Hi-Time Wine Cellars - Things to Do in Orange County 18

Never Seen So Many Wine Bottles in One Place! A Huge Wine Cellar in Orange County – Hi-Time

If you like to drink, and drink especially wine, I’ve found an awesome store in Orange County that you cannot afford to miss. This store offers a one-of-a-kind experience. Once you enter the store, you’ll walk down the stairs, and into their huge walk-in wine cellar. There, you will be delighted to see thousands and thousands, and rows and rows of wines from all over the world!!

I have never seen this many bottles of wine at a single place.

Inside the wine cellar, wines are organized by region and types. Prices ranged from $7 a bottle to over $500 a bottle! Even if you are a wine enthusiast, you will likely find the wine you love here at Hi-Time.

I am not very knowledgeable about wine, so I picked up a few bottles of staff picks. They were reasonably priced and many of them were French wines. All of them were very good, I must also add.

In addition to wine, there is also a huge beer section. There’s another big walk-in refrigerator in the beer section where you can choose from a huge variety of beer as well. I personally enjoyed this section very much!

Basically at Hi-Time, you can find anything from all kinds of hard liquor and liqueur, cheeses, chocolates, and glassware. You can also walk into a huge humidor where you can pick out some of your most favorite cigars or pipe tobacco as well. It’s a great place to buy a gift for anybody, including yourself!

Hi-Time also has a wine tasting area to sample some of the store favorites at the time. If you love wine, this is definitely a place you must visit. And be sure to let me know if you find any great wines here!

Hi-Time, OC’s largest liquor store!

Hi-Time Wine Cellars
250 Ogle Street
Costa Mesa, CA 92627
http://www.hitimewine.net/

Store Hours: Sunday 10am -7pm
Mon-Wed 9am-8pm
Thurs-Sat 9am-9pm

The LAB - Things to Do in Orange County 12

Enjoy a Hip OC Afternoon at the Anti-Mall – The LAB

The LAB is Orange County’s one of most hip places with its trendy restaurants and retail stores. When it first opened, Urban Outfitters was one of its anchor tenants that brought in hip people around town to the Anti-Mall.

The LAB has expanded since then and now it has even more hip shops and restaurants than in the past.
The LAB has record stores, clothing boutique, beauty salons, and several restaurants. Some of the shops are a bit too hip for me, so I’ve never actually been able to go inside… But the restaurants and cafes there are casual enough so I’ve eaten there several times.

The Gypsy Den next to the Urban Outfitters is a very casual coffee shop with great little sandwiches. The Gypsy Den has an interesting interior decoration and a gallery. The café can be casually romantic, so it’s a good little spot for a casual date. The coffee and desserts are excellent there.

In addition to the Gypsy Den, The LAB also has a Cuban Food Restaurant called Habana. This restaurant is extremely romantic with live Flamenco players on selected nights. There is also a trendy sushi restaurant called ZIPANGU. You can enjoy great sushi here while enjoying the very contemporary décor.

So if you’re feeling hip or want to impress somebody in OC, this is definitely a place to check out for you!

The LAB
2930 Bristol Street
Costa Mesa, CA 92626
Ph: 714-966-6660
http://www.thelab.com/

Irvine Spectrum Center - Things to Do in Orange County 10

Dining, Shopping, Movies – The Entertainment Mecca of OC, Irvine Spectrum!

Massive Entertainment Center – That is the best description for the Irvine Spectrum, located on the south east edge of the city of Irvine.

Irvine Spectrum is the landmark entertainment center for the local South Orange County residents. The architecture of the mall is based on the Alhambra in Granada, Spain, and it is very inspiring to walk around because of it. Inside the Irvine Spectrum, you will find movie theaters, retail shops, restaurants, arcade, and department stores amongst other things. The Irvine Spectrum is great for those who is tired of the regular malls because it has a different feel from others due to its massiveness and choices of retailers at the location.

The 21-Screen Movie Theater was the largest in the United States when it was first built in 1995, and includes the 3D IMAX theaters as well. There are also four huge screen theaters where you can watch movies on a gigantic theater. I recommend you watch your next action movie here on the giant theater screens to get all of your money’s worth!

The dining experience here is also great where you can pick anything from fast food, sushi, or a yard of beer. It’s always difficult to decide what to eat here with so many choices. After dinner, or even for dinner, you can visit Dave & Buster’s to enjoy the food and the games here. Hang out with your friends or with your family at D&B for a night of fun!

The Irvine Spectrum seems to expand each year with different stores and concepts. Be sure to visit this Entertainment Mecca of Orange County soon!

Irvine Spectrum Center
71 Fortune Drive
Irvine, CA 92618
http://www.shopirvinespectrumcenter.com/

Retail
Sun-Thur: 10am-9pm
Fri & Sat: 10am-10pm

Restaurant & Entertainment
Sun-Thur: 11am-9pm
Fri & Sat: 11am-11pm

Prehistoric Pets - Things to Do in Orange County 8

Go Back to Jurassic Times at Prehistoric Pets!

Do you have a thing for reptiles? Snakes, lizards, turtles… You get the picture.

If you love reptiles, this unique little pet store in Fountain Valley may just be the spot for you!
Prehistoric Pets is located in a quiet little town of Orange County called Fountain Valley. It not exactly a place where you would expect this kind of unique pet store, but Prehistoric Pets has been operating for over two decades here.

When you enter the pet store the first thing you will encounter is a giant anaconda and a giant turtle. The snake is probably big enough to swallow a rabbit whole, and the turtle is huge enough to carry a baby on! Wow! But since the snake and the turtle don’t move very much, the excitement will come as you look to your right and see a whole pond inside the store.

The pond is filled with all kinds of reptiles and fishes that you’re usually not accustomed to seeing elsewhere. Turtles, giant catfishes, iguanas, and more! It is truly an amazing spectacle. The pet store allows you to buy a cup of mealworms for you to feed the turtles and the catfishes. You’ll usually see all kinds of children here in awe, feeding the fishes as their mothers screams away. A memorable experience in itself!

As you walk into the store, you’ll be greeted by the other reptiles. You’ll see all types of snakes, lizards, turtles, spiders, scorpions, and the like.

Prehistoric Pets can also host a Jurassic Party for kids for their birthdays. You’ll occasionally be encountered with screaming, laughing, and crying kids at these parties. It must be a pretty cool party. Too bad we didn’t have it when we were kids… :)

You can look into their website if you’re interested in buying reptiles online or for more information. Do you have the stomach for this unique pet store in Fountain Valley?

Prehistoric Pets
18822 Brookhurst St.
Fountain Valley, CA, 92708
(714) 964-3525
http://www.prehistoricpets.com/