Cooks Corner Orange County Roadhouse

Cooks Corner has been serving grub at the Live Oak Canyon Road entrance in Orange County since the 1920s. Cooks became a full bar when prohibition ended in 1933. Back then, this part of Orange County was out in the middle of nowhere; today, tracts of homes are slowly surrounding the property.

The cook family sold the business in 1975 and moved to a ranch in Montana. The new owners run a motorcycle accessories company, selling t-shirts and apparel on the patio every weekend.

Cooks Corner is packed with bikers on any Saturday, Sunday, or holiday, and the parking is jammed with hundreds of motorcycles. The crowd is usually friendly, mixing weekend warriors and hardcore bikers. Families are welcome, so come on in, even if you have kids.

Events

Cook’s Corner hosts various events, such as a chili cook-off, bike blessings, and Riding Dirty. They offer a bike wash on weekends, Taco Tuesday, Thirsty Thursday, and Fish n Chips Friday.

Cooks Corner History

Cook’s Corner is named after Andrew Jackson Cook, who acquired the land on which the roadhouse now sat in 1884. In 1926, his son, Earl, turned an old cabin on the property into an eatery for locals. In 1933, when prohibition ended, Cook’s Corner Cabin eatery was converted into a bar. In 1946, an abandoned army mess hall was purchased, torn apart, and reassembled in the canyon to create the current Cooks Corner Roadhouse.

Santiago Canyon Road is one of the last country roads in Orange County, except for Ortega Highway, which passes through the county’s southern section. If you visit during the week, you can escape the crowd; it’s elbow to elbow on weekends. Address: Cooks Corner at 19152 Santiago Canyon Rd Trabuco, CA 92679.The corner of Santiago Canyon and Live Oak Canyon Road.

Video – Bike Ride to Cooks Corner

Video – McFadden Ranch House

Orange County Day Trip Ideas

Santiago Canyon Road Trip

Guided Motorcycle Tours