HOLIDAY DINING : In Cinco With the Festivities

Mariachis, pinatas, margaritas--Cinco de Mayo unfolds at Orange County restaurants this weekend. Among the festivities:

Cano’s in Newport Beach hosts a Sunday “Fiesta Grande” beginning at 3 p.m. and continuing until closing. The food fair will accent a culinary journey through Mexico’s regional cuisines, with a dessert bar dominated by a 5-foot-long celebration cake and drink specials from a specialty tequila bar and Bohemia beer bar. And would you believe margarita popsicles and Cuervo Gold jello shots? There’s no cover; you pay as you sip and sample, accompanied by a live mariachi band. Raffle prizes include round-trip air fare to Cabo San Lucas. The restaurant is at 2241 W. Coast Highway. (714) 631-1381.

The Hacienda in Santa Ana will dedicate the holiday to a fund-raiser for Self-Esteem, a middle-school program in the Santa Ana School District. The restaurant promises live music and “massive flowers and food everywhere” for the 11 a.m.-3 p.m. champagne brunch. Chef Chuy’s buffet includes a beef and chicken taco bar with condiments, chili rellenos, fajitas, cheese enchiladas, chalupas, ham, turkey, roast beef and an omelet bar. Door prizes include a round-trip for two to Mazatlan, with a three-night stay at the Westin Camino Real. Tickets are $8.95 for adults (of which $2 will go to the fund) and $3.95 for children. 1725 College Ave. (714) 558-1304.

Weekend festivities begin Friday at El Torito Grill in Costa Mesa. With an auxiliary tent erected in the Noguchi Sculpture Gardens behind the restaurant, El Torito will stage a barbecue a la Mexicana, with charbroiled chicken or steak tacos for 50 cents apiece. Mariachis will play Friday and Saturday night and for Sunday brunch. There will be balloon drops all weekend, with a grand prize of a trip for two to Mexico. Festivities begin at 4 p.m. Friday and Saturday. Brunch is from 10 a.m. to 2:30 Sunday, after which the barbecue will resume until sunset. The restaurant is at 633 Anton Blvd. (714) 594-6917.

Acapulco Mexican restaurants have already begun their “Countdown to Cinco,” offering different specials each day. On Sunday, there will be special drink prices all day, and each restaurant will feature its own holiday decor and entertainment. Acapulco restaurants are at 1262 S.E. Bristol St., Costa Mesa, (714) 754-6528; 1410 S. Harbor Blvd., Anaheim, (714) 956-7380; 1609 E. Imperial Highway, Brea, (714) 529-6666; 12101 Valley View, Garden Grove, (714), 893-7513; 30100 Town Center Drive, Suites Y and Z, Laguna Niguel, (714) 495-3372; and El Paso Cantina at 1565 Adams St., Costa Mesa, (714) 241-0123.

Caliente in Irvine starts its three-day celebration on Friday, with mariachis, Mexican dancers and food booths throughout the cantina and patio. Additional festivities and entertainment will be presented during the Sunday buffet brunch from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Price is $10.95 for adults; half for kids under 6. Caliente is at 1910 Main St. (714) 975-1220.

Tia Juana’s Long Bar & Mexican Cafe in Irvine also will stretch its fiesta into three days. Mariachis will play Friday, Saturday and Sunday from 5 to 9 p.m., and KIK-FM will broadcast from the bar and cafe on Friday and Saturday. The Bud Girls will be on hand from 5 to 8 p.m. Friday, and the Tecate Girls from 5 to 8 p.m. Saturday. A rock ‘n’ roll band, the Bel Airs, will play Friday and Saturday from 9 p.m. to 1 a.m. On Sunday, Tia Juana’s will sponsor 5-K and 2-K runs. A fee of $22 covers your entry, the run through the streets of Irvine, T-shirt and brunch. Mariachis will play from 12 to 4 p.m. and in the evening, the house band, Alaturas, will perform. During all the festivities, prizes will be given away, including a weekend for two at Rancho Bernardo. The address: 14988 Sand Canyon Ave. at Interstate 5. (714) 551-2998.

A festively decorated Sombrero Street in Santa Ana will serve a Sunday champagne brunch for $8.95. The buffet will display chorizo and eggs, chili colorado, beef and chicken fajitas, an omelet bar and more. It’s from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at 719 N. Main St. (714) 547-0922.

Moreno’s in Orange will hold its primary celebration Saturday from 6 to 10 p.m. The large patio will be decorated, and an eight-piece mariachi group, singers and dancers will perform. There’s no cover. On Sunday, mariachis will perform from 10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and again again from 5 to 9 p.m. The restaurant is at 4328 E. Chapman Ave. (714) 539-2181.

A Latin jazz band will play at El Matador in Huntington Harbour from 8 p.m. to midnight Sunday. There’s no admission charge, and drink specials will be offered. Earlier in the day brunch will be served from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. for $7.95, including champagne. El Matador is at 16903 Algonquin St., Huntington Harbour Mall. (714) 846-5337.

Former President Nixon’s favorite spot, El Adobe, will present two shows as part of its fiesta on Sunday. From 5 to 7 p.m. and 7:30 to 10 p.m., dancers and mariachis will perform. The cost ($14.95 for adults and $8 for children 9 and under), includes a buffet of such traditional dishes as chili colorado, enchiladas, chili rellenos, refried and black beans, salads, sweet tamales, flan and Mexican bread. The restaurant is at 31891 Camino Capistrano, San Juan Capistrano. (714) 493-1163.

At the four El Ranchito locations, the celebration is already underway, with a live donkey (with whom you may have your photo snapped) and mariachis. Tonight Miss Tecate visits Laguna Hills, and there will be salsa music for dancing Friday and Saturday from 9 p.m. to 1:30 a.m., and Sunday evenings from 8 p.m. Miss Tecate also appears tonight at the Newport Beach location, where there will be live music Friday and Saturday evenings. The Budweiser girls appear in Santa Ana on Friday night. On Sunday, the Santa Ana, Brea and Laguna Hills El Ranchitos will serve a buffet brunch from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Look for a selection including chicken mole, menudo, pozole, homemade tortillas and desserts for $9.95. All restaurants will raffle prizes. Moreover, the festivities will continue after the holiday, when anyone who comes in wearing a 1991 El Ranchito shirt will receive his or her first drink for 25 cents. El Ranchito restaurants are at 409 28th St., Newport Beach, (714) 675-6855; 2201 E. 1st St., Santa Ana, (714) 547-9129; 25322 Cabot Road, Laguna Hills, (714) 586-1200; and 250 State College Blvd., Brea, (714) 529-5525.

Mariachis will accompany Sunday brunch at Cafe El Cholo in La Habra between 11:30 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. (Brunch itself will be served from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.) All entrees, such as stuffed chili rellenos ($7.25) and steak picado ($8.25), include beans, rice or papas rancheras, taquito chimi, guacamole, coffee cake and fresh