Holy Crap. I am a sucker for great service, great food and scenery. This place has it all. We started with the pretzel bites, amazing. The server let us know that it's a scratch kitchen, you don't get that a lot anywhere. We had a couple beers. My friend ordered the katsu sandwich and I ordered the fried chicken. He said the sandwich was impressive. My chicken was fresh, flavorful and juicy AF. The one item on my plate that I fell in love with was the coleslaw. It was fresh, crispy and flavorful. I will be back for more. read more

Culinary Dropout - Fried Chicken - New American Near Me - Orange, California

This place would be 100x better if a dropout actually made the food here. Service & hospitality were great, the ambiance and music were good but the food was NOT IT. And who thought it was ok to blindly serve customers Keystone light & a Smirnoff shot?! I got the double blind thinking they would blindly serve a can of beer & shot that matched the level of their drink menu that's full of cocktails and craft beer... instead I got a can of keystone light & a shot raspberry Smirnoff.... This was not a tasteful joke and they wouldn't take it back... Nachos had the same chips from Taco Bell, no real cheese & pork belly that clearly came from a microwave. For $18... for real? The wings... only came with 4 wings and sliced carrots tossed in the sauce with the wings... trying too hard to be crafty Ran out of fries so we got steak and mac & cheese instead of frites That actually was good. But 6oz for $40?! The fried chicken was crunchy & juicy tho! But not much flavor. This is clearly a corporate restaurant group trying to take the local pub/craft industry culture and package it up for the masses. Either it's going to ruin people's perspective of craft cocktails and dishes by being overpriced & underwhelming OR its gonna set the bar so low that when they finally have food from an actual culinary dropout/industry lifer, their mind is gonna be blown. My hope is for the latter read more

This spot feels like the original Tempe location went to finishing school--polished, a little more upscale, but still every bit as lovable. From the moment you pull up (hello, complimentary valet ), it's clear they're serious about the experience. Service? On point. Ambiance? Just fancy enough to impress without feeling stuffy. Food? Absolutely nails it. Do yourself a favor and order the turkey pastrami sandwich with the side salad and house-made ranch. One bite and you'll swear you've been teleported to a New York deli--minus the post-meal nap and cardiologist on speed dial. Flavorful, indulgent, but somehow still virtuous. A rare culinary unicorn. Every server we encountered looked genuinely happy to be there, which says a lot. Special shout-out to Lilly, who took great care of us and made the meal feel effortless and welcoming. Bonus points: if you've got kids at Chapman University or the law school, this is the perfect meet-up spot. It's an easy walk, neutral-territory cool, and good enough that everyone leaves happy--which is no small feat when parents are buying lunch. Bottom line: upscale comfort food done right, stellar service, and zero regrets. I'll be back. read more

Culinary Dropout - View from table - New American Near Me - Orange, California

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Love this new addition to downtown Orange! We've dined at the Culinary Dropout in Scottsdale but I enjoyed the food better at the Orange location :) Favorite Dishes: Spicy Tuna Crispy Rice (the rice to tuna ratio was prefect), Mongolian Short Rib, Mississippi Mud Pie (sooo good!) Okay Dishes: Soft Pretzels & Provolone Fondue, Fish & Chips, Asian Crunch Salad (dressing was too heavy though) Least favorite dishes: Korean Style Rib-Eye Cap, Monkey Bread (the apple was overpowering) Our server was great, the ambiance was poppin' and they had a great cocktail and wine list. read more

Service and drinks were great but the food was so bland. The breakfast burrito was the worst breakfast burrito I've seen

Nice place near the Orange Circle. Service was wonderful. We had a large party with multiple orders. For the most part everything was fine. Nothing to write home about but the price was rather high for relatively smaller portions. Didn't love this place but I'm not in a rush to come back because I really don't feel like I'm getting the bang for my buck read more

Finally got to try this place! And yes I would come back! Brought my mom and a wife to celebrate and Mia our amazing waitress made the experience even more rememberable she was great! Thank you for the delicious lemon strawberry cake! And they gave it to us because we were celebrating my premier in new York which was very nice ! I had the FRIED CHICKEN and it was on POINT!!! Big portions and came out FRESH! Oh and the FISH AND CHIPS plate was FIRE!!!!!! The steak fritas were TASTY AND TENDER!!!! thanks again Mia for making our experience one to remember!! read more

