Michelle Woo

Summer Guide 2013: How to Enjoy a Date Shake at Ruby's Shake Shack

ILLUSTRATED BY LEELA CORMAN WRITTEN BY MICHELLE WOO [Editor's Note: Summer in OC is never just about the here and now. Once the weather starts heating up, we start migrating to our communal gathering grounds--the beach, Disneyland, Theo Lacy Jail--and all the memories of summers past start flooding ... More >>

[Summer Guide] The Land of Eternal Sunshine . . . In Comics Form!

Where the Black People At In OC?

A special report on Orange County's embarrassing lack of African-Americans

Judge Tosses Out Businessman's Defamation Lawsuit Involving Weekly

[Moxley Confidential] And other courthouse news including how lying Fullerton cops tricked a jury

Extra! Extra! Read All About It: UC Irvine's New University Student Newspaper is Saved!

The New U was saved! The New U was saved!Yes, those UC Irvine students buried financially in tuition, boarding, book and PBR costs that'll have them paying back government loans until they reach the Social Security age to be pulled out from under them, have approved a $3 fee to save the student news ... More >>

[UPDATED with Jury Rules FOR Douglas Zerby Family:] Long Beach Police Officers Negligent

See the update at the end of this post about the jury ruling for the dead man's family.ORIGINAL POST, APRIL 3, 2:13 P.M.: A $21.5 million civil rights and wrongful death lawsuit against the city of Long Beach over cops fatally shooting a guy holding a gardening water nozzle on a friend's Belmont Sho ... More >>

10 Brushes with Celebrities in Orange County, Both Major and Very Minor in 2012

Moving cameras are nothing new to Orange County, where countless motion pictures have been shot, movie stars have frolicked and resided and, in more recent years, reality television stars have made our Plasticland "real."But though we're a short distance/long commute from being Hollywood adjacent, w ... More >>

A Closer Look At OC's Anti-Vaccination Cluster

South County parents are opting out of the CDC schedule altogether

OC Weekly Dominates 2012 OC Press Club Awards with 16 of 'Em!

Last night, the Orange County Press Club held its annual awards ceremony at Encore Dinner Theater in Tustin, and in-between a hoppin' swing music set, a pretty good four-course dinner, reporters gossiping, and way too many smoke breaks to count, there were awards handed out--and, surprise, surprise. ... More >>

OC Weekly Nabs Seven Awards at LA Press Club Affair Honoring Woodward and Bernstein

Celebrities and reporters gathered Sunday night at the Millennium Biltmore's Crystal Ballroom in downtown Los Angeles for the 54th Annual Southern California Journalism Awards and OC Weekly staffers grabbed seven honors.Three of the Weekly's awards were for first place: Michelle Woo for Best Persona ... More >>

OC Weekly Staffers Named Finalists For 2012 LA Press Club Journalism Awards

Los Angeles Press Club judges have named five members of the OC Weekly newsroom as finalists for the 54th SoCal Journalism Awards in categories that directly compete with The Orange County Register and Los Angeles Times.The recognition isn't new: Over the years, the Weekly has won more than a dozen ... More >>

Out of Tune? Newsong Church in Irvine May Snap Up Santora Arts Building in Santa Ana

Faithful readers will recall the fantastic story Michelle Woo wrote about Dave Gibbons, the founder and pastor of Newsong, the Irvine-based megachurch that about seven years ago was named one of the 100 fastest-growing churches in America by Outreach Magazine.The church may soon be singing their son ... More >>

Letters From OC Weekly Readers

Vans Custom Culture Help You Pimp Your Vans

[Trendzilla] The Cypress-based company creates a fundraiser for high school arts programs

Letters From OC Weekly Readers

Letters From OC Weekly Readers

Letters From OC Weekly Readers

What We Learned

The Year on Navel Gazing and Beyond!

Top 10 Video Game Posts of 2011

Flickr user Rad Jose​If you're a regular OC Weekly reader and a gamer, our video game writer Peter Mai is probably your hero. Our video game columnist consistently gets hundreds of thousands of page views every week with his insightful and well-written blogs. Which ones were the most popular this ... More >>

Letters From OC Weekly Readers

Five Surprisingly Tasty Asian Dishes at Trader Joe's

​​We'd be the first to tell you, when you want the real stuff, go to Little Saigon, the countless Asian plazas in Irvine, heck, even Little Tokyo, Thai Town or SGV if you've got the time. But if you need a quick Asian-food fix and have just a few minutes to spare, Trader Joe's is a pretty good b ... More >>

Slapfish Truck to Open Brick-and-Mortar Restaurant

Photo by Meranda Carter​Let's count 'em, shall we? OC food-truck chefs who went brick-and-mortar: There was Hop Phan of Dos Chinos a few months ago, then the folks at the Tropical Shave Ice Truck. Most recently, Jason Quinn of the Lime Truck opened his Playground in Santa Ana, with fellow Great Fo ... More >>

Hakim Nasreddine Kebir, Irvine 11 Defendant Who Settled Case Early, Has Charges Dismissed

