• Irvine Insider
  • Posts
  • Explore Wildlife: Join a Family Nature Walk Through Round Canyon, Mar. 7

Explore Wildlife: Join a Family Nature Walk Through Round Canyon, Mar. 7

Issue # 0575

Author

Joshua Tjia
24 Feb

In this Irvine Insider Issue . . .

😁 Laugh of the Day

🌤️ Irvine Weather

📦🫘🥬 Free Grocery Food Boxes Available March 12 at Irvine’s Great Park

🖼️🎨 UC Irvine Names Kathryn Kanjo as Director of Langson OC Museum of Art

🎹🎶 Lang Lang Plays Beethoven: March 23 at Segerstrom Hall

🍞☕️ Toast, Coffee, and Lattes: La La Land Kind Cafe Coming Soon to Irvine Spectrum Center

🧩🪀 Board Games, LEGO & Friends: Join Super Saturday for Kids at Heritage Park Library

🍄‍🟫🥚🐟 Winter Wellness: Foods That Help Boost Your Vitamin D

🌳🥾 Explore Wildlife: Join a Family Nature Walk Through Round Canyon, Mar. 7

🧧💃🏻 Lunar New Year Comes to Irvine Spectrum with Music, Dance, and Family Fun

🎼🎼 Upcoming High School Music Calendar

🐈🐕 Happy Tails in Irvine: 16 Pets Find New Homes in One Week

⚾️ UCI Baseball's Alonso Reyes Earns Big West Field Player of the Week Honors

🏀🏐🎾⚽️ UCI Anteaters Upcoming Home Games

🏀🏀 Upcoming home games for the IVC LASERS

🏈🎾 High School Athletics Calendar

🚓🛍️ Two Arrested After Irvine Retail Thefts Linked to Multi-City Crime Spree

🍏🥭🍑 Local Farmers Markets

🌟🏪🎉Irvine’s Best Kept Secrets: Is Your Business One of Them?

📅📅 Lots of Local Events

📞💡 Useful Contact Information

What happens when you sit on a grape?

It gives a little wine!

We hope this joke brings some laughter to your day! 😁

Free Grocery Food Boxes Available March 12 at Irvine’s Great Park

The City of Irvine is hosting a Free Grocery Food Box pickup on Thursday, March 12, from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. at Great Park, Parking Lot 2. Eligible residents can receive a ~30-pound box of groceries once a month, including things such as fresh produce, pantry staples, dairy, and meat or fish.

Learn more at cityofirvine.org/foodbox or call 949-724-6650.

UC Irvine Names Kathryn Kanjo as Director of Langson OC Museum of Art

Kathryn Kanjo has been appointed director of the UC Irvine Langson Orange County Museum of Art. The museum was created through UC Irvine’s acquisition of the Orange County Museum of Art and now operates as a free-admission public museum. It brings together three California art collections with more than 9,000 works and expands both academic and public programs. Kanjo previously served as director and CEO of the Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego.

Lang Lang Plays Beethoven: March 23 at Segerstrom Hall

World-renowned pianist Lang Lang takes the stage with Pacific Symphony on March 23, at 8:00 PM at the Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall for an unforgettable night of classical music. Conducted by Carl St.Clair, the program features Beethoven’s Egmont Overture, Piano Concerto No. 3 with Lang Lang as soloist, and concludes with Dvořák’s sweeping Symphony No. 9, “From the New World.” A must-see evening of virtuosity, drama, and iconic masterpieces.

Toast, Coffee, and Lattes: La La Land Kind Cafe Coming Soon to Irvine Spectrum Center

La La Land Kind Cafe is coming soon to the Irvine Spectrum Center, opening near Old Navy. The cafe focuses on coffee, tea, and specialty treats, with outdoor seating and takeout planned. La La Land will bring popular items such as the La La Latte, Cloud Lattes, iced signature coolers, and a variety of plant-forward toasts, adding a new coffee and café option to the Spectrum’s existing dining lineup.

Board Games, LEGO & Friends: Join Super Saturday for Kids at Heritage Park Library

Grab your friends and come hang out at Super Saturday! Kids can enjoy board games, build with LEGO, and dive into creative play in a fun, relaxed library setting. Space is limited and available on a first-come, first-served basis, so arrive early for the fun.

📍 Heritage Park Library
📅 Saturday, February 28
⏰ 10:30–11:30 AM
🎯 Grades Kindergarten–5th

Winter Wellness: Foods That Help Boost Your Vitamin D

Vitamin D does a lot of good for the body—from helping keep bones and teeth strong to supporting mood and overall well-being. Since we tend to get less sunshine during the winter months, it’s a great time to lean on foods that naturally provide vitamin D.

Foods with Vitamin D:

  • Mushrooms

  • Egg yolks

  • Canned tuna

  • Salmon

  • Cod liver oil

  • Fortified milk

  • Fortified yogurt

Adding a few of these to your meals can be an easy, cozy way to support your health all season long.

Explore Wildlife: Join a Family Nature Walk Through Round Canyon, Mar. 7

Join a family-friendly interpretive hike through Round Canyon at the Irvine Open Space Preserve on Saturday, March 7, from 3:30–6:00 p.m. This easy, slower-paced 2.5-mile hike follows a mostly flat trail as participants watch for wildlife like red-tailed hawks and mule deer while learning about the land.

