Must-visit: Tanaka Strawberry Farm, Irvine - Orange County, CA. ~ Brilliant Farmgirl's Beauty Secrets™
Brilliant Farmgirl's Beauty Secrets

6/7/09

Must-visit: Tanaka Strawberry Farm, Irvine - Orange County, CA.

For our 1-year anniversary, Boyfriend and I had an adventure that I’ll always remember. In the many years I’ve lived in Orange County, I’ve wondered about this elusive strawberry farm more than just a few times. I finally had a chance to visit this place- it was everything I imagined it’d be and so much more. Farmer Tanaka & family have been farming in Irvine since 1998. Having the farm in the middle of this classic suburbia makes it all the more endearing. Strawberry is just one of the many different vegetations thriving on the Tanaka Farm, they also harvest corn, tomato, spinach, zucchini (yellow and green), radish, purple carrot, bok choy and so much more! To top it off, everything is organically grown.

Timing couldn’t have been better as we decided to visit in time for their third Cookout Tour. Beyond the traditional strawberry tour they conduct weekly, the smart people there have recently started a guided tour around the farm that allows visitors to pick their own veggies from the earth and cook it on the BBQ grill! We definitely earned that meal, collecting the vegetables was both hard work and great fun! The veggie & tofu feast we had was absolutely heavenly. It felt so good to know that we were eating vegetables we picked ourselves, everything tasted so fresh and flavorful. The meal was perfected by the ambiance as we relished our harvest while overlooking hills and fields in many shades of green.

For dessert, the tour guide unleashed us at the strawberry field and we had all-you-can-eat strawberries fresh from the plants. I felt like a kid set free in a candy store! The fresh strawberries were out of this world; I honestly tasted the sunshine and the earth. For $5 extra, I got a box to collect strawberries to-go. It was worth every penny as I got to take a bit of the magic home with me. The most wonderful and smartest man I know (Boyfriend) prepared strawberries, honey & champagne after the field trip. I was tickled that each bite brought me back to the strawberry field. Words cannot do justice to the enchantment we felt at the Tanaka Farm. If you live even remotely close to Orange County, there’s a definite need to visit this place.

If the Tanaka Farm is out of reach for you, visit www.pickyourown.org for your nearest fruit & veggie farm. Not only is it a great way to help local farmers, you’ll have an adventure that’s both invigorating to the senses and easy on the wallet.

Farmgirl Beauty Secret #24: For a naturally brighter smile, eat strawberries! Strawberries contain malic acid, which helps buff away surface stains for whiter teeth!

8 comments:

A.R. said...

Great review! I'm checking out the website.

Anonymous said...

farmgirl,

this is a good idea for when my kids get out for summer vacation, thanks!

Anonymous said...

Incredible, thanks for sharing that. keep up with the interesting blogging and photographs, I look forward to hearing more from you.

D.

Brilliant Farmgirl's Beauty Secrets™ said...

Thank you for the compliment! Boyfriend is an excellent photographer.

Farmgirl

Dana Yoshimizu said...

My cousin used to date this guy and it's his family who owns the farm!

Brilliant Farmgirl's Beauty Secrets™ said...

Hi Dana,

Very cool! I know their family has great relations with the Irvine Company, I'm so glad there's a farm in Irvine :)

Farmgirl

nomadcraftsetc said...

I want a farm like that!!!! ME ME ME!
You sound like you had a brilliant time! I didn't know that about eating the strawberries and having a whiter smile! Interesting!

Brilliant Farmgirl's Beauty Secrets™ said...

I would love a farm like that as well :D Imagine eating all that goodness everyday!

Farmgirl