Antiques in orange - Old Town Orange, California

Sunset, Nov, 1997 by David Lansing

Newly listed on the Register of Historic Places, this California town has always been popular with antiques hounds

They say that Disneyland's Main Street, U.S.A., was modeled after Walt Disney's boyhood hometown of Marceline, Missouri. Perhaps, But it could just as easily have been designed after the nearby neighborhood of Old Towne Orange.

Certainly there's enough material here for even the most exacting Imagineer. Indeed, everything about Old Towne Orange, from its large concentration of pre-1940s homes and businesses to its laid-back atmosphere, speaks of a time gone by, which may be why this nostalgic village (including 1,700 of those buildings) was recently listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Fittingly, Orange is the self-proclaimed antiques capital of Southern California. Ringing its circular plaza are more than 50 antiques shops and 10 antiques malls offering spaces to 500-plus dealers who specialize in everything from beatnik-era streamline furniture to hand-stitched pioneer samplers from the early 1800s.

Most of the stores are concentrated around Glassell Street and Chapman Avenue. Happy Time Antiques & Collectibles (109 Chapman; 714/538-3844) is known for old furniture and toys, as well as its large selection of flower frogs. Mr. C's Rare Records (148 N. Glassell; 532-3835) carries American Bandstand-vintage 33s and 45s. It's also a good place to hunt for Nancy Sinatra's Greatest Hits (was there more than one?), Ricky Nelson's first album, and the Troggs' "Wild Thing." Just For Fun (140 S. Glassell; 633-7405) has a cherry collection of gas station memorabilia, and an impressive assortment of tube radios (Zenith, Clarion, and RCA) from the 1930s and '40s. And with all due respect to Walt, the Disney memorabilia and antique dolls at the Rocking Chair Emporium (123 N. Glassell; 633-5206) are fine, but the candy counter in front - where you can pick up Black Jack, Beeman's, or Clove gum, a roll of chocolate Necco wafers, or maybe a Nik-L-Nip - is way cooler.

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Breakfast. Watson's Drugs and Soda Fountain. The best and oldest soda fountain in Orange County (established in 1899) serves breakfast all day long. Everything about Watson's is comfortably familiar, from the red swivel counter seats to the biscuits and gravy, listed as S.O.S. on the menu. 116 E. Chapman; (714) 633-1050.

Lunch. P. J.'s Abbey Restaurant. The eatery may be new, but the surroundings aren't. Housed in a restored 1891 Baptist church, the comfy, restaurant with the building's original stained-glass windows and hardwood floors serves generous-size barbecue-pork sandwiches and great meat loaf. 182 S. Orange St.; 771-8556.

Dinner. Felix Continental Cafe. You'd never know it from the name, but this may be Orange County's best Cuban restaurant. Picadillo criollo, a typical Cuban dish, is made with seasoned beef and pork cooked in sofrito sauce with raisins and olives. Wonderful and inexpensive. 36 Plaza Square; 633-5842.