enjoy the wonderful sounds of Santa Ana High School’s Own Bill Medley, best known as half of the unmistakable duo, The Righteous Brothers as Medley performs to raise money for Dollars for Scholars, a scholarship program to benefit music students at Santa Ana High School. “If it were not for the Santa Ana Unified School District and the encouragement that Bill received while attending Santa Ana High School, he would not be where he is today,” said Bobbie Rooker, sister of Medley.

Medley’s musical legacy continues to live as such notable popular hits “You’ve Lost that Love Feelin” and “Time of My Life” are still America’s all-time favorites. In fact, “Time of My Life” for the film Dirty Dancing earned an Oscar, a Golden Globe, Video of the Year, and a Grammy. Continue reading→

Local Boy Scouts to host two pancake breakfasts in Santa Ana this month

Posted on February 6, 2016 by Art Pedroza Posted in Charities, Food, Santa Ana, Youth Activities Leave a comment

Support your local boy scouts! Santa Ana’s historic Troop 28 is hosting two pancake breakfast fundraisers this month and our boys really need your support. Show up and have a great breakfast cooked by the Boy Scouts!

The first pancake breakfast will be held on Sunday, February 7, 2016, from 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. at the Santa Ana United Methodist Church located at 2121 N. Grand Ave – in the Fellowship Hall. Continue reading→

A Playground for cucarachas?

Posted on January 17, 2016 by Art Pedroza Posted in Food, Health and Medical, Jason Quinn, Restaurants, Santa Ana 13 Comments

I wrote about Downtown Santa Ana’s upscale hipster restaurant, The Playground, back in January of 2013. At the time their owner, former food truck chef Jason Quinn, was flaming customers on Yelp and his restaurant had been dinged by the Orange County Health Agency for all sorts of hygiene issues.

Well it has been a while since I last scrutinized The Playground but guess what? Nothing has changed – they are still a mess and many of their patrons are still ripping them on Yelp. And Quinn is still flaming them in response.

Let’s take a look at The Playground’s most recent health inspection, on September 3, 2015. It did not go well. Here are the violations they were issued: Continue reading→

Pinkberry at the City Place in Santa Ana has closed down

Posted on January 11, 2016 by Art Pedroza Posted in Food, Santa Ana Leave a comment

The Pinkberry at the City Place in Santa Ana has closed, according to the O.C. Register.

The City Place lost two other restaurants last year – zpizza and McCormick & Schmick’s.

Pinkberry bills themselves as the original tart frozen yogurt brand from Los Angeles CA. They started in 2005, and have grown to 21 countries in just 10 years. Continue reading→

There is a lot to love about Santa Ana despite the ongoing gang war

Posted on January 11, 2016 by Art Pedroza Posted in Arts and Culture, Civic Affairs, Crime, Education, Family, Food, Restaurants, Santa Ana, Working Families, Youth Activities 2 Comments

I get a little tired about the constant bashing of Santa Ana. Yes the ongoing gang war sucks but there is still a lot to love about our city, such as:

$3 movies at the MainPlace Mall

When a new movie comes out my kids and I will quickly label it as either a “must-see” or a “$3 movie.” Most films are in the latter category (and a lot of them end up on our Redbox and Netflix list). While I would love it if there was a first run movie theater in Santa Ana I really like being able to go to the Picture Show at the MainPlace Mall to see movies that have been out for a few weeks, if not months, for only $3 (and only $2 on Tuesdays).

The MainPlace Mall

I really dislike South Coast Plaza. Who can afford what the stores there have to offer? But the MainPlace Mall is just the ticket with a decent array of stores and anchors and a great food selection that now includes wood-fired pizza at Blaze Pizza and bbq ribs at the new Lucille’s. There is ample parking and two frozen yogurt places – plus my eye doctor. The previous owners of the MainPlace Mall, Westfield, just sold the shopping center to a group of developers. I hope they don’t mess it up! Continue reading→