Costa Mesa Unlocked: Revealing Experiences You Won’t Find Anywhere Else

Celeb chef-turned-actor Matty Matheson (you probably recognize him from The Bear) opened Matty’s Patty’s Burger Club in Toronto, where it received gangbuster reviews. You don’t have to fly to Canada to get a taste of one of these saucy, saucy burgers or gooey poutine: the only other location is in Costa Mesa! (P.S. Get the Pineapple Soft Serve for dessert. It’s the perfect finish.)

Ain’t no fair like the OC Fair! Running from mid-July to mid-August, this summer extravaganza has rides, live music with artists like Melissa Ethridge, Fitz & the Tantrums, and Blues Traveler, and deep-fried everything, along with fresh, healthier options. While the Fair has wrapped up for 2025, the excitement doesn’t end when the Fair does. The Fairgrounds hosts events all year. We’re looking forward to OC Japan Fair in October for the incredible food, and Gem Faire in December for everything that stuns and sparkles. The OC Fair & Events Center brings all the classic, nostalgic fun of a county fair, but bigger, better, and with Southern Californian flavor.

Got a case of FOMO? Try out viral experiences IRL in Costa Mesa, like LXRYoga’s famous (and adorable) snake yoga. Sure, goat yoga has been all the rage on the apps, but snake yoga is another thing entirely; the snakes are friendly and calm, there’s five minutes of photo opps to get your perfect snake selfie, and you get to hang out with a slithery new friend.

If snakes give you creepy-crawlies, there’s another viral hit in Booth by Bryant. Miss the old analog photobooths and their cute black-and-white pics? They’re a relic of the past, but in Costa Mesa, you can hop into a vintage booth and bring back memories or make new ones.

Costa Mesa has all sorts of shopping experiences that think outside of the box. The CAMP is a green, eco-conscious, and healthy-minded outdoor retail campus with tons of dining options, sustainable and artisanal shops, and even a ceramic and pottery studio. Every time we go to the CAMP, we find something new to obsess over; recently, it’s been the 2nd Street USA location, where we’re obsessed with the well-curated, premium secondhand goods.

The LAB is not a mall; it’s an anti-mall. The variety of shops and restaurants—like Buffalo Exchange for thrifting, an Airstream trailer selling vinyls at Creme Tangerine, and Chef Atsushi Yokoyama’s Hana re, just to name a few—puts hometown malls to shame. Not that we have anything against an Orange Julius, patron saint of our childhoods, but we’d much rather go to a speakeasy like RUIN and have a Kiki Kiwi cocktail.

We saved some of the best for last with South Coast Plaza. Not only is it the largest shopping center on the West Coast, with over 250 retailers, but it’s also the home to incredible food and the Segerstrom Center for the Arts (where you can find OCMA). South Coast Plaza is the West Coast–exclusive home to brands like Alexander Wang, Missoni, Khaite, and Chopard. Beverly Hills who?