The service was incredible The ambience was so good. We sat outside. The inside looked cool. I feel like you can go there for a different event events like a date, girls, family...all so good. Good location. Food was mid Like lacked some flavor 1- nachos needed salsa. She gave us pico and it made it exponentially better 2- wings were just ok. It says it's got all this stuff in it but they're just wings 3- non alcoholic lemonade sparkling was bomb!!! 4- the mudpie is with chocolate ganache. It's just too decadent. It was OK for one bite. But it was entirely too rich. read more

Food was creative and delicious. We asked them to split our entrees so we could share, no problem. The bar had great choices in beer, server even asked if I wanted to taste first. Potato chips will be on every order when I return! My only suggestion is the first encounter when checking in for our reservation: could have taken stars away but I didn't. She said we may have to wait closer to our reservation time but we asked for patio and there were visibly 15 tables open. She said they were for other reservations before ours. She did not acknowledge us again and we were waiting 10 feet of her. We finally asked again at our reservation time and she went in to check and came out with our menus to seat us. No apology, nada. This is a training issue. Our server was great so it only temporarily made it a bad start. read more

I went last night with a friend of mine and we were treated so well I had to leave a review. What happened was interesting - we had experienced a couple of "inconveniences" during the meal, but I don't even think it's worth mentioning what they were because our server and the manager made up for it tenfold. They provided comps where applicable and made sure we were completely satisfied with everything and there wasn't even a hint of frustration or annoyance from them which made me feel reassured that I wasn't being a nightmare customer (I never want to be one). Despite the speedbumps we left extremely full and satisfied. Highly recommend the whipped feta app and the Haas Mocktails. Thank you! read more

I so want to love this place... I really do. Love the vibe. I have now been 3x, for a happy hour, brunch and most recently dinner. The drinks and the food are underwhelming. The service is okay. For a restaurant that says it has a great bar, any not invest in better glassware? The glasses are small and thin.. I guess to give the appearance of a large pour. I like the feeling of a beefy glass with a large ice cube. BTW, no large cubes either. So I stuck with beer. Peroni on tap was a nice surprise, I must admit. Now for the food. I cannot recall what I had for brunch, so it was clearly underwhelming. The most recent visit, we started with the potato chip and onion dip appetizer. The dip is great. But the chips were cold and greasy. So disappointing. For dinner, I had the Mongolian short rib. The concept with the short rib, rice, bok choy and egg was appealing. The meat was very tender. However, the meat was over sauced and the sauce itself it way too sweet. My fiancé had the fish and chips. Fish was hot and crispy... but it tasted like it was fried in old oil. The fries were meh.. and while not cold, they were not hot. We also had to ask the sever twice for malt vinegar. It arrived, late. Why wouldn't they just automatically bring it or at least ask if you would like it when they drop off the fish? I'm really hoping this place can be better... but it was packed and always seems to be very busy. I am likely not going back any time soon . read more

Got it delivered from Uber Eats never have I ever got hotter food than from here. They either got everything really hot or everything got here hot still but phenomenal dinner unbelievable. French fries the bomb burger. #EpicDinner. went back again today. Got a double burger with a salad the bomb a picture of the burger from day one twice once with me holding it and once in a thing because I inhaled the one today so fast I was starving it was gone, but I went two days in a row the second day I inhaled it and realized I needed to take pictures, but it was down the hatch already and then when I went to go post a review. I hadn't posted this one yet so I put another picture and went back and put a new post both days phenomenal one of the best burgers in town for sure.#2DaysInARowEpicDinner. read more

Culinary Dropout - My burger from today two days in a row, both phenomenal - New American Near Me - Orange, California

Service was great, we sat outside and the waiters were so attentive. I got the salad wasn't expecting much from it but it blew my mind and I would definitely recommend it! read more

It was our first time there as it was recommended. The service from the greeter to our server, Blake was terrific. Our glasses were never empty. My husband thought the fried chicken was delicious;crispy and not greasy (which is hard to do). I had the prime rib sandwich which was also good but I didn't thoroughly read the description and it had a horseradish spread on it. They offered to remake it but it wasn't necessary. My husband loves horseradish! If you haven't tried it, I recommend you do! read more

