Over Labor Day weekend, Orange County residents had the opportunity to take a trip around the world without having to leave California. This is made possible through the annual Orange International Street Fair, which is held in the historic Old Town Orange section of the city of Orange.
Volunteers, local small businesses and clubs all join together for three days to exhibit and sell jewelry, music and especially foods from many different countries and cultures. N. Glassell St., which is usually a prime spot for rush-hour traffic, suddenly becomes an immersive Asian, Polynesian, French and Australian experience; meanwhile, W. Chapman Ave. can introduce residents to Greek, Italian and German culture. The International Street Fair is always entertaining, with a surprise literally around every corner.
The Street Fair celebrated its 53rd birthday this year and has always remained a favorite family tradition. The first fair was held in 1910 and was reintroduced in 1973. Due to the large popularity of the 1973 Street Fair, the city of Orange decided to make it an annual event.
Now, people who grew up attending the Street Fair are able to bring their children to the event and make it a tradition for generations to come. Carol Sumner is an Orange resident who has been attending the Street Fair for 15 years and shared her opinions on the summer tradition: “My favorite part about the Street Fair is the different nationalities, cultures and foods that are present. My favorite booth to visit is the German booth because I love the entertainment and the food.” Sumner continued, “My husband and I love that it’s an annual tradition that the city has been hosting and putting on each year.” The German booth, run by Orange Lutheran High School, makes many different traditional German foods. I happen to agree with Sumner about her love for this booth: the bratwurst was delicious.
Christina Vaughan ’26 was in attendance this weekend as well. She had a great time in Old Town Orange and enjoyed learning about different countries through their food. “As someone who lives in the city of Orange, it’s fun to explore international cultures through food,” Vaughan says, “I had a great time hanging out with my friends at the Orange Circle this weekend.” Many other Royals could be spotted out and about at the event, too.
One challenge of the Orange International Street Fair is the weather. Seeing as the fair takes place on Labor Day weekend, one of the hottest weekends of the year, the weather tends to influence the number of visitors. This difficulty is well-known and is usually taken care of; many booths have fans or vents to spray mist, while the nearby restaurants in the Orange Circle provide cool-down spaces and cups of water upon entering.
Depending on the weather, the Street Fair tends to host 150,000-300,000 visitors each year, making it one of the largest Street Fairs on the West Coast.
Brian Lochrie, the operational director of the Orange International Street Fair, is very grateful for all of the love and attention that the Street Fair receives: “The Street Fair is great because all of the food and drinks are served by non-profit organizations. This is their biggest fundraiser of the year. People like to know that their food and drinks can come from the community during this event.” Lochrie says, “I love that everyone can come out, have a great time and give back to the community.” All of the hard work of Lochrie and his entire team is shown in the end result: an International Street Fair that residents can enjoy and learn something from.
While the city of Orange hosts many different events throughout the year, such as their annual tree-lighting ceremony, their car shows and their third of July event, the Street Fair remains a beloved tradition that makes an impact on fans all around Orange County and beyond.
