Fuzzy’s Travelogue is the newsletter of LAcon V: The 84th World Science Fiction Convention. This is Volume Two of the series, June 2025 edition. A downloadable PDF version of the newsletter can be found here.
Issues of Fuzzy’s Travelogue will be distributed on a regular basis, to our members and on our website & social media, throughout the lead-up to our August 2026 convention. Previous issues can be found here: Volume 1 (May 2025).
You can read all about Fuzzy, LAcon V’s mascot, here.
Calling All Foodies
If you’re anything like me, it’s never to early too start thinking about where to eat!
Anaheim is known for more than just Disneyland. If you crave trying new cuisines and flavors, we’ve got the places. This travelogue is devoted to all you gourmets out there.
Here goes.
First Stop: The Packing District
While you can experience many diverse fares throughout the community, there is one location that offers a number of restaurants. Less than 3 miles from the convention, The Packing District houses over 30 different restaurants, bars, and breweries. If you are looking for a special meal, inventive cocktail, new microbrew or just a fun night out, this place is for you. Divided into four main areas designated by historic landmarks and a 2 acre green space, this locale has it all.
The most iconic building is the Packing House, a former orange and lemon processing plant which has been preserved and retrofitted as a market hall. At this one stop market, you can sample fresh produce or go for mash-ups like chicken tikka poutine, cheeseburger egg rolls, or chicken katsu curry. The two level hall features a central atrium with communal dining surrounded by booths serving everything from burgers to crepes to pho. Try Pique-Nique to design your own charcuterie board and meal or Adya for flavor packed Indian street food prepared by a winner of Food Network’s “Chopped”. The Black Sheep offers grilled cheese (but not like momma used to make) while Rolling Boil serves hot pots, miso, and ramen. At night, visit The Blind Rabbit, a speakeasy entered through saki barrels and exited through a bookcase.
Just south of this is the Make building, a former marmalade factory. For the beer aficionados, Unsung Brewing Company awaits to quench your thirst. (By the way, if you’re really serious about your brews, check out the Anaheim Brew Pass, a free mobile passport giving special savings and introducing you to a curated collection of local breweries.) Or, if wine is more your style? The Pali Wine Co. has a wide variety of California wines for taste testing.
The Packard Building was originally a Packard dealership and you can still see some classic cars there. For authentic Mexican food and a chef-driven menu, experience En Familia, dining in open air on incredible tapas. You can also try Monkish Brewing, a brewery with a dedicated beer garden.
Like to picnic? Go to Farmer’s Park, the two acre space next door to the Packing House. It’s a great place to visit when you get those afternoon zoomies. You can bring food or browse the market stalls or vendors who have set up kiosks along frontage roads, parking lots, and even in the middle of the park. These change frequently, so just wander to see what’s available that day.
And these are just some of what is available in this district!
Second Stop: Little Arabia
Like Middle Eastern food or just want to sample it? The section of Anaheim along Brookhurst Street, primarily between Crescent and Katella Avenues in western Anaheim, was officially designated by the Anaheim City Council as Little Arabia at the end of 2023. This vibrant cultural hub, the heart of Orange Country’s Arab American community, offers numerous restaurants, bakeries, and ethnic markets and is approximately 4.5 miles west of the convention center.
Kareem’s Falafel serves authentic Arabic breakfast items until 2 PM. You can order fuul (stew of medames beans cooked with olive oil, cumin, garlic and lemon juice), mosabaha (whole garbanzo beans with tahini, garlic, and lemon juice), and fatteh (fried pita bread with chickpeas and a yogurt based sauce). Or you could just simply have an omelette or 3 eggs any style.
Forn Al-Hara is famous for mana’eesh, dough topped with za’atar, cheese, or ground meat and knafeh nablusi, a cheese filled pastry soaked in sweet syrup attar and topped with crispy vermicelli. You can even order pizzas with unusual toppings or simple traditional ones.
El Mahroosa Restaurant and Hookah Bar serves traditional dishes such as mombar (stuffed beef sausages) and kushari (rice, macaroni, and lentils with fried onions served with tomato sauce and garlic juice. You could also try some of the desserts or indulge in an after meal smoke.
Sahara Falafel provides standard Mediterranean dishes like falafel, shawarma, hummus, labneh, and baba ghanoush.
For the less daring among you, there’s Zankou Chicken (a local chain) which serves rotisserie chicken, shawerma, and tarna (marinated, flame broiled chicken) or falafels with toum (a very tasty garlic sauce), tahini and pita, and simple chicken salads.
There are so many other great places to visit in Little Arabia, I can’t list them all.
Third Stop: Little Saigon
Travelling a bit farther out, you can experience the Vietnamese culture in the heart of Orange County, in Westminster. If you want a simple breakfast, you can order cafe sua da (iced coffee) and pate chaud (pastry stuffed with meat and other ingredients).
