Famously home to the largest Vietnamese community outside Vietnam – an exodus kicked off by the Vietnam War and 1975 fall of Saigon – Orange County’s Little Saigon district has expanded since the late 1970s from Westminster’s Bolsa Avenue: Today, it also includes over 11,000 Vietnamese businesses throughout Garden Grove, as well as parts of Fountain Valley and Santa Ana. Local draws include historic James Beard-cited restaurant Pho 79, mini-malls including the jewelry- and clothing-focused Asian Garden Mall (Phuoc Loc Tho) and food court-fronted QT Golden Market Place, plus an endless array of packed plazas bearing Saigon branding and similar names. In addition to hosting thriving restaurants and cafes straight from Vietnam (Phuc Long, Trung Ngyuen Legend and E-Coffee), Little Saigon is home to local pan-Vietnamese generalists (Brodard, Oc & Lau, 99999), single-dish specialists (Banh Cuon Luu Luyen, Hu Tieu De Nhat), and upscale reinterpretations (Nep Cafe). Many medical clinics, clothing and decor shops, supermarkets, and beauty salons are also located in the district; notable Chinese, Korean, Laotian, and Thai restaurants are scattered throughout, as well.
Officially, Little Saigon is bordered by the streets Westminster Boulevard, Bolsa Avenue, Magnolia Street, and Euclid Street, and some of their signage includes secondary Vietnamese names, such as Đại lộ Trần Hưng Đạo (Tran Hung Dao Boulevard) for Bolsa, paying homage to people and places in Vietnam. Parking can be found everywhere throughout the district, almost always free but varying somewhat in availability based on the popularity of businesses and plazas.