Culinary Dropout - Prime Rib Dip - New American Near Me - Orange, California

Enjoyed our first time to this restaurant located near Chapman University. Great ambience, we sat outside, hip vibe. Interesting menu and the food was good. Will definitely be back. read more

We are so grateful for the invite to the soft grand opening! Everyone was so inviting and kind. Our bartender Along was very knowledgeable about the food and drink and knew the right pairings to enjoy your culinary experience. For appetizers we had the Nachos and pretzel. Followed by our mains and dessert. You honestly can't go wrong, as everything I tried was fresh and top notch! The restaurant is beautifully decorated with a clean and modern feel. Nice layout and very enjoyable. We will be back and are looking forward to trying their brunch. Thanks, again! read more

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We came here for Mother's day with reservations, and I guess it was a good thing we did since it was quite busy. This was the first time we have been here and it's pretty nice inside. The ambiance is pretty young, college age and up, I assume since we were near Chapman University. Nothing wrong with that but just as a note! We were there during brunch time so we got the brunch menu. We ordered the wings as a starter, the salmon, the fried chicken and buttermilk biscuit and the pork hash bowl (?) I don't remember the name but it was on the brunch menu. lol Don't forget the drinks as well! I will say, the drinks were pretty tasty! Overall the food was good, however we found the food to be salted too heavily. The wings were sauced with buffalo sauce, which was delicious, but the salt on chicken breading was strong that the sauce couldn't save it. I give them that the wings were pretty big so no complaints on that part. All the dishes we got seemed to have a common theme of too much salt added. The salmon itself was salted a lot, the fried chicken was salty and the pork bowl hash was over all salty. I am not sure if that is intended that way but that was our observation. And the dish portion was a little small for the price. Service itself was okay as well, not the best. It was like our server was hiding until we were done. We couldn't find our server at any of the times we needed her, which was to order, check on our food, and if we needed water. She never came by through out our meal except to deliver the check. We had 2 empty water cups and no chance to get a refill after the salty food. Overall experience was okay/ good. Debating whether to try this place again. At least my mother was happy ! read more

Culinary Dropout - Fried Chicken & Buttermilk Biscuit* - New American Near Me - Orange, California

We came for their soft opening with absolutely no idea the vibe and only a brief peek at their menu online. The restaurant is very nicely decorated and the booths are comfortable. It gives a modern somewhat industrial Americana feel. We ordered several drinks from the cocktail menu as well as the lemonade off the mocktail menu. They were all really good. We got the hot wings and deviled eggs as appetizers. The wings were HUGE and the sauce on them was great. I also really liked their ranch - I'm assuming house made. The deviled eggs were also good but very rich. A lot of filling in each egg half. For entrees we ordered- MAC burger - their take on a Big Mac, with the extra bun in the middle. Huge burger and delicious. Short ribs - our friend ordered this and she loved it. Salmon - our other friend got this and was impressed. He did wish for a bit more veggie though. Ribeye - my husband ordered this and cleaned his plate. He said it was really good. I had a bite of the ribeye and was impressed. It isn't presented like a typical ribeye, and I liked that. Service was very attentive and we had a plethora of employees checking in on us. My only mini complaint is that they don't provide coasters or straws- you have to ask. So our waters and cocktails were sweating pretty badly from the warm weather and we had a bit of water pooling up under each drink. We will definitely be back! I can't wait to try more drinks and food off their menu. It's a unique menu with offerings you won't find elsewhere in the circle. read more

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My friends and I decided to do a girls night here with high hopes! Our server was very sweet and nice throughout our whole experience and was great at explaining things on the menu. When we got our food, we were underwhelmed and many pieces on the table were too salty like the fried chicken and the Asian crunch salad. The chicken katsu sandwich was alright, but not the best. Wagyu pigs in a blanket were very salty as well. Also, the pretzels were big and dry. For the fried chicken, my friend had asked for dark meat instead of how it is normally served with white meat, and they charged her an additional $6 for that change which they did not disclose. Also, we took an Asian Crunch salad to go, and there was an $8 charge to add chicken which is somewhat reasonable, but it was really just scraps. Photo is attached. I had talked to my best friend who had also dined here in the past and she shared similar thoughts. Just our experience, but just wanted to share! read more

