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With its up-to-date appliances, well-laid out spaces, and plenty of organized cabinetry, the kitchen in your new OC real estate fulfills all your cooking dreams. But as much as you and your family enjoy your culinary creations, you also enjoy eating out for a change of pace. Lucky for you, Trulia just dubbed Orange County as the second most diverse dining metropolis in the country.

In its ranking of the top ten cities, the real estate website searched for areas with a balanced selection of eateries, a variety of food, and locals who enjoy eating out.

• Coming in first is San Francisco.
• Neighboring Los Angeles County is third.
• Interestingly, New York City, ranks 10th due to its large size.

Orange County boasts 8.27 restaurants per square mile, compared to 9.24 in San Francisco. We also enjoy 85 different types of cuisines compared to 92 for the City By The Bay. To celebrate our dining diversity, here’s is a list of some area restaurants that serve unusual cuisines, with links to their Yelp reviews, so you can judge them for yourself before heading out for dinner.

Chinese Islamic

The only eatery of its kind in Orange County, Mas’, located in Anaheim, creates Chinese specialties that are halal (permissible for Muslims to eat). Their menu is far too extensive to detail but be sure to order the sesame bread. Portions are large so come with plenty of people, so you can try out different dishes. Reservations are recommended because even though the interior goes on and on across multiple rooms, the place is always packed with large groups of Asians, Middle Easterners, and others who enjoy the unusual and delicious.

Filipino

You won’t be able to pronounce most of the dishes at Kapit Bahay in Anaheim. But that’s okay because all you have to do is point to the one or two that you want on the buffet, which will be served to you in an inexpensive combo that includes white rice. The fusion of Malay, Chinese, Spanish, and American flavors cooks up pork, chicken, beef, and veggies in sauces heavy with garlic, vinegar, soy sauce, or tomato sauce. If you’re not sure what to get, ask the server behind the counter.

Moroccan

If you’re up for an exotic evening, bring a large group so you can dine under a tent at Marrakesh in Costa Mesa. You’ll relax on well-cushioned seats around a low table dining on such exotica as Lamb Tagine in honey sauce topped with prunes or Filet Mignon Kabobs served on couscous. Go for one of the prix-fixe dinners to experience the full traditional Moroccan meal. Call them to ask at what time the belly dancers perform.

Oaxacan

Specializing in a subset of the Mexican cuisines that dominates county dining, Casa Oaxaca in Santa Ana serves up dishes drenched in multiple types of mole, a rich and thick brown sauce that can include chili, onions, garlic, and chocolate. The Plato Mistico, which feeds four, offers a selection of dishes like chicken, chorizo, and cactus as well two types of moles. You can also try the Barbacoa de Chivo, consisting of melt-in-your mouth goat covered with red chili sauce and avocado leaves.

Sandwiches

Though hardly exotic, this was the only one of the multiple cuisines for which Orange County ranked first, so it deserves a place on this list. For burgers, Anthony Bourdain declared local chain In-N-Out as one of his favorite restaurants in the Southland. For more extensive bread-based concoctions, try the freshly made selections at Sessions West Coast Deli in Huntington Beach or Newport Beach. The Orange County Register proclaimed their Zephyr as sandwich of the year. This vegetarian combo of mozzarella cheese, tomatoes, arugula, and onions is one that even meat-eaters will enjoy.

Want to know what else is good in Orange County? Contact us and we’ll talk food as you tour one of our developments.