Orange Local Customs

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In case you wonder about tipping, especially in restaurants in Orange county, know that the sales tax is 7.750. The regular OC rate is slightly lower that that of L.A. county. Commonly, I double the tax for tipping at a restaurant (unless the service sucks!). Some say to tip 15% of the tab and others do slighly more or less. I almost always just double the tax given on the tab and double it to make things easier, and this is acceptable and common practice here. No worries!

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Orange county is seen often in terms of north & south, despite there being a west and east & other sub-parallels. North & south are determined largely by economics & very generalized characteristics.

Distinction is particularly made of the South (called commonly South county) as being the wealthy, overly suburban part with a snobby or uppity attitude. This is true and not true, as is with all generalizations. True, South county does have the lion share of wealthy residents (weathly by S. California standards would likely be considered at least a half million dollar income for a household & more). However, there are those far less rich who manage to live here. True, South County is the more suburban part of the entire county. Besides the beaches, shops/businesses and a few landmarks on the tourist map (like the mission in San Juan Capistrano, all there is to see in South county are seemingly an endless number of homes along & beyond the horizon, often single-unit houses and townhouses. As far as attitude, parts of the South are unabashedly uppity- as seen on TV shows like The O.C. Demonstrating and flaunting wealth is part of the local culture in South County cities like Newport Beach.

The north, in some areas, resembles the south with wealthy neighborhoods & can get somewhat snobby. However, overall it does have more modest areas and is decidedly more down-to-earth.

If you want to see very ethnic culture in Orange county, Little Saigon is where its at. Decidely Vietnamese culture is represented here, and looking around, one can really imagine being in Saigon. Down Bolsa and Westminter Aves is the historic OC version of Little Saigon, the largest designated Vietnamese town in the U.S. Come here to get you "pho" (noodles with beef) on and take in Vietnamese. In some parts, English really is a second language. The OC Little Saigon has been a centerpoint of Vietnamese celebration (Tet holiday parade) and controversy (including anti-communist and other socio-political protest). Other ethnicities are in the mix here, including Chinese and south Asian communities.

Pics to come sometime!