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I had the pleasure of visiting Culinary Dropout twice recently--once for takeout and once for dine-in--and both experiences were genuinely memorable. For takeout, I tried the fried chicken, which was good, though I'd probably recommend enjoying their dishes fresh on-site for the best experience. On our return visit, we dined in, and I was absolutely impressed. The restaurant's ambiance is stunning, with beautiful decor and a warm, welcoming atmosphere. The staff went above and beyond, checking in on us frequently and making sure we had everything we needed without ever feeling rushed. We sampled a range of dishes: I had the steak frites, which was perfectly cooked, and my friends tried the katsu sandwich and the fish and chips. Every dish was flavorful and well-prepared, and the cocktails were just as delightful. They even offer free valet parking, which is a huge bonus in the often crowded Orange Circle area. In short, Culinary Dropout is a fantastic spot with delicious food, outstanding service, and a great atmosphere. I highly recommend it! read more

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The service and decor were excellent--very close to a 5-star experience. Unfortunately, the food didn't meet the same standard. We tried the homemade chips, breakfast burritos, and the fried chicken entrée. The chips were just okay, and the burritos were overly filled with potatoes, which threw off the balance. The fried chicken was the most disappointing--it didn't taste right and unfortunately made me feel sick afterward. I don't enjoy leaving negative feedback, especially since the service and atmosphere were so good, but I wanted to share an honest experience in hopes that it helps improve the food quality. read more

The food was good. I'll say that. But this was one of the strangest and overall bad service experiences I've had. Made reservations for 5 people for my birthday. Sat us 20 minutes late at a 4 top with a fifth chair. Why make a reservation if you're going to squeeze us there when they had spacious booths to offer? And we know it was meant for 4 not 5 because our sweet server mentioned serval times she's not use to 5 people there. She couldn't remember a 5th water, place setting, or utensils. All of which took too much time getting to my poor husband. In fact his meal came out when the other 4 of us were almost done eating. Our server said we'd get dessert because of that. I told her she'd be comping his meal. He also got the beer he ordered after the rest of us finished our drinks. We had to flag her down several times to ask and she acted confused. Only stating I put in the order. It was a bottled beer. There did not seem to be any bus boys working. We could not get refills on water, and nothing was being cleared off our table. We were asking for the appetizers to be cleared. We had to flag people down to ask for our empty drinks to be taken off. In fact, we finished two cocktails and had two empty glasses sitting on our table each. Chaos. When we ask our server to clear our plates she acted very confused picked up one person's plate and put it on an empty booth behind us. I've never seen anything like that. This booth then became what seemed to be the bus station. This is when it got interesting. It was a lovely booth and two young gentlemen just kept piling up dishes. Then I'm guessing these were the bus boys. They continue to pile up dishes, sit in the booth, talk to each other, pour liquids into different cups and what we can only guess was strategize how to take the dishes away. It was one of the most bizarre things I've seen. A manager did appear briefly to apologize to my husband and then we never saw him again. I worked in a few restaurants and I've never seen a manager not on the floor on a Friday night. I would have gladly paid for a birthday dessert, but nothing was offered. I really wanted to love this place but again one of the strangest dining experiences I've ever seen. read more

We came to Culinary Dropout for their soft opening and they totally nailed it! The vibe was chill, the food was fantastic, and the energy just fun. We brought our school age son too, it's a nicer casual restaurant that but not too fancy that kids aren't welcome. We started with the warm pretzels and cheese fondue, it was pure happiness in bread form. We tried the fried chicken, shrimp tempura sushi and BBQ ribs and every dish was a hit. We finished strong with the Mississippi mud pie which was absolute perfection. Every staff member engaged in great conversation and worked well as a team. There was never an empty dish or piece of trash in the table before someone came to clear it. Huge shoutout to Samantha, our server, who was the real MVP; friendly, funny, and somehow knew what we needed before we did. Thank you to the manager David for checking in on us to make sure everything was going smoothly! Welcome to the neighborhood Culinary Dropout team! 10/10 we will be back for the food, the vibe, and maybe just to hang out in the restaurant again. read more

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5/5 ONE OF MY FAVORITES! always super consistent with there food, chicken plate and crispy chicken katsu is amazing read more

Culinary Dropout - Pretzel bites with fondue - New American Near Me - Orange, California

