San Juan Capistrano

LTH -- Any recommendations for dining in or near San Juan Capistrano -- formal, informal or anywhere in-between? Mrs. JiLS will be there this weekend and will have a car, but I'm sure she would prefer not to wander too far. Thanks in advance!

I live a few miles from SJC and there is a lot to choose from...but a lot depends on how far she wants to drive.

In SJC itself, I can rec Ramos House Cafe, especially for breakfast. Very good food in a very unique atmosphere in what I believe is the oldest house in CA. It sits right next to the SJC Amtrak/Metrolink train station.

Right across the RR tracks, there is a restaurant at the train station itself. It's gone through a number of iterations and I'm not even sure what it is called these days, but a friend dined there recently and said it was very good...indoor/outdoor seating.

A block up the road is an outpost of the Ruby's chain (NOT Ruby Tuesdays). I think this is one of the better chain operations in the country and they serve very good burgers, salads, sandwiches and more in a 50s diner concept.

Another block or two away is the venerable El Adobe, a long-standing Mexican place in SoCal.

Across the freeway is a relatively new (a year or so) BBQ place that I really like called Bad To The Bone.

Plenty of other options if you venture to Laguna Beach, Dana Point or even inland a bit...if you have more specific interests I can help some more.

Apologies in advance...after some really nice weather we are about to have a pretty lousy weather weekend. Scattered showers and UNUSUALLY cold temps. Hard to believe it hit 88 here on Monday!