Steamers Jazz Club and Cafe

Ever want to go out and listen to some live jazz in Orange County?

Well, the Steamers Jazz Club and Cafe is the spot to go. Located in downtown Fullerton, Steamers is one of my favorite places to go in OC. During the day, they operate as a regular coffee shop & cafe. But at night, that's when things start to happen.

Every night starting at 8PM, there is a jazz performance at this club. The awesome thing is that they don't charge a cover on most nights. You basically get to enjoy live jazz performances for the price of coffee cheaper than Starbucks! While you're there, don't forget that they also have great deals on their food too.

It's good practice to try and get there a little early since you want to get a good seat up at the front. You might also want to order some food prior to the show starting since that way, things aren't too crowded, and will be easier to order. The cafe itself is pretty big, but the stage really isn't, so you'll end up being tightly squeezed in with others to check out their daily jazz performances.

The experience at Steamers is excellent. You get that jazz club feel that you may find in New York or LA. The cool thing is that you're right here in OC.

Places like the Steamers is a rare gem in Orange County, and it should be OC's cultural treasure. Be sure to check it out next time you're feeling like you want to listen to some live jazz music.

Steamers Jazz Club and Cafe

138 W Commonwealth Ave

Fullerton, CA 92832

714-871-8800

http://www.steamerscafe.com/

Sun-Thu 7am-Midnight;

Fri-Sat 7am-12:30am

Jazz:　Sun-Thu 8pm-Midnight;

Fri-Sat 8:30pm-12:30am

Visit Joshua Tree National Park - Things to Do in Orange County

Though I know Joshua Tree isn't in Orange County, it is about a one and a half hour drive, so I wanted to post something about it.

Joshua Tree National Park is a pretty cool place. Filled with all kinds of funky trees, beautiful stars, and rock mountains, it really is a power spot where you can go and rejuvenate from all the daily stress. The Joshua Park National Park is a great hiking/camping/rock climbing spot, and you can walk through a variety of trails there.

We got to visit Joshua Tree this summer, and hiked through all kinds of trails in 106 degree weather. It was pretty hot when we went, so you will definitely need water, sun block, and a big hat to keep you away from the sun. You might want to go check out a swap meet in Orange County to buy a big farmer's hat for $4.

When we went, we stayed at the Spin and Margie's Desert Hide-a-Way. It was a cute little bed and breakfast (no breakfast though) type of hotel with only five rooms. The owners at this hotel did an awesome job with their hotel, and it surely is a place where you can re-energize from the daily hustle and bustle.

At night, the stars were amazingly beautiful since there really aren't any city lights in Joshua Tree. You can see all kinds of stars that you never knew existed above us. We went during a time when there were a bunch of shooting stars, so got to see a few of them while we were there.

If you're feeling stressed, or just want to get in touch with nature again, Joshua Tree National Park is one great place you go and check out. Only about an hour and a half from Orange County.

Joshua Tree National Park

74485 National Park Drive

Twentynine Palms, CA 92277

(760) 367-5500

http://www.nps.gov/jotr/

7-Day Vehicle Permit: $15

Visit a Brand New Whole Foods Market - Things to Do in Orange County 69

There's something about a new market that you love. Everything is in order. Fully stocked. Clean. They're willing to give you a lot of free samples. And its just fun seeing a new grocery store.

There's a brand new Whole Foods Market in Huntington Beach. Just opened this week on October 13th, 2010. It is inside the Bella Terra Mall in Huntington Beach. This will be the third Whole Foods Market in Orange County. The other two are in Irvine and Laguna Beach.

I took some photos there since I like to see fully stock stores with aisles of products neatly stacked.

So here are some pictures that I took. I'm testing out a Flickr feature. New to Flickr still... I hope you like it.

I'm so glad to see the Bella Terra Mall in Huntington Beach is doing well these days. I've been a Huntington Beach resident for almost 28 years, and the old Huntington Beach Mall was one of my favorite spots to go when I was a kid.

Whole Foods Market, Huntington Beach

Inside the Bella Terra Mall

7881 Edinger Ave Suite 150
Huntington Beach, CA 92647 USA

Phone 657.200.4200

Store hours:
7am – 10pm Everyday

Visit a Sonic Drive-In - Things to Do in Orange County 68

There is finally a Sonic Drive-In in Orange County. The Santa Ana one is a pretty convenient location since it is close to South Coast Plaza and Orange Coast College.

Anyway, visiting a Sonic Drive-In is pretty cool if it's your first time.

You drive-in to a little parking spot that is all yours, and order off of a "drive-thru-like" device. You can take all the time in the world since the order taker doesn't talk to you until you push the "ready to order" button. Of course, you can go to their website and check out their menu before you go, since what you see on the website is exactly what you'll see when you order.

http://www.sonicdrivein.com/home.jsp#/menu

Sonic Drive-In has a cool atmosphere since you order from your car, wait in your car for the food to arrive, and eat in your car. I guess we experience all this anyway at a normal drive thru, but the only difference is that you are parked and the engine is off. I guess that's what makes it feel different and a little special.

The food here is pretty good. Sort of a good fast food quality food. I would say it's comparable to a Wendy's or a Carl's Jr. We got the Super Sonic Cheeseburger and the Bacon Cheeseburger Toaster with a side of Chili Cheese Tots. Good stuff.

After we paid with a credit card, a cute girl in roller skates brought us our food in about 5 minutes.

What really impressed me at Sonic Drive-In was their drinks. They have awesome drinks! We got the famous Cherry Limeade and the Coke Blended Float. I have to say, I was a bartender in the past, and I'm pretty picky about my drinks; but these drinks were awesome. Especially the blended float. I'm sure it's just a coke float blended, but it was perfectly smooth, easy to drink, and extremely tasty.

Now, I really want to go and check out their shakes and malts as well since those must be awesome too.

Anyway, this seems like a pretty cool date spot that won't cost you a fortune. They're open late too - 12AM. I also want to try going on a rainy day since I like to hang out inside my car on a rainy day. It must be good drinking a shake and eating a burger in the rain in your car.

Since Sonic is a pretty new thing in OC, it's definitely worth a try!

Sonic Drive-In

3541 S Fairview St

Santa Ana, CA 92704

http://www.sonicdrivein.com