First time here & wont be the last! We had the best customer service from everyone in the restaurant from the minute we walked in. Everyone's so welcoming and kind! Upscale busy and good energy kind of environment! The food: We ordered the pork nachos & pretzels and I'd come back just for those! They were so good! I like the nachos because it has nacho cheese rather than lost nachos at other places where they do shredded and the pretzel bites were soft and fluffy and fresh! My entree was steak & frites, and personally i'd say like a 7/10 it wasn't a big hit for me, lacking something but the arugula salad very good. My boyfriend had the chicken plate and the biscuit and fried chicken w honey delish!! Nevertheless will be back to try drinks and more apps/dishes :) read more

Culinary Dropout - New American Near Me - Orange, California

Love this spot to death, especially their white truffle deviled eggs but after a $6 up charge for extra cheese on their pork nachos, we're taking a break for awhile. Chicken Katsu was great Turkey Pastrami was amazing Fun spot, great staff, but crazy upcharge for a little extra nacho cheese on $19 Nachos left us scratching our heads. read more

This place continues to disappoint me. We tried this place for the second time today (because our first experience was mid) and it was worse than the first. We went in and asked if there's available seating for 2. This blonde hostess said yes and I thought "great", she then seated us in a dusty table like literally the table was dusty to the point where dust was flying off the table (see pictures) We asked to get moved. We were then helped by a waitress that was somewhat rude, (she had long curly hair, thick build). She came to our table, didn't even say hi, just straight asked what we want to drink. We ordered 2 lemon waters and 1 coke. She brought our drinks and we asked for straws and had the nerve to give us cocktail straws (see pictures) I asked if we can get regular straws and she said we don't have any available. I looked around and all the customers on other tables had regular straws ( white long colored straws). I told her how come the other tables have regular straws, she then walked away, didn't even say "I will be right back" and then came back with a regular straws. She then said, "I didn't know we had some in the bar area". What???? You're a waitress and didn't know??? We then ordered our food, we got pretzels and fish and chips ( see pictures) the cheese was lumpy like they microwaved it. The pretzels were good but the cheese had clumps of unmelted cheese in it. The fish and chips was good and the coleslaws portion looked like a kids meal. This place needs better staff and needs to be trained in hospitality. 3/10. read more

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This was a 10/10 experience at Culinary Dropout! This is a new restaurant close to the Orange circle. I think they've only been open a few months. Everything was really good and I can't wait to go back to try more! I ordered the Mongolian short ribs and steak frites. I didn't find these items listed on their menu, but they did have them so I was happy about that. The food was amazing. My favorite out of the two dishes was the steak frites, but the Mongolian short ribs were also very good. The steak frites comes with tender and flavorful steak, fries, arugula salad on the side and cheese sprinkled on top. It was excellent! The Mongolian short ribs had some sweetness to them and were also very tender. The egg on top paired well with the short ribs and I loved the veggies they added to the dish as well. For drinks we ordered the Room Service and Evil Jungle Princess. My favorite was the Evil Jungle Princess. It's their version of a Mai Tai and is strong, tropical, and sweet. You can taste the pineapple, guava, and lime in it. The Room Service cocktail was also a good choice. It's a bit lighter with strawberry, lime, and bubbly wine. The ambiance is great at Culinary Dropout as the restaurant very clean and beautiful inside. The service was wonderful. Our server was welcoming, gave us her recommendations, and would check in on us every so often. You can find parking on the street nearby or in the parking structure by the Orange circle. I believe they also offer valet. I look forward to coming back and trying more of their food and drinks! read more

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Great spot for happy hour! We came on a Friday evening around 5PM and were seated pretty promptly on the patio. Ordered off the happy hour menu: pretzel bites with cheese fondue, pulled pork nachos, wagyu pigs in a blanket, crispy brussel sprouts. The "Cali and tay" cocktail was soooooo good! Spicy and yummy! The portions for happy hour were huge. Service was friendly and attentive. Free valet parking! read more

Culinary dropout it's a beautiful place very modern with one of best espresso martini the food looks delicious that also have soup and sushi and other dishes. I came for the drink, but next time I will come back for the food. Long thank you for best customer service. read more

Culinary Dropout - espresso martini - New American Near Me - Orange, California

Food was decent and atmosphere was enjoyable. Valet available but parking can be difficult without it.

