With a vibrant performing arts scene, fashion straight from the runway and award-winning dining options, Costa Mesa is known as the City of the Arts™. This coastal town just a mile from the Pacific Ocean will surprise Southern California visitors with its urban, cosmopolitan feel. As home of an international shopping destination visited by millions every year and an incredible arts and theater complex, Costa Mesa also offers an exciting public art walk, 29 different parks and was rated one of the most walkable cities in the United States.
Costa Mesa may stand out most of all for its exciting shopping destinations. The crown jewel of shopping, South Coast Plaza, is located in the heart of Costa Mesa – featuring over 250 boutiques, including the world’s most storied fashion brands like Gucci, Louis Vuitton, Fendi and more. The center offers 30 restaurants from fast casual options to some of Orange County’s most sought-after dining experiences. South Coast Plaza holds the distinction of having the highest concentration of designer/brand fashion retail stores in the country and USA Today recognized the center as one of the top 5 shopping centers in the U.S.
Costa Mesa is also home to The LAB and The CAMP, two eclectic and eco-friendly shopping venues. The CAMP features stores focused on an organic, fitness-based lifestyle. Its sister property, The LAB, offers unique boutique shopping and restaurants focused on fresh, organic and even vegan cuisine. And the newest shopping additions to Costa Mesa include The OC MIX and SoCo Collection. The OC MIX offers a unique collection of pop-up boutiques and specialty food shops, and the adjacent SoCo Collection is the place to shop for Orange County’s design and culinary-centric aficionados.
Costa Mesa is home to Segerstrom Center for the Arts (SCFTA), one of the nation’s most innovative and technically advanced homes for the performing arts. SCFTA features a spectacular concert hall, a multi-use theater, an education center and community plaza adjacent to the South Coast Plaza shopping center. SCFTA and its venues are situated on a 14-acre campus that encompasses two other major arts organizations, including the Tony® Award-winning South Coast Repertory and the future site of the new Orange County Museum of Art. Along with world-famous performers gracing the stage such as Luciano Pavarotti and Tony Bennett, SCFTA is also the performance home of The Philharmonic Society of Orange County, Pacific Chorale and Pacific Symphony.
Several pieces of public art and sculpture make up Costa Mesa’s incredible art walk. The largest and most bold piece of art is located on the SCFTA campus – “Connector” by Richard Serra is a 65-foot-high, 360-ton sculpture of weathered steel on a pentagonal ground plan. Across the street from SCFTA, guests can stroll through “California Scenario”, an outdoor sculpture garden built in 1982. Located on 1.6 acres in the center of a corporate plaza, the garden was designed to symbolize various geographical characteristics in California, incorporating indigenous plants and materials. Throughout the city, visitors can view other pieces of art by such accomplished artists as Jean Dubuffet, Frank Gehry and Joan Miró.
Costa Mesa is a leader in the Orange County food scene, its restaurants receiving accolades and recognition from local and national media. Taco Maria in The OC MIX has been winning awards right and left, with its Michelin-star winning chef and owner Carlos Salgado. From the OC Register to LA Times to Food & Wine Magazine, this modern Mexican restaurant in The OC MIX is recognized as a hotspot in Orange County. Portola Coffee in The MIX has been wowing coffee aficionados with its quality, traceable, fresh-roasted and fresh-brewed coffee in a shop fashioned after a chemistry lab. In The CAMP, Old Vine Café is an open-air Italian bistro with locals reverent for its decadent breakfast and fixed-price wine pairing dinners. ARC, in SoCo Collection, is an American eatery where everything is made in house or sourced from local artisan producers, and every single item served is cooked in a wood-burning oven. ARC has won awards and recognition from the LA Times, OC Weekly, KTLA-5 and others.
Marché Moderne in South Coast Plaza is rated by top food critics as the best French bistro in Orange County. Guests can enjoy classic French dishes like moules frites or coq au vin in a warm romantic setting or outside on the garden patio with a retractable roof. Din Tai Fung, also in South Coast Plaza, is a world-renowned Shanghai dumpling restaurant with its only Orange County location in Costa Mesa. The chain has been winning culinary awards around the globe, including the U Favorite Food Award, Time Out Magazine’s 50 Top Dishes, Gayot’s top 10 OC restaurants and Michelin stars for its Hong Kong location.
With its central location in Orange County and proximity to attractions like Southern California beaches and the Disneyland® Resort, Costa Mesa is a perfect place to stay for an OC getaway!
