San Juan Capistrano

San Juan Capistrano is a city in southern Orange County, California, USA, located approximately 23 miles southeast of Downtown Santa Ana. San Juan Capistrano is located between Los Angeles and San Diego along the California coast. It is easy to reach by car by taking I-5 to the Ortega Highway (State Route 74) interchange. Better yet, the train station is located right in the center of the historic downtown area.

San Juan Capistrano is known for its wide variety of fine dining. Skip the fast food joints by the highway. There are half a dozen fine restaurants within 200 yards of the rail station. All the locals know that the best fish tacos anywhere are found at a little taco stand across from the mission, Pedro's Tacos.

No trip would be complete without a visit to the Swallows Inn, on Camino Capistrano near the Mission and the train station. It balances between being a cowboy bar and a biker bar and it loves its bad reputation, but you can take your granny there with no worries.

Attached to the Swallows Inn is a one-chair barber shop called the "Hair of the Dog." If you are in town in the afternoon, you can get a haircut and a beer.