Bayside Restaurant turned 25 last year and remains as popular as ever. There are three important reasons for that, says Marc Ghoukassian, whose family owns Bayside and sister eatery Bistango in Irvine: exceptional cuisine, friendly, experienced staff and classy upbeat ambiance with live music seven days a week. Ghoukassian also Read More
Most restaurants count their longevity in years. Five Crowns counts it in decades. One of Orange County’s oldest and most beloved dining landmarks, Five Crowns in Corona del Mar is celebrating its 60th anniversary this month with a limited-time historical menu and special community initiatives. Five Crowns is housed in Read More
Editor’s Note: Robert Santana is the CEO of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Orange Coast (BGC of Central OC). The Santa Ana native recently oversaw the merger of the BGC of Central OC and the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Anaheim-Cypress, expanding services for more than 12,000 Read More
A three-bedroom house with 4.5 bathrooms on Linda Isle sold for $17.9 million, or $5,366 per square foot, earlier this month. The 3,336-square-foot house on a 5,580-square-foot lot at 30 Linda Isle in Newport Beach features a private dock, boat slip and 45 feet of frontage on Newport Harbor. Some Read More
Editor’s Note: Councilmember Johnathan Ryan Hernandez was born and raised in Santa Ana. He is also a parent who is passionate about investing in our youth, Early Childhood Education programs, sports and the arts. At press time, the Orange County School of the Arts and the Santa Ana Unified School Read More
Editor’s Note: This is one in a series of stories about business lunch hot spots in Orange County. Got a tip? Email dining editor Nancy Luna at luna@ocbj.com. For more than three decades, Bistango in Irvine has been a hotspot for business lunches and client dinners amid artful décor and Read More
One of our most thrilling films at MacGillivray Freeman was “Everest,” which took us four years to make in the mid-1990s. The highest I got was the base camp at around 18,000 feet. At that altitude, your brain doesn’t work well. So, we organized the film shoot like a military Read More
Matt Singer, CEO, Ecotrak (right) at the National Restaurant Show held in May 2025. MATT SINGER CEO ECOTRAK LLC WHY: Former controller for Costa Mesa-based restaurant chain Lazy Dog Restaurants, joined as CFO of Ecotrak in 2018, year it was founded. Became CEO in 2021. Software company helps restaurants, car Read More
Carey Ransom CAREY RANSOM MANAGING DIRECTOR BANKTECH VENTURES WHY: Seeking to invest in entrepreneurs who want to help transform the future of community banking to make them more efficient, competitive and compelling. Helped co-found and is chairman of Bonus Homes—(see Kyle Kamrooz profile.) Also founder and managing partner of Operate, Read More
Dan Rodrigues Dan Rodrigues CO-FOUNDER / CEO TEBRA TECHNOLOGIES INC. WHY: Co-founded Scour, a music search engine that was sold in 2000. In 2004, founded company to make medical billing easier for doctors and their staff. In 2022, raised $72M with a $1B valuation. Tebra was derived from “vertebrae” and Read More
