VOX Kitchen Brings Modern Chifa Flavor to Aliso Viejo

Kei Concepts is opening a third VOX Kitchen location in Aliso Viejo on Wednesday, Sept. 2. The new restaurant brings the brand's Modern Chifa cuisine to South Orange County for the first time.

VOX Kitchen opened in Fountain Valley in 2017 as one of Kei Concepts' first restaurants. It has since grown into one of the group's best-known names, with locations in Fountain Valley and South Coast Plaza. The concept is built on Chifa, the culinary tradition blending Chinese and Peruvian influences, with a menu known for bold flavor and multicultural roots.

The 3,298-square-foot Aliso Viejo location will seat close to 80 guests, with an interior inspired by VOX Kitchen & Bar at South Coast Plaza. The new restaurant carries forward the same lively, welcoming dining experience that has defined VOX for nearly 10 years.

The menu will include the dishes VOX is known for: Filet Mignon Lomo Saltado, served over thick-cut fries wok-tossed with red onion and tomato alongside rice and aji sauce; Filet Garlic Noodles finished with Parmesan and scallions; and the VOX Pear Salad, layered with arugula, burrata, candied nuts and fig balsamic. Crispy Garlic Chicken Wings and Chifa-style fried rice round out the menu.

The Aliso Viejo opening follows several recent debuts for Kei Concepts, including QUA Contemporary Chinese Cuisine, Kei Coffee House, ROL Hand Roll Bar in Irvine and La Habra, and VOX Kitchen & Bar at South Coast Plaza. Founder Viet Nguyen was also named a James Beard Award semifinalist for Best Chef: California this year, and he and co-CEO Ivy Ha have received several honors for their leadership.

VOX Kitchen Aliso Viejo, located at 26511 Aliso Creek Road, Aliso Viejo, will open with soft-opening hours Wednesday through Sunday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. 

Starting Sept. 7, hours expand to Tuesday through Sunday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. For more information, visit Kei Concepts online.

Founded by Viet Nguyen, Kei Concepts is an Orange County-based hospitality group behind chef-driven restaurant concepts rooted in culture, craftsmanship and innovation. With nearly 1,000 employees across its portfolio, the company is one of the largest Vietnamese-founded restaurant groups in the country. Its restaurants include VOX Kitchen, VOX Kitchen & Bar, NEP Cafe, SUP Noodle Bar, INI Ristorante, Kei Coffee House, KIN Craft Ramen & Izakaya, QUA Contemporary Chinese Cuisine and ROL Hand Roll Bar.

Zov’s Mediterranean Restaurant Set to Open on 17th Street in Costa Mesa

Zov's is coming to Costa Mesa. The Mediterranean restaurant will open at 428 E. 17th St., in the former Playa Mesa space, in late 2026. The move follows the brand's debut in San Clemente earlier this year.

17th Street's dining choices are getting better and better, with Ospi, Oak & Coal, Tabu Shabu, Salt & Lime and many more. Zov's joins a strip already known for independent, chef-driven spots. The Costa Mesa location will carry the same family hospitality that has defined the brand since it opened nearly 40 years ago.

Zov Karamardian opened the first Zov's in 1987 with her husband, Gary, drawing on family recipes and her own background in Mediterranean cooking. The business remains family run. Son Armen is CEO, daughter Taleene oversees creative and operational work, and granddaughter Morgan handles branding and marketing across the company's locations in Tustin, Irvine, Newport Coast and San Clemente.

The menu is expected to include grilled lamb chops, house-made mezze with hummus and baba ghanoush, locally sourced seafood, flatbreads and house-made pastas, along with seasonal salads. The bar program will offer cocktails made with fresh herbs and citrus, a wine list covering California and Mediterranean producers, and craft beer and non-alcoholic options.

Zov's will be at 428 E. 17th St. in Costa Mesa.

Blind Boys of Alabama Bring Seven Decades of Gospel to Musco Center

Musco Center welcomes the Blind Boys of Alabama, living legends whose reputation is well earned. Rolling Stone has called them "gospel titans," and after more than 70 years together, that title still fits.

The group performs Wednesday, Sept. 9, 2026, at 7:30 p.m.

Few acts in American music can claim the honors the Blind Boys have collected: Lifetime Achievement Awards from the National Endowment for the Arts and the Recording Academy/GRAMMYs, induction into the Gospel Music Hall of Fame, and six GRAMMY Awards, most recently in 2024. What sets them apart, though, is how they've used that stature. Rather than stay within the boundaries of traditional gospel, the Blind Boys have spent decades reinterpreting songs by Eric Clapton, Prince and Tom Waits, and have shared recordings with artists as varied as Lou Reed, Peter Gabriel, Bonnie Raitt and Willie Nelson.

Their most recent album, "Echoes of the South," was recorded in Muscle Shoals, Alabama, and earned three GRAMMY nominations, winning for Best Roots Gospel Album. In March 2024, the group released "Spirit of the Century," a firsthand history of America's longest-running vocal group written with band members and longtime collaborators. That same year, the Americana Music Association gave the Blind Boys a Lifetime Achievement Award at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville during the 23rd Annual Americana Honors & Awards.

Seventy years in, the Blind Boys of Alabama show no interest in slowing down.

The show runs approximately 75 minutes with no intermission.

Planning to catch more than one Musco Center show this season? A Musco Season Package saves 15% or more, and the more shows you add, the more you save. Purchase a package here.

Tickets start at $43. For tickets and more information, visit muscocenter.org.

415 North Glassell St., Orange, CA 92866 | 714.997.6812