​Sitting in a Santa Ana courtroom March 11, I did not think the couple around my age sitting next to me wanted to be there. They fidgeted, had long faces and acted quite unlike the parents and supporters who seemed much more defiant on behalf of the so-called "Irvine 11." I recall at one point eve ... More >>

Letters From OC Weekly Readers

Letters From OC Weekly Readers

Letters From OC Weekly Readers

Letters From OC Weekly Readers

Letters From OC Weekly Readers

Bob Dylan's Words Blowin' In the Wind

[Mental Notes] Plus, the verdict on Rebecca Black's new single is out

Alejandra Hernandez, OC Homicide No. 26: Estranged Husband Accused of Shooting Her 9 Times

​Monday's arraignment of John Rand Agosta, who is accused of killing his estranged wife by shooting her nine times in the chest and kicking her body, has been continued to July 15.Prosecutors allege the 35-year-old Anaheim man waited for Alejandra Hernandez to leave her job at an Irvine day care f ... More >>

Letters From OC Weekly Readers

Two Days 'Til Rapture: OC Weekly Staffers' Last Meals

Flickr user pasukaru76Kinda like this, but not as cool.​So if Oakland preacher Harold Camping and hundreds and hundreds of other crazies are right, the world will be ending this Saturday, May 21--around 6 p.m., to be exact. Which got us thinking: What would we spend our last hours doing? Stuffing ... More >>

Letters From OC Weekly Readers

Letters From OC Weekly Readers

Letters From OC Weekly Readers

Letters From OC Weekly Readers

Letters From OC Weekly Readers

About That Soka University Cover: A Note From the Editor

​This week's cover story about Soka University in Aliso Viejo has generated a firestorm of reader comments. The piece discusses the university's first 10 years of existence, as well as the controversial history of the Japan-based, lay Buddhist organization that founded it, Soka Gakkai Internationa ... More >>

Letters From OC Weekly Readers

Carl's Jr. Spicy Chicken Sandwich With Jalapeños: My Go-to Crap Comfort Food

Michelle Woo​Whenever I'm stressed (I'm a journalist, so that's now), I turn to junk food, and most often, it's the 99-cent Spicy Chicken Sandwich from Carl's Jr. I always ask for jalapeños, and they add them for free without question.     Gustavo sees me eating these things a ... More >>

Letters From OC Weekly Readers

Roasted Catfish at #1 Restaurant in Westminster

Michelle Woo​One Vietnamese dish that incites more whoas than a Thanksgiving turkey is ca nuong, roasted catfish. And one place that gets it right is #1 Restaurant in Westminster. (Yes, let it be known, #1 Restaurant wins the award for the most un-Googlable establishment of all time ... More >>

Letters From OC Weekly Readers

Warm-You-Up Lunch: Curry Udon at Chaya in Costa Mesa

Michelle Woo​On a cold, rainy day, a hot bowl of noodle soup is as comforting as a Snuggie and a rom-com marathon. (Hey, I'm a chick.)  All I seem to want for lunch in this dreary weather is some steamy ramen or udon for the soul. 

Gross Or Genius? Taco Bell's Beefy Crunch Burrito Is Stuffed With Flaming Hot Fritos

​Taco Bell's new, limited-time-only Beefy Crunch Burrito sounds like the culinary creation of a drunken frat boy.Dude, you know what would be awesome in this burrito? Flaming Hot Fritos. Fuck yeah!  That's exactly what it is--a burrito stuffed with seasoned ground beef, nacho cheese, sour cre ... More >>

Meat Me in Buenos Aires: A Parrilla Report in Photos

Michelle Woo ​There's one major tragedy in traveling to Argentina. You'll probably never be able to fully enjoy American steak again.  I just returned from my two-week honeymoon and despite the country's stunning scenery, insane nightlife and raging political culture, when anyone asks me abou ... More >>

5 LA-Based Food Trucks That Should Come To OC More Often in 2011

Come on, LA food trucks. We know traffic on the 5 and 405 sucks, but if you make Orange County a regular stop on your weekly routes, you'd surely have lines waiting. Bonus: OC has more parking. Here are five of my favorites: 1. LudoTruck LudoTruck​I had a chance to try the very-hype ... More >>

3hree Things: Riley vs. The McRib

Watch out for 3hree Things every Tuesday, where Riley Breckenridge, drummer of Orange County's favorite local alt-rock band Thrice, gives his take on life in Southern California as an OC native.The McRib is back and coincidentally, so is explosive diarrhea. I used to have a gullet of steel ... More >>

This Week in Food: Rare Ramen, A Reason to Visit Rancho Santa Margarita, And Waiters Trying to Get Laid!

Flickr user soundfromwayout​Some of the many highlights this week on this infernal blog after the jump, and including more than what the descriptive title promises!

Visiting with Southern California's Mandu King

Flickr user Drab Makyo​You might've noticed a new byline 'round these parts: Michelle Woo (hi, Michelle!). She's our newest staff writer but will occasionally weigh in 'round these parts. I mention Michelle because we stole her from the fine magazine KoreAm, which documents the Korean-American exp ... More >>