An infamous Vietnamese dish is pho (soup and vermicelli noodles with various meat or vegetable additions). You can sample this dish in most of the restaurants in the area but you can try the pho tai nam gai (rice noodle soup with rare cooked beef & tendon) or mien ga (bean thread noodle soup with chicken) at the Michelin Bib Gourmand-recommended Pho 79. I enjoy their sweet Vietnamese iced coffee for a refreshing drink and they have some of the best pho in southern California.
Den Da Coffee and Tea Restaurant is open for breakfast and lunch and well known for its unusual tea and coffee drinks. But some of their lunch dishes are worth mentioning as well. Sample the bun rieu, a crab and shrimp meat with rice vermicelli in a tomato broth, or the bo ne, a beef steak served on a hot skillet . Tom ram com chay, a dish of crispy rice with caramelized pork, shrimp, and vegetables, is another favorite.
THH is known for its dishes made with banh cuon, steamed flour sheets. Their house special sandwich, dac biet, features Vietnamese cold cuts and pate. Banh cuon nhan thit are pork filled sheets while banh cuon tom chay has delectable shrimp wrapped in the flour sheets. If you want to experiment, try the chao ca, a fish porridge.
Bake and Che is a modern take on classic Vietnamese desserts. The desserts include their house special, made from durian, red and white beans, jackfruit, pomegranate seeds, and taro paste. Che ba mau (three color dessert) is a traditional dessert that combines red, white, and mung beans with fresh pandan jelly and their special house milk. But a must is their signature flan cheesecake.
Banh Mi and Che Cali specializes in pho rice noodle dishes with steak, shrimp, chicken, or vegetables as well as banh mi, traditional Vietnamese sandwiches. Their specialty is ham and meatloaf banh mi along with another banh mi containing pan fried beef with teriyaki sauce. You can also obtain more classic dishes such as pho and hue style soups.
Guess what? There are a lot more great places to eat in the area, too!
Final Stop: Closer to Home
But I realize that sometimes you just want to grab a fast bite or have a casual meal with friends. There are many places near the convention center that can offer a simple repast with little fuss. These include popular chains, such as the Cheesecake Factory on Katella Avenue and Mimi’s Cafe, on Harbor Boulevard near the 5 Fwy entrance. For simpler fare, you can go to IHOP or Denny’s, both on Harbor Boulevard, within walking distance of the convention center.
If you want to try something well known to many southern Californians, try Roscoe’s Chicken and Waffles. The menu has chicken, waffles, and chicken and waffles, cooked in various ways and with different sauces and gravies.
The Chubby Dumpling, a noted dim sum and noodle/rice broth restaurant on Harbor Boulevard, is a fast casual place allowing you a choice of both flavors and cooking methods.
For a sit down meal, Agio Ristorante on Harbor inside the DoubleTree is nearby and reasonable. Its Italian inspired menu allows for small bites for those who just want something light as well as more hearty fare. Check the times for when this is open as it closes during parts of the day.
The Oasis Food Hall is another place located inside the Desert Palms Hotel and Suites. This is a food court offering a range of cuisines using digital kiosks. You can obtain burgers, flatbreads, Chinese food, Mexican dishes, steak and chicken, and desserts. These kiosks include Smash & Sauce, CAMO Pizza, Fork & Figs, Mexa Boca, and Mighty Bitey among others. The variety here is great, so you can accommodate many different individual tastes and preferences.
Brewberry Cafe on Harbor (near Chubby Dumpling) offers a varied menu for breakfast, from pancakes and waffles to omelettes and breakfast sandwiches. You can also get more substantial sandwiches, crepes, and dishes for lunch and it does have Vegan options. This has outdoor seating and tables can be reserved. But be aware they are not available for dinner at this time.
There are many other restaurants located within walking distance of the convention center and several in Downtown Disney on Disney Walk. Not to mention the food trucks that will be present in front of the convention center. Both the Hilton and Marriott have restaurants that offer a variety of food and hours.
The diversity of cuisines and locales is seemingly endless. I just wanted to let you know some of the options that are currently available. I hope your mouth is watering because there are just so many places to eat in the area that I can’t cover them all in one travelogue. I will be back again with even more places to check out closer to the convention. See you in Anaheim.
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Fuzzy’s Travelogue: Volume Two
The Newsletter of LAcon V: The 84th World Science Fiction Convention, June 2025 Edition
Edited by Genny Dazzo, with Shaun Lyon and Sandy Cohen
Fuzzy illustrations by Teddy Harvia, used with permission
Anaheim Packing House photo courtesy Visit Anaheim
Copyright © 2025, The Southern California Institute for Fan Interests (SCIFI) Inc. All rights reserved.
