Santa Ana is where Orange County’s Mexican food is concentrated, and it is the county’s best eating for the money by a comfortable margin. Fourth Street — Calle Cuatro — is the historic commercial spine and still the centre of it.
The cooking spans regions rather than sitting on a generic template: Oaxacan, Sinaloan, Jaliscan kitchens all operate here, and the differences between them are the point.
Downtown Santa Ana has been substantially restored, and the East End and the Fourth Street Market brought a wave of newer restaurants alongside the long-established ones. Weekend evenings are busy; the taquerias and street vendors run late.