More Than 200 (At Least) Attend First OC Weekly/Good Food Happy Hour at the Crosby


It was a hell of an evening last night at the Crosby in Santa Ana, as your favorite food blog and KCRW-FM 89.9's Good Food With Evan Kleiman held our first Happy Hour event in la naranja. Although beyond crowded, although the wait for food was half an hour at least and drinks even more, spirits were high, and the atmosphere was neat-o. Kleiman was received as the goddess she is, while I played the fool that I am!

Photos of the event are up and can be seen here. Highlights after the jump!

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  • Crosby chef Aron Habiger was at the top of his game, throwing down some amazing pork-belly tostadas topped with a Sri Lankan-style coconut sambol (pictured above). He also did something with pancetta and pork cheek that was as luscious as mac and cheese. Even better? He brought in one of the chefs from Chateau Marmont to guest-chef on a plate. More on that to come. . . .
  • Food critic Edwin Goei, of course, would never show up to a public event, so Dave, Shuji and I decided to wear tags stating, “Hello, My Name is Edwin” (Vickie represented the ladies by calling herself Edwina). People got the joke and laughed; by the end of the night, more than a dozen people were Edwins.


  • A special thanks to all the restaurants who donated items for us to give away to shrieking foodies. Among them: TAPS (three growlers of beer!), Break of Dawn, Taco Asylum and Gabbi's (hot sauce), Antonello's (pasta sauce), Xanh Bistro (nuoc cham), Layer Cake Bakery and Marché Moderne (macarons), Blackmarket Bakery (HUGE baskets of goods), my chica (her ghost pepper jelly–you read it right), Fleming's (wine), Uncle Iceberg's (their awesome sauces), and more.


  • Kleiman visited Avanti Cafe before the Happy Hour and loved it (of course), and she also recorded a segment on El Toro Meat Market in Santa Ana. She liked El Toro so much that she actually left the Happy Hour early to go buy products there–fun!

A special gracias to all who came. We'll do this again soon, cabrones. Details to come. . . .

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