What if you could skip the cooking and enjoy a Thanksgiving dinner at one of our celebrated restaurants, take the family to a holiday event AND get your shopping done Black Friday or Small Business Saturday? Enjoy your break with these 5 ways to spend Thanksgiving in Costa Mesa. Visit during the holidays and get one of our holiday hotel deals starting as low as $99.
Thanksgiving Dinner
Several Costa Mesa restaurants are serving up some delicious Thanksgiving dinners. Silver Trumpet Restaurant & Bar, in Avenue of the Arts, a Tribute Portfolio Hotel, is serving a family-style, prix fixe menu. Choose between butternut squash fritters or corn chowder for a starter, market greens or baby arugula salad, turkey and ham or prime rib for the entree and, for dessert, pumpkin creme brulee or carrot cake. All meals come with stuffing, mashed potatoes and green beans.
Le Chateau Garden Bistro, at Ayres Hotel Costa Mesa / Newport Beach, has a 3-course Thanksgiving menu, plus complimentary glass of house wine with fresh baked sourdough bread and olive tapenade. Choose between butternut squash soup or winter green salad to start. The entree is an oven roasted sliced turkey breast with port gravy, creamy mashed potatoes, fresh roasted winter vegetables and homemade stuffing with Italian sausage and herbs. For dessert, choose pumpkin pie with whipped cream and caramel sauce or apple crisp with vanilla bean ice cream.
Cafe Sevilla, in Triangle Square, has a three-course menu (two-course for kids) that includes choices of starter, entree and dessert. The full dinner menu is also available.
The Capital Grille dine-in option comes with slow-roasted turkey with brioche stuffing, French green beans, cranberry-pear chutney, Sam’s mashed potatoes and pumpkin cheesecake. There’s also a take home option with all of the sides that serves 4.
If you’re eating Thanksgiving Dinner at home, Mastro’s, named best steakhouse byThe Orange County Register, has you covered with their family dinner kits for 4. The cook-at-home kits come with Caesar salad, three-bone prime rib with au jus and creamy horseradish, garlic mashed potatoes, mashed sweet potatoes, creamed corn, creamed spinach and cinnamon pecan butter cake.
Vaca is also offering a Thanksgiving to-go package that serves 4 to 6. The dinner includes a whole roasted Mary’s Farm all-natural turkey with gravy, roasted squash and banana soup, buttermilk chives mashed potatoes, orange scented cranberry sauce, Santana famous Italian sausage corn bread stuffing, bourbon and maple glazed yams with candied pistachios, charred broccolini with toasted garlic and preserved lemons. Plus, four desserts to choose from: pecan pie, pumpkin pie, apple pie or cheesecake.
For South Coast Plaza restaurants offering Thanksgiving dinner options, click here.
Night of Lights OC
Get in the holiday spirit with Night of Lights OC at OC Fair & Event Center! Opening the day after Thanksgiving, the drive-thru experience is a perfect family-friendly event. Enjoy the mile-long winter wonderland filled with characters, snow and over a million lights. You might just spot Santa too! Pre-order holiday treats to eat during the drive. If you go opening weekend, you can receive 40% off with the code BLACKFRIDAY.
A Christmas Carol at South Coast Repertory
A Christmas Carol returns live to the stage at South Coast Repertory! The Orange County family tradition will feature SCR founding member Richard Doyle taking on the role of Ebenezer Scrooge. Bring the whole family to see the classic story from Charles Dickens. A Christmas Carol opens November 27.
Black Friday
Where else should you spend Black Friday except the largest shopping destination on the West Coast? Shop what they call “Fabulous Friday” at South Coast Plaza, which has 250 boutiques and 30 restaurants to choose from. Check the South Coast Plaza calendar for the Black Friday specials you just can’t miss.
Small Business Saturday
Support Small Business Saturday in Costa Mesa at The LAB Anti-Mall, The CAMP, SOCO and The OC Mix and more. The LAB has celebrated the “Little American Business” for over 25 years. The indoor/outdoor space hosts an eclectic array of small businesses including a zero waste refill shop, record store, boutiques in Airstream trailers and more. Across the street at The CAMP, you’ll find another collection of unique shops such as SEED Peoples Market which carries ethical and eco-friendly clothes, accessories and home goods. There’s even a shop within Blackmarket Bakery with fun gift ideas.
The variety of boutiques at SOCO and The OC Mix continues to grow. Within The OC Mix, you can find Savory Spice Shop with great gift collections for home cooks, The Mixing Glass for the mixologist of the family, clothing boutiques and a recently opened luxury pet store. SOCO and The OC Mix hosts an annual Small Business Saturday event with tenants offering special discounts at shops and restaurants. There’s even a special event for kids from 11:00am to 12:00pm with hot cocoa, treats and a sing-a-long with Mrs. Claus!
