If you have lived within walking distance of the Circle for more than a year or two, August in Old Towne used to have a predictable shape. City-sponsored concerts, a familiar farmers market table, the slow build toward Street Fair weekend, and the same handful of restaurants absorbing most of the foot traffic. This August looks different, and it is worth paying attention to why.
Two things are happening at once. Private operators have opened, or are about to open, a cluster of new storefronts on and around Plaza Square. And the city's own event calendar has thinned out, with local non-profits stepping in to keep the traditional programming alive. The net effect is that the Plaza you knew a year ago is being quietly re-cast, and the four weeks between now and Labor Day are the best window to see it before Street Fair crowds swallow everything.
The wave of new openings you may have driven past
Walk a slow loop from Chapman and Glassell out two blocks in each direction and the change is legible on the storefronts. From authentic Italian fare and Thai cuisine to a luxury piercing studio and a unique consignment shop, new businesses are adding fresh energy to Old Towne Orange.
A short list of what has landed in 2026 and what is on the way:
- Centro & Storico Cafe. Old Towne is now home to Centro & Storico's second location, bringing authentic Italian cuisine and the cozy touch of a family-owned operation to the plaza. The daytime menu leans casual. Start your day with avocado toast, a scramble, lattes, matchas, and other breakfast options. For lunch and dinner, indulge in half- or full-size pastas and salads, as well as antipasti, secondi, pizza, and more. The kitchen makes its own focaccia, and the wine list pairs with beer or vino produced by Pozzuoli Family Winery.
- A third Hanuman Thai location. Just down the street, Orange has welcomed the third location of a local Thai favorite, with classics such as pad kee mao, pad see ew, curry, and fried rice, along with specialties like Hanuman's ceviche featuring yellowtail, sweet & sour salmon, and the popular fried chicken dish, gai todd hat yai.
- Oak & Poppy. An elevated piercing and jewelry experience is now in Old Towne. The parlor's first location in Orange County and third overall, Oak & Poppy is built on a team, some of whom have worked together for more than 20 years and have served clients such as Hailey Bieber, Usher, and Anna Kendrick.
- Garrahan Hat Company. Old Towne Orange continues to grow its collection of unique, locally owned businesses with the upcoming opening of Garrahan Hat Company, a handcrafted hat shop bringing traditional craftsmanship and timeless style to the historic district.
- The Win-Dow, possibly. The popular Southern California burger concept may be preparing to expand to Old Towne Orange. Nothing confirmed, but the paperwork rumors are worth tracking if you are the kind of resident who watches for signage changes.
Read together, these are not four unrelated news items. They are the same story: independent operators are treating the Plaza as a viable second- or third-location bet rather than a curiosity. That is a meaningful signal about how outside businesses now read this stretch of Chapman and Glassell.
Why the city's calendar looks lighter than usual
If you tried to pull up the City of Orange's special events page and found it sparse, you were not imagining it. Due to the city's current financial situation, all events traditionally sponsored by the city have been put on hold until further notice. Several local non-profits have committed to sponsoring and hosting many of these community events.
That has two practical consequences for anyone planning an August weekend. First, the traditional roster of city-run programming, familiar to longtime residents, is now scattered across independent organizers, which means fewer central listings and more searching. Second, the events that have survived are ones a community group actively fought to keep. When Taste of Orange returned this year, the Orange Blossoms Auxiliary of Assistance League of Orange hosted its annual food tasting with about 40 participating restaurants and breweries, and in 2026 the event moved to the Orange Plaza. The move onto the Plaza itself is the tell. When the city steps back, private and non-profit organizers are treating the Plaza as the default venue rather than a special-occasion one.
The rhythm that has not changed
Underneath the reshuffling, the weekly bones of Plaza life are intact. If you want a low-effort August, here is the reliable spine.
Saturday mornings, the farmers market. The Orange Home Grown Farmers and Artisans Market comes every Saturday. The rotating programming is what long-timers plan around. Purchase fresh, quality, local produce and enjoy the company of good people. 1st Sat: Knife Sharpening / 2nd Sat: Cooking Demo / 3rd Sat: Kids Club & Seed Lending Library. If you have never dropped a chef's knife off at the first-Saturday sharpening table, that is the single easiest habit to add this month.
Tuesday nights at 1886 Brewing. It's Taco Tuesday at 1886 Brewing Company, with your choice of Carne Asada, Pollo Asada, Potato Tacos, or Charro Bean Tacos served all day.
Free summer concerts at Hart Park. Bring your blankets, lawn chairs and dancing shoes. July 29: Retro Revolution (80's, 90's, 2000 Rock). August 5: The Fenians (Celtic Rock). Hart Park Bandshell: 701 South Glassell St. The Celtic Rock closer on August 5 is functionally the last easy summer-evening set of the season, so treat it accordingly.
Third Saturdays at the Tablao. Don't miss Naranjita Flamenco's monthly Tablao Flamenco shows, every third Saturday in 2026, directed by Emmy winner Yaelisa and a rotating cast of top flamenco artists. Raw, pure, passionate and improvised, the way flamenco is meant to be experienced. This one deserves particular attention because it is the kind of programming residents assume they have to drive to Los Angeles for.
Old Towne Orange contains the largest Nationally Registered Historic District in California, and its distinct look makes it a popular location for film and television production. Old Towne Orange contains the largest Nationally Registered Historic District in California and its distinct look makes it a popular location for film and television production.
That fact matters more than it might seem. Film crews do not choose neighborhoods that are visually degrading. The recent wave of independent operators taking second locations here is arriving on a streetscape that has been preserved almost obsessively. New Italian cafe, three-decades-old Freemasons lodge, and a working flamenco tablao can share a block without any of them looking out of place.
How to use August as a Street Fair warm-up
The Plaza's biggest weekend is close. Old Towne Orange turns into a global food-and-culture crawl with international street food, live music, beer and wine gardens, vendors, and a family-friendly Children's Street. Friday–Sunday, September 4–6 at Plaza Park and The Circle. If you live inside the walking radius, the four weeks between now and then are your best chance to visit the new openings without competing with a hundred thousand out-of-towners.
A workable four-weekend plan, loosely:
- This Saturday, breakfast at Centro & Storico, then knife sharpening at the Orange Home Grown market table.
- The evening of August 5, blankets at Hart Park for The Fenians.
- Third-Saturday flamenco at Naranjita, dinner beforehand at Hanuman for gai todd hat yai and a mocktail from the Asian-focused drink menu.
- Labor Day weekend, walk the Street Fair with a plan rather than a map, because you already know which new storefronts to point out-of-town guests toward.
The reason to sequence it this way is simple. By early September, every one of these places will be at capacity with visitors. The residents who quietly cycled through them in August will have a working point of view on which ones deserve the repeat visit and which do not. That is the difference between living in Old Towne and just having a mailing address here.
What this all adds up to
The short version: Old Towne Orange is in a transition month that most casual visitors will miss entirely. The city is programming less. Non-profits and independent operators are programming more. New second- and third-location businesses are betting the Plaza can support them. The historic streetscape underneath all of it has not moved, which is exactly why the bets are working.
For residents, that translates into a rare kind of leverage. You are walking distance from a food-and-culture cluster that is meaningfully denser than it was twelve months ago, and you have four weeks to move through it before Labor Day weekend hands the sidewalks to everyone else.
If your relationship to this neighborhood is shifting too, whether that means thinking about a move up inside the city, listing the home you have outgrown, or simply understanding what your address is worth in a market that is quietly re-rating Old Towne, Tina Tan Group is here for the conversation. Request Your Home Valuation and let's talk about what this new Plaza chapter means for your next chapter on it.