Lunar New Year Comes to Irvine Spectrum with Music, Dance, and Family Fun

Celebrate Lunar New Year with a centerwide festival on Sunday, March 1, from 12–4 PM, featuring 15+ traditional performances by the South Coast Chinese Cultural Center. Enjoy dragon and lion dances, Chinese and Korean drum shows, wushu demonstrations, children’s choirs, and live instrumental music (erhu, guzheng, pipa, dizi, and more) across multiple locations near H&M, Dave & Buster’s, and Regal. This family-friendly event also includes face painting, balloon twisting, and festive lunar mocktails.

Upcoming Northwood High School’s Music Calendar

No further events scheduled for this month.

For the latest updates or additional details, please visit https://timbmusic.org/events/

Upcoming Woodbridge High School's Music Calendar

  1. February 26-28: Cinderella Musical, WHS Performing Arts Center

For the latest updates or additional details, please visit https://www.whs-music.org/

Upcoming Woodbridge High School’s Vocal Music Calendar

  1. February 26-28, TBD: Cinderella, WHS Performing Arts Center

For the latest updates or additional details, please visit https://woodbridgechoirs.weebly.com/calendar.html

Upcoming Irvine High Choral’s Music Calendar

  1. February 25-28, 7:00 PM: Seussical, IHS PAC

For the latest updates or additional details, please visit https://www.ihschoralmusic.org/calendar.html 

Upcoming Portola High School Music’s Calendar

No further events scheduled for this month.

For the latest updates or additional details, please visit https://www.phsmusicbooster.org/buy-ticket

Happy Tails in Irvine: 16 Pets Find New Homes in One Week

Between February 16–22, the Irvine Animal Care Center celebrated 16 adoptions.

  • 7 dogs: Apolo, Chloe, Darrow, Lysander, Sevro, Shaun, Sidney

  • 5 Cats: Lenny, Maverick, Miu Miu, Mu, Taylor

  • 2 Hamsters: Cookie, Wafer

  • 1 Guinea Pig: Pat

  • 1 Rabbit: Muffin

  • During the same week, 5 dogs and 2 cats were reunited with their owners.

Learn more about adoption opportunities and hours at cityofirvine.org/animals.

UCI Baseball's Alonso Reyes Earns Big West Field Player of the Week Honors

UC Irvine baseball’s Alonso Reyes was named Big West Field Player of the Week after leading the Anteaters offensively in four games against San Diego State and California. The second-year first baseman had multiple hits in every game, drove in six RBIs, and added his first career triple and stolen base for the team’s first weekly award of the 2026 season.

UCI Anteaters Upcoming Home Games

Baseball

  • Tue, Feb 24 – vs Grand Canyon, 6:00 PM

  • Wed, Feb 25 – vs Grand Canyon, 1:00 PM

Women’s Basketball

  • Thur, Feb 26 – vs CSUN, 6:00 PM

🏐⚽🏀 Upcoming home games for the IVC LASERS 

Men’s Tennis

  • Tue, Feb 24 – vs Riverside, 2:00 PM

Baseball

  • Tue, Feb 24 – vs LA Valley, 1:00 PM

  • Sat, Feb 28 – vs LA Mission, 12:00 PM

Men’s Volleyball

  • Wed, Feb 25 – vs Palomar, 6:00 PM

High School Athletics Calendar

**

Updated With February Schedule

Upcoming Irvine High School’s Varsity home games:

February 2026

Tuesday, February 24

  • Track and Field, Boys - TBA vs Pacific Hills Quad #1

  • Track and Field, Girls - TBA vs Pacific Hills Quad #1

  • Baseball- 3:00 PM vs Oxford Academy

  • Tennis, Boys - 3:15 PM vs Crean Lutheran

Two Arrested After Irvine Retail Thefts Linked to Multi-City Crime Spree

Irvine Police arrested two Santa Ana residents after a series of retail thefts tied to a Ford Flex across multiple Orange County cities. Following shoplifting incidents at Crossroads Trading and ULTA in Irvine, detectives connected the suspects to about $3,500 in additional thefts. Investigators located them at a Santa Ana motel, observed one suspect commit another theft, and arrested Selena Nicole Aparicio, 42, and Armando Ramirez Serrano, 37, on outstanding felony warrants. Additional stolen property was recovered from their motel room.

Irvine’s Best Kept Secrets: Is Your Business One of Them?

We know our community is brimming with businesses that have fascinating stories and big hearts. If you’re a local business owner making waves, crafting unique experiences, or simply putting a smile on our faces, we want to chat with you! “Irvine Insider” is eager to shine a light on the unsung heroes of our city. Let’s collaborate and let the community know what makes your business special.

Click the link below and fill out the Local Business Spotlight Application Form to be featured and let’s celebrate the spirit of Irvine together!

Irvine Insider is sent to a local audience of Irvine residence Monday through Friday with 50% - 60% open rate. Our newsletter is a great way to reach Irvine residents.

  • Kaiser Permanente Irvine Farmers Market

  • Saturday Farmers Market at Mariners Church Irvine

    • When: Saturday, 8 AM - 12 PM

    • Where: 5428 Bonita Canyon Dr, Irvine, CA 92603

  • Great Park Certified Farmers Market

  • Manassero Farmers

    • When: Daily, 9 AM - 4:30 PM

    • Where: 33 Irvine Valley, Irvine, CA 92604

  • Tanaka Farms

    • When: Daily, 9 AM - 5 PM

    • Where: 5380 3/4 University Dr, Irvine, CA 92612

    • More Info:Tanaka Farms

We could use your help

We’ve got big plans as we get up to speed! But we need your help!

One huge way that you can help us is to spread the word for us.

Know somebody who lives in the Irvine and surrounding areas and would benefit from being kept in the know?

Please share Irvine Insider with them! It’s simple!