The city has long been known for its historic mission and a handful of decent restaurants, including the ever-popular Swallow’s Inn.
But San Juan Capistrano has transformed its dining scene into a culinary hotspot that boasts Trevor’s at the Tracks, Michelin Bib Gourmand recipient Heritage Barbecue, Tavern at the Mission, Bloom Restaurant + Bar and the new collection of eateries at River Street Marketplace, which opened at the end of 2024.
This $70 million retail and food hub is the vision of developer Dan Almquist, named by the Business Journal this month as Businessperson of the Year in the real estate sector. His San Juan Capistrano-based firm Almquist is responsible for Rodeo 39 Public Market in Stanton.
The mix of curated shops and restaurants at the 60,000-square-foot marketplace is set within an inviting village that celebrates the area’s agrarian heritage. The restaurants that launched last year saw immediate acceptance by diners, with packed dining rooms through the beginning of this year.
Two of those restaurants are noteworthy for their menus and their backstory: Finca and La Vaquera.
Finca: The Return of Chef David Pratt
“I know how to make simple things complicated.”
Chef David Pratt smiled when he said that, but his point is valid. His new restaurant, Finca, has a menu focused on vegetables sourced from local farms and wood-fired burgers, but they all have unique twists that make the culinary offerings complicated in their simplicity.
Pratt became known locally for his Monarch Beach restaurant Mirabeau in 2003 and his most recent endeavor, Brick, in 2012. Pratt sold that San Clemente pizzeria last March (now the home of Parlor, another pizza-centered restaurant) to focus on Finca.
“Before I opened Brick, I wanted to do a burger restaurant because there was a huge burger craze 15 years ago,” Pratt said. “Celebrity chefs were doing gourmet burger places, but I felt like I missed my chance to do burgers, so I did wood-fired pizzas instead. Now, 15 years later, I said it’s time to do a burger restaurant again.”
But not just any burger restaurant. The menu is divided into two parts: The “Farmer” section lists vegetables sourced from local farms including The Ecology Center in San Juan Capistrano, while the “Rancher” section offers house-aged burgers and other meticulously sourced proteins. Everything is cooked over an open fire using primarily almond wood.
Pratt is particularly proud of his wine selections, most of which are from Baja
California, including a light dry wine made from La Mission grape—the first grape planted in California in 1769 by Spanish missionary Junípero Serra. Finca is the only restaurant offering this wine.
The restaurant’s name translates to “farm” or “farmhouse” in Spanish, and Finca’s menu takes that meaning to heart. His nine vegetable dishes include grilled brussels sprouts with crispy chorizo, sunchokes, epazote, seasonal citrus and a sweet-hot citrus glaze and grilled sweet-chili carrots with orange beet romesco sauce and dukkah.
His burgers are mainly dry aged in-house ground chuck, although he does have bison burgers, hanger steak, St. Louis ribs and fresh fish on the menu.
“We make everything from scratch, including mayonnaise, and we do our own fermentation,” said Pratt. “The barbecue sauce and pulled pork we make by hand. The idea behind the vegetables is use high-quality ingredients that are in season, cook them over wood and don’t screw them up.”
TRELA’S HOT TAKE
After trying just two of Chef David Pratt’s menu items, I immediately understood what he is trying to achieve.
At his recommendation, I ordered The Ecology Center grilled broccolini. Normally, broccolini is almost an afterthought at some restaurants, but not at Finca. The dish includes pistachio pesto, preserved Meyer lemon aioli and a walnut crunch. Without a doubt the best broccolini I have had. The char on the broccolini imparted nice toasty elements to the dish, while the pesto and aioli were perfect accompaniments—and the walnut crunch was a nice touch.
My entrée was the Cowboy Burger: an eight-ounce ground chuck patty with pulled BBQ pork, southern slaw and a mustard blend – all packed between two halves of a brioche-milk bun. This is a handful of pure goodness from first bite to last. The beef is perfectly seared, the pulled pork impeccably prepared with house-made sauce, and the slaw and mustard blend pulled everything together into a sweetly savory and satisfying dish.
Finca, River Street Marketplace, 31888 Paseo Adelanto #120, San Juan Capistrano, (949) 388-8899, finca-sjc.com.
Wood-Fired Grilled Steaks at La Vaquera
La Vaquera comes to Orange County courtesy of Santa Barbara-based Acme Hospitality and pays homage to the original Californian ranchero with both its design and its wood-fired kitchen. The menu is focused primarily on steaks but also has “field and ocean” starters as well as a handful of sides.
“All proteins are prepared on an Argentine grill with white oakwood,” said General Manager Yadira Peralta, whose résumé includes leadership roles at Hyatt Regency Newport Beach and Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar.
“It’s a fire that does its own thing—there is no consistency with an open fire, so it takes talent to control that flame,” Peralta said. “The steaks have their own characteristics and flavor profiles depending on where it is on the grill.”
The menu also has its own characteristics between lunch and dinner. The lunch menu lists 10 different starters including steak tartare, roasted heirloom beets and Kona Kampachi crudo. The entrées focus on sandwiches made with tri-tip, chicken or mushrooms plus assorted sides. The dinner menu shifts to steaks and chops plus seafood and sides.
According to Peralta, the restaurant bills itself as a farm-to-table wood fired steak house with seasonal produce.
“We want to make sure we are com
munity driven as much as possible,” she said. “We get our steaks from Black Hawk (Farms); they raise cattle on a farm in Kentucky—it’s not local but the concept is aligned with our values and vision. It’s highly marbled American wagyu steak. We infuse creativity into our menu. It’s an elevated form of similar ingredients you might see at other steak houses.”
In addition to steaks, Peralta said the most popular dishes include the steak tartare, corn bread and the Hamachi crudo, and the tuna aguachile, all concocted with creative twists.
“We want to elevate the San Juan Capistrano community and be a part of something new and big,” Peralta said.
TRELA’S HOT TAKE
La Vaquera may be a steak house, but for my first visit it was more fun to try some of the starters and sides. My selections: the tuna aguachile, steak tartare, grilled Spanish octopus, corn bread and carrots.
The aguachile with tomatillo-mezcal broth, cucumbers and radish sprouts was a refreshing start, but the Spanish octopus with scarlet runner beans, charred green onion and smoked paprika aioli got my palate’s attention. The octopus is poached then grilled so it stays tender yet gets a slight char. The bean puree and aioli add layers of flavor.
The steak tartare was the standout: Black Hawk Farms wagyu beef, pickled red onions, pumpkin seeds and hot sauce cured egg yolk jam, accompanied by grilled sourdough infused with blue corn masa. Whether enjoyed on its own or heaped on a piece of sourdough bread, this was superb steak tartare.
The corn bread had queso Oaxaca and roasted poblano pepper based inside, while the Wiser Farms roasted carrots were made with mulato chili honey, lime and toasted seeds.
The sampling of dishes gave me great insight as to what La Vaquera is all about.
La Vaquera, River Street Marketplace, 31904 Paseo Adelanto, San Juan Capistrano, (949) 749-4200, lavaquerasjc.com.
