Can you believe it’s already back? The biggest 3 day event this town sees every year for over 30 years…yep, I’m talking about the Orange International Street Fair. It’s on it’s merry way and this event is INSANE. We’re talking people packed in, grubbing on a variety of bites from all over the world, drinking in the beer, listening to some tunes and just having a GOOD TIME!
Typically, this weekend brings hundreds of thousands of people to OTO and it always seems to be quite hot, but I was looking at the weather this morning and it’s looking like low 80s (update as of 9/1 – looking like low 90s now, yikes), which sounds kind of perfect to me, let’s pray to whomever we pray to that it doesn’t get ANY hotter than that and it should be a pretty sweet weekend.
This year’s theme is ”A World of Flavor at Your Finger Tips!” … we all know the truth in that theme as we’ve got our favorites from years past, mine being the teriyaki skewers on Ginza/Asian Street, SO GOOD!!! Being a local though, I usually like to come back more than once so I can eat up all my favorites. There’s this one booth on Mexican Street that makes the yummiest quesadillas on corn tortillas, then there’s the corn on American Street, the Gyro’s on Greek Street, the Brats on German Street, I could go on…it just can’t all be eaten on one trip there!
One of the most amazing things about the Street Fair is that every cent earned goes to over 50 non-profit charities that help people in the Orange and surrounding communities. Many of these organizations rely heavily on profits made from the Street Fair.
There is no entrance fee for the Street Fair. However, Ethnic Streets, Arts and Crafts and Children’s Street set their own fees and rates for participating in the Fair. To buy alcohol, you first need to buy a wristband showing valid identification (like a driver’s license) at any of the wristband booths throughout the Fair.
The hours of this year’s Street Fair are Friday (9/2), 5-10pm and Saturday (9/3)-Sunday (9/4), 10am-10pm. Sale of alcohol, beer and wine will end at 9pm exactly, no exceptions.
The Street Fair is located in a four-square block area radiating out from the center of the Orange Plaza (Chapman & Glassell). Here’s a map of the Street Fair.
Last Updated on May 24, 2023 by Pattie Cordova
It’s also a great weekend to check out the local merchants around the Plaza. While everyone’s attention is usually on the booths in the middle of the road, the streets are lined with small, locally-owned (and air conditioned!) shops and eateries. Since we opened 6 years ago, we’ve been pleased to see how many more businesses remain open during the fair. Be sure to duck into one of the many stores to cool off and escape the crowds between nibbles.
Adrienne
CharmingShoppe on Glassell
(or, for this weekend, in the Ginza, next to the teriyaki stand!)