Memphis Cafe

Memphis Cafe
Memphis Cafe is located in the Los Angeles metropolitan area
Memphis Cafe
Location within the Los Angeles metropolitan area
Memphis Cafe is located in California
Memphis Cafe
Location within California
Memphis Cafe is located in the United States
Memphis Cafe
Location within the United States
Restaurant information
EstablishedAugust 18, 1995
OwnersDan Bradley
Diego Velasco
Food typeSoul food
Location2920 Bristol St, Costa Mesa, CA 92626
Coordinates33°40′37″N 117°53′12″W / 33.6769°N 117.8866°W / 33.6769; -117.8866
Websitewww.memphiscafe.com

Memphis Cafe is a soul food restaurant and nightclub in Costa Mesa, California. It formerly operated a location in the Santora Building in Santa Ana, of which Gustavo Arellano of OC Weekly called "a pioneer in turning OC's county seat into a hipster mecca" and noted that it also helped launch the county's "cocktail revolution."[1]

Description

The building in which Memphis Cafe is housed in was built in 1953 and was formerly a hole-in-the-wall called the King's Inn. The restaurant's menu combines American, Creole, and Southwestern cuisine, serving foods such as jambalaya, ribs, and mint juleps.[2] Its signature dish is the catfish po' boy.[3] The Costa Mesa location has a more homey, Southern vibe in comparison to the former Santa Ana location, which was more airy and modern with a larger menu.[4] The Santa Ana location was notable in that, with its popularity, it helped spur an increase of hipster, chef-driven concepts in Orange County in the 2010s.[5]

The nightclub initially played live music such as soul and rockabilly, but switched to a DJ format in 1998.[6]

History

Memphis Cafe was opened on August 18, 1995, by Dan Bradley, Diego Velasco, and Andy Christenson. The trio met while working at the defunct Renaissance Café in Brea;[3] Christenson eventually left the group in 2003 to focus on real estate. They had initially borrowed $50,000 to start the restaurant.[6] They were assisted by the opening of The LAB Anti-Mall that same year, which attracted their target of indies and hipsters.[7][8][9] In 2002, a second Memphis Cafe location was opened at the Santora Building in Santa Ana;[4] it closed in 2014, with Bradley and Velasco stating that they wanted to reduce their portfolio to spend more time with their family.[1][5] In 2015, OC Weekly named Memphis Cafe at the top of their "20 Most Important Orange County Restaurants of the Past 20 Years."[10]

References

  1. 1 2 Arellano, Gustavo (January 13, 2014). "Memphis at the Santora, Pioneering Downtown Santa Ana Restaurant, to Close Next Month :-( – OC Weekly". Retrieved June 16, 2026.
  2. ↑ Arellano, Gustavo (June 1, 2016). "Pacific Soul". Gravy. Retrieved June 16, 2026.
  3. 1 2 Griley, Ellen (October 13, 2005). "Rich Man, Po Boy". Archived from the original on June 9, 2014. Retrieved June 16, 2026.
  4. 1 2 Clay, Joanna (March 22, 2011). "Memphis' soul was always there". Daily Pilot. Retrieved June 16, 2026.
  5. 1 2 Luna, Nancy (January 21, 2014). "Santora Memphis, other restaurants to close". Orange County Register. Retrieved June 16, 2026.
  6. 1 2 Luna, Nancy (October 13, 2006). "Memphis Caf, a home for the hip". Orange County Register. Retrieved June 16, 2026.
  7. ↑ Mau, Dave (August 27, 2015). "The OC Food Scene, 20 Years Ago – OC Weekly". Retrieved June 16, 2026.
  8. ↑ Washburn, Jim (January 17, 2019). "My Kind of Town, Costa Mesa – OC Weekly". Archived from the original on March 6, 2026. Retrieved June 16, 2026.
  9. ↑ "15 Years of Memphis Café". Orange County Register. August 23, 2010. Retrieved June 16, 2026.
  10. ↑ Arellano, Gustavo (February 12, 2015). "The 20 Most Important Orange County Restaurants of the Past 20 Years – OC Weekly". Archived from the original on August 5, 2025. Retrieved June 16, 2026.
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