Came in excited to try Culinary Dropout, but left feeling like I overpaid for pretty mediocre food. It feels like they're trying to compete with Finney's, but if you're going to charge more, the food has to be better--and it just isn't. The pretzel bites were dry and overly bready, and the provolone fondue had that thick skin on top like it had been sitting out too long. The crispy tuna was especially disappointing--small portions, high price, and nowhere near the quality you can get at O Sea down the street for less. Cocktails were forgettable and oddly expensive for what you get--you'll get a better cocktail at Haven or Gabbis at the same cost. And honestly, I don't understand the menu at all--why am I seeing sushi next to a meatloaf sandwich? With solid spots like Wazabi nearby, there's no reason to take that gamble. I would love to see this place succeed in the circle, but I just can't understand who this restaurant is for? With food that mediocre, lower prices would attract the college kids, but with the high prices, they can't expect to get regulars with the terrible food and off putting menu. 2 stars because 1 star feels harsh--maybe they are still figuring out their menu and service style. If they're still around in a year, maybe I'll try them again. read more

Great spot to get just drinks and appetizers or a whole meal. The pretzel bites were delicious and the atmosphere was great!

Tasty food and great service. Interestingly decorated. Our group of eight had a great lunch. The of us had the turkey pastrami sandwich on the pretzel bun, and it was absolutely delicious! Five other ladies had various chicken salads, and everyone was satisfied. We will be back again. As a large group, it's always nice when your order comes out. Just as we had requested, so our server was on point. read more

We came here this week, which was our 2nd visit since they've opened, and we had an exceptional experience once again! Turns out that we really enjoy sitting in the bar area at the high top seating. The ambiance in this restaurant is so relaxing and comfortable with their soft mood lighting, great music, comfortable seating. Considering we were here only once before, we were pleasantly surprised that some of the staff remembered us from our first visit! We felt this was genuine and welcoming. We also had the opportunity to meet and chat with the other manager, David. He has a very warm personality and was so friendly and personable. Our visit here was so memorable and relaxing. Our server's name might have been Catherine? I honestly can't remember, but she was great as well. The food was top notch. For this visit we tried the Pretzel bites, which were so good and it's a very generous portion. We also got the Roasted Salmon and the Prime Rib Dip, both of which were delicious. I'm convinced at this point that anything on this menu will be great. I still want to try the meatloaf and the fried chicken. Looking forward to our 3rd visit here in the near future! read more

First of all we were served by Alena. An absolutely amazing experience because of her personality and awesome vibe. We had the whipped feta and tahini dip and it was a homerun. The Kale and butternut squash salad wow what a combo. Popcorn shrimp delicious, white truffle devil eggs yummy! Roasted salmon perfect! We had much more to many to list that were also mouthwatering ... all in all What a delightful experience. And free valet parking to boot!!!! read more

My husband and I sat at the bar and were greeted by friendly servers, Hannah and Long. They both suggested delicious dishes and drinks. I had the Maui Wowie iced tea, and my husband had an old-fashioned, which were both presented beautifully and tasted delicious . We shared pretzel bites with cheese and were too full to eat dinner. The portion was huge! We will definitely be back for HH. read more

Culinary Dropout - Soft Pretzels & Provolone Fondue - New American Near Me - Orange, California

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service was great by tyler. food was amazing, currently still full. we got a variety of things to try and no bad notes about anything. i really really wanted to try there dessert but we were running late for another event so didn't have time to order it:/ i am still upset bc of that and even tho i said i'm full from my meal i was prepared for the dessert. also the whole ambiance of the place was super cute! read more

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Great restaurant, great vibes. Great addition to Old Town Orange. Want to go back and try 36-hour pork ribs read more

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Culinary dropout feels like your cool uncles man cave. It's moody and dark with plenty of TVs for sports and it's right in the neighborhood which adds to the appeal. I started with a drink at the bar called while I waited for my table. It was the wellness retreat and it was perfect to sip on, on the patio and watch the restaurant through the pass through bar. Refreshing, light and just the right start to brunch. For brunch Mitch my server, who was exceptional as well, recommended the banana bread French toast, which comes perfectly caramelized with a warm caramel sauce to dip. I got the pigs in a blanket and a carajillo to round out brunch. Overall great experience, will be back for dinner. read more

Culinary Dropout - Wellness retreat - New American Near Me - Orange, California

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