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Chapter One: the modern local, Santa Ana, CA

Chapter One: the modern local

4.6 (593)
$30 and under
Gastro Pub
227 N. Broadway, Santa Ana, CA 92701

Make a reservation

2 people
7:00 PM
Booked 5 times today

About this restaurant

  • Neighborhood gem
  • Charming
  • Great for creative cocktails
A staple of the Downtown Santa Ana bar and food scene, Chapter One has been serving up fresh and familiar house-made dishes and cocktails since 2011 with an eclectic vibe. Enjoy one of the best burgers in town next to a group of judges and lawyers from the Ronald Regan Federal Courthouse, or throw back some Old Fashions and Mezcal with local artist on DTSA's famous artwalks. Situated in an old book store, Bib-Gourmand recognized Chef Luis Perez now serves up his spin on the Chapter One menu. Always fresh and always made in house, down to even the ketchup and tortillas, no detail is overlooked.

Happy Hour Monday through Friday, 3p - 6p. Live Jazz Band every Wednesday night. Live Music Friday and Saturday Night. Weekend Brunch Saturday and Sunday 10a-3p.

Awesome rotating beer and wine list curated by Ryan Harding. He's cool.

Additional information

  • Dining style
    Casual Dining
  • Price
    $30 and under
  • Cuisines
    Gastro Pub, Cocktail Bar, American
  • Hours of operation
    Brunch Sat, Sun 10:00 am–3:00 pm Bar Mon–Thu 11:00 am–10:00 pm Fri 11:00 am–12:30 am Sat 10:00 am–12:30 am Sun 10:00 am–9:00 pm Lunch Mon–Fri 11:00 am–4:00 pm Dinner Mon–Thu 4:00 pm–9:00 pm Fri, Sat 4:00 pm–11:00 pm Sun 4:00 pm–8:00 pm
  • Phone number
  • Payment options
    AMEX, Discover, Mastercard, Visa
  • Dress code
    Casual Dress
  • Executive chef
    Luis Perez
  • Catering
    We offer many options for larger parties in our private event space, The Red Room. We offer party platters, drink ticket options, and customized menus. Please email sales@chapteronetml.com for more details.
  • Private party facilities
    A beautifully decorated private dinning room with multimedia capabilities. Parties, meetings, luncheons, entertainment venue; endless possibilities.
  • Neighborhood
    Santa Ana
  • Cross street
    Broadway & 3rd
  • Parking details
    Street parking, a large parking garage located directly across the street, and a pay lot directly behind the restaurant.
  • Public transit
    Minutes away from the Santa Ana Train Station and Regional Transportation Center. Downtown Santa Ana is located in the center of Orange County, so it's never too far from anybody!
  • Entertainment
    Follow us on Facebook for our event schedule!
  • Additional
    Banquet, Bar/Lounge, Beer, BYO Wine, Cocktails, Corkage Fee, Dancing, Entertainment, Full Bar, Gluten-free Options, Happy Hour, Indoor Fireplace, Late Night, Outdoor Smoking Area, Patio/Outdoor Dining, Patio/Outdoor Dining, Private Room, Takeout, Vegan, View, Weekend Brunch, Wheelchair Access, Wine

What 593 people are saying

Chapter One: the modern local reviews from people who’ve dined at this restaurant. Based on recent rating.

Overall ratings and reviews

Reviews can only be made by diners who have eaten at this restaurant

4.6
4.6 based on recent ratings
  • 4.5Food
  • 4.7Service
  • 4.6Ambience
  • 4.5Value

NoiseModerate

Loved For

  • North Orange County

    Neighborhood gem

  • North Orange County

    Lively

Review summary

AI-generated from verified diner reviews
Chapter One: the modern local offers a delightful dining experience with "excellent service" and "quality and fresh" ingredients. Guests rave about "the best cheeseburger" and the "amazing" empanadas. The restaurant's unique vibe, live music, and literary-themed menu make it a "fun and worthy destination" with great food and a welcoming atmosphere.
593 Reviews
  1. Josh VIP

    Orange County9 reviews

    5.0

    Dined 3 days ago

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    If you haven’t been to Chapter One lately, now’s the time to revisit this downtown Santa Ana gem. A true bellwether gastropub, they’ve upped the ante with a jaw-dropping collection of 450 bourbons and whiskeys. I dipped into the Frey Ranch 120 proof — deceptively smooth up front, but don’t be fooled… it will smack you in the face in the best way possible. A beautiful way to expand your palate. On the food front: we started with the Margarita Flatbread — bright, fresh, and wood-fired just enough to give the crust that perfect char. Then came the Buttermilk Chicken, which was golden, juicy, and built like the comfort food of your dreams. The Steak and Feta Salad was shockingly satisfying, with perfectly grilled steak over crisp greens and a tangy vinaigrette that tied it all together. The soufflé. It’s a different spin as it’s huge. Maybe not my favorite. Probably could use some ice cream. But overall Chapter One is a reason to get your hind parts into DTSA and enjoy.

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  2. Robin VIP

    New York City18 reviews

    5.0

    Dined on May 4, 2025

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 4
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    Chapter 1 is our favorite local restaurant in the Artist village. We eat there about once a week and really enjoy the food. Especially the wedge salad with the onion rings on top and the bacon wrapped meatloaf with mashed potatoes is fabulous. My husband always gets the margarita pizza with a beer . The staff is very friendly and always remembers what we like to drink . great music and a very hip feeling. Great vibe. Be sure to order the soufflé dessert ahead of time so it’s ready at the end of the meal really wonderful. 

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  3. Andy

    Orange County1 review

    5.0

    Dined on April 10, 2025

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    The BEST cheeseburger I’ve ever had. The service was great and the vibe was cool. Definitely going back. Oh did I mention the almost shoestring fabulous duck fat fries? So good.

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  4. Karaan

    Orange County1 review

    5.0

    Dined on April 8, 2025

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    Super fun place to watch Arsenal games if any gooners are in town or close by!!! Arsenal 3, Madrid ZERO. Will remember that forever.

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  5. JAMES VIP

    Orange County2 reviews

    4.0

    Dined on March 30, 2025

    1. Overall 4
    2. Food 4
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    Steak on Steak Salad was rare (asked for medium rare) and when we told the waitress, it came back well done, almost like beef jerky. Flavor on the shrimp tacos was great but they served bay shrimp instead of large shrimp as pictured on Yelp. Service and atmosphere were both great.

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  6. anita

    Orange County2 reviews

    3.0

    Dined on March 25, 2025

    1. Overall 3
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 4
    4. Ambience 4
    Staff was accommodating but as an obviously newly married gal wanted more attention 😂 Food great and will come back regardless.

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  7. Josh

    San Francisco3 reviews

    1.0

    Dined on March 18, 2025

    1. Overall 1
    2. Food 1
    3. Service 1
    4. Ambience 3
    I used to work in the industry for 10+ years, I am aware it was obviously St. Pattys day + their 14 year anniversary party. However, it was busy, but not SLAMMED. We just never got service! We got sat at our table by who I am assuming was the owner/manager, sat there for over 15 min with no menus, no drinks etc. The owner manager advised someone to take our drink order which he did but we ended up watching as our “server” was talking to other people, showing them videos on their phone for a legit 20 min. Then we saw that after 20 min gone by, he realized he never put our drinks in (we watched him the whole time after he took our drink order, he never went to the terminal once to put in our drinks order, he was just chatting with other guests). At this point it is about 7:20pm and we had a reso at 6:45pm, no drinks on the table, no menu. My wife is pregnant and wasnt trying to wait on these guys all night so we just left and got some tacos elsewhere. Super disappointing.

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  8. Melissa VIP

    San Francisco9 reviews

    5.0

    Dined on March 16, 2025

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    Excellent service, great food! A wonderful place to have dinner. Really enjoyed the restaurant. Will be back.

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  9. Rachael

    San Diego2 reviews

    4.0

    Dined on March 9, 2025

    1. Overall 4
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 4
    The food, service, and accommodations were excellent, but the television was so noisy that we couldn't talk to each other.

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  10. OpenTable Diner

    Orange County1 review

    3.0

    Dined on March 9, 2025

    1. Overall 3
    2. Food 3
    3. Service 4
    4. Ambience 4
    They changed their menu to the extent that it is no longer a Foodie Standard like it was back in the day. In addition they no longer serve up craft cocktails.

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FAQs

Chapter One: the modern local does offer delivery in partnership with Postmates. Chapter One: the modern local also offers takeout which you can order by calling the restaurant at (714) 352-2225.

Chapter One: the modern local is rated 4.6 stars by 593 OpenTable diners.

Yes, you can generally book this restaurant by choosing the date, time and party size on OpenTable.

  1. Home
  2. United States
  3. Orange County
  4. North Orange County
  5. Santa Ana

Make a reservation

2 people
7:00 PM
Booked 5 times today
Google Map for Chapter One: the modern local

227 N. Broadway, Santa Ana, CA 92701

Additional information

  • Cross street
    Broadway & 3rd
  • Neighborhood
    Santa Ana
  • Hours of operation
    Brunch Sat, Sun 10:00 am–3:00 pm Bar Mon–Thu 11:00 am–10:00 pm Fri 11:00 am–12:30 am Sat 10:00 am–12:30 am Sun 10:00 am–9:00 pm Lunch Mon–Fri 11:00 am–4:00 pm Dinner Mon–Thu 4:00 pm–9:00 pm Fri, Sat 4:00 pm–11:00 pm Sun 4:00 pm–8:00 pm
  • Price
    $30 and under
  • Cuisines
    Gastro Pub, Cocktail Bar, American
  • Dining style
    Casual Dining
  • Dress code
    Casual Dress
  • Parking details
    Street parking, a large parking garage located directly across the street, and a pay lot directly behind the restaurant.
  • Public transit
    Minutes away from the Santa Ana Train Station and Regional Transportation Center. Downtown Santa Ana is located in the center of Orange County, so it's never too far from anybody!
  • Payment options
    AMEX, Discover, Mastercard, Visa
  • Executive chef
    Luis Perez
  • Entertainment
    Follow us on Facebook for our event schedule!
  • Additional
    Banquet, Bar/Lounge, Beer, BYO Wine, Cocktails, Corkage Fee, Dancing, Entertainment, Full Bar, Gluten-free Options, Happy Hour, Indoor Fireplace, Late Night, Outdoor Smoking Area, Patio/Outdoor Dining, Patio/Outdoor Dining, Private Room, Takeout, Vegan, View, Weekend Brunch, Wheelchair Access, Wine
  • Phone number
  • Catering
    We offer many options for larger parties in our private event space, The Red Room. We offer party platters, drink ticket options, and customized menus. Please email sales@chapteronetml.com for more details.
  • Private party facilities
    A beautifully decorated private dinning room with multimedia capabilities. Parties, meetings, luncheons, entertainment venue; endless possibilities.
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  • Terms of Use
  • Cookies and Interest-Based Ads
  • Cookie Preferences
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