Maruchan Inc., a unit of Japan’s Toyo Suisan Kaisha Ltd., got its start, in OC and the U.S., with a 35K SF Irvine facility in 1977.
The Los Angeles Olympics in 1984 were a turning point for the company — best known for its inexpensive instant noodles that are a staple for college students and budget-conscious consumers alike — when its ramen became the official noodle food of the games.
The $3 million licensing pact ended up spreading word of this “styrofoam thing,” Maruchan officials told the Business Journal in a prior profile.
In 1993, Maruchan paid $14 million for a 32-acre parcel in the Spectrum area of the city and built its second Irvine plant, a 400K SF facility. The existing facility, near the intersection of Laguna Canyon Rd. and Barranca Pkwy., counts six production lines, runs 24 hours a day and employs over 480 workers.
Maruchan is now the country’s largest maker of instant ramen noodles, and its Irvine facilities also are used for its vast sales in Mexico, where it’s also the leading ramen brand.
While there’s no word whether Maruchan plans to partner with the forthcoming Olympics in LA in 2028, it should have an even larger presence in OC by then.
City filings indicate the company plans to use a vacant parcel of land it owns next to its existing Spectrum plant to build another 227K SF of space, “resulting in a total facility area of 628,261 square feet dedicated toward warehousing, light manufacturing, and ancillary office purposes.”
The new facility would add three production lines, increasing Maruchan’s employee count to nearly 700, city filings indicate.
The Maruchan expansion project in Irvine is one of two notable industrial projects planned in the immediate area of the Spectrum.
For an update on the other project — hedge fund TGS’ conversion of CSUF’s former Irvine campus into a warehouse development — see next week’s print edition, which includes our annual OC’s Wealthiest special report.
Costa Mesa’s latest big food addition is catching national attention.
The New York Times recently profiled a visit to Mercado González, the 70K SF grocery store/food hall from Northgate González Market that opened late last year.
Mercado González “has created a destination for the Orange County Latino community, though it draws a huge, multicultural crowd looking for extravagant Sinaloan sushi and thick knots of Oaxacan string cheese,” the profile noted.
The biggest challenge for a visitor: navigating the ever-present crowds, the report said.
“The mercado is loud and busy, with various lines to navigate. It may be frustrating if you’re too hungry when you get there.”
Another new opening in OC, the Pendry Newport Beach hotel, has also gotten national plaudits.
Travel + Leisure’s recently released list of its readers’ 15 Favorite City Hotels in the Continental U.S. placed the 295-room hotel No. 1.
The local Pendry also came in No. 8 for a similar list of global hotels by the magazine.
