Lake Forest (California)
Lake Forest is a city in Orange County in Southern California. It used to be known as El Toro after the Marine Corps training station, which has closed. The city is largely suburban with parks and industrial areas. Foothill Ranch lies within the city limits.
Get in
By car
Lake Forest lies between Interstate 5 and the 241, a toll road. The 241 ends about 5 miles south of the city, but this road can be used to reach the Riverside Area. I-405 begins a few miles north of Lake Forest and can be used as an alternate route north.
By plane
The closest commercial airport is John Wayne Airport but the Los Angeles International Airport (LAX IATA) is the largest one in the area.
By train
The closest Amtrak station is in Irvine. Metrolink shares the station and has two lines that stop there. One line goes from San Bernardino to Oceanside and the other goes from Ventura to Oceanside.
Get around
The Orange County Transportation Authority (OCTA) does provide a pretty thorough bus service but it is still advised to rent a car.
See
- 🌍 Heritage Hill Park (The Serrano Adobe), 25151 Serrano Rd, ☏ +1 949-923-2230. M-F 9AM-5PM. Historical park containing buildings such as a church and an adobe. Free.
Do
- 🌍 Whiting Ranch Wilderness park, 27901 Glenn Ranch Rd, ☏ +1 949-923-2245. Approximately 2,500 acres of riparian and oak woodland canyons, rolling grassland hills and steep slopes of coastal sage scrub and chaparral.
Buy
- Nearby is the Irvine Spectrum and The Shops at Mission Viejo.
- 🌍 Rockfield Place, 23762-23822 Mercury Rd. M Tu Th-Sa 10AM-7PM, W 11AM-7PM, Su noon-7PM. Strip mall next to the freeway with a bunch of businesses.
Eat
- 🌍 DeLucia's Italian Restaurant & Bar, 23600 Rockfield Blvd, ☏ +1 949-951-2611. For Italian food, the original restaurant on Lake Forest near the I-5.
- 🌍 Inca Mama's, 26676 Portola Parkway, Foothill Ranch (in Foothill Ranch), ☏ +1 949-951-6262. A good choice for Peruvian food.
- 🌍 Diho Thai/Chinese, 23600 Rockfield Blvd (on Lake Forest near the I-5), ☏ +1 949-859-4192.
- 🌍 El Paraiso, 25252 Jeronimo Rd (corner of Jeronimo and El Toro), ☏ +1 949 770-2775. The food is inexpensive and is quite delicious. The main El Salvadorian dish is the papusa, which is filling but not heavy and a lot less greasy than Mexican food.
- 🌍 El Conejito's, 24331 Muirlands Boulevard #9 (on Ridge Route just East of Muirlands), ☏ +1 949-458-1760. It offers delicious Mexican food, inexpensive, yet at times greasy food.
- 🌍 Avilla's El Ranchito, 24406 Muirlands Blvd (Just across Muirlands), ☏ +1 949-855-4989. a chain restaurant with a lively decor and cheap, tasty Mexican food.
- 🌍 La Cocina De Ricardo, 23532 El Toro Rd #11 (Inside the strip mall), ☏ +1 949-586-1477. 11AM-9PM. Mexican restaurant offering standard authentic dishes. Free.
Drink
- 🌍 Bigshots Billiards Bar & Grill, 23512 El Toro Rd, ☏ +1 949-830-2255. 11AM-2AM. Pool hall, restaurant, bar, and live music venue. There are nine 6' tables inside with only 19 oz. cues. Keep an eye out for line dancing offered here. Varies based on time of day and age. 18 and under permitted but must pay a $10 cover charge.
- 🌍 Los Cabos Sports Bar & Grill, 20702 Lake Forest Dr, ☏ +1 949-215-4081. 11AM-2AM. Right up against the hills, this place has a couple of pool tables and a mural of a parrot on the wall. Quiet local spot with a clientele of regulars. Also serves food.
- 🌍 Sammy's Original, 23221 Lake Center Dr, ☏ +1 949-716-2367, sammysoriginal@gmail.com. Su W Th 10AM-10PM, M 10AM-9PM, Tu 10AM-10:30PM, F 10AM-11PM. Sports bar with HD TVs, food, drinks, and more.
Sleep
- 🌍 Laguna Hills Inn at Irvine Spectrum, 23061 Avenida de la Carlota, ☏ +1 949-431-5913.
- 🌍 Courtyard Foothill Ranch Orange County, 27492 Portola Parkway, ☏ +1 949-951-5700. Cradled by Mission Viejo, Lake Forest and the Saddleback Mountains, the Courtyard Foothill Ranch hotel is an oasis in South Orange County.
Go next
- Los Angeles and San Diego are accessible from Anaheim via Amtrak and Metrolink.
| Routes through Lake Forest |
| Santa Ana ← Irvine ← | N  S |
→ Mission Viejo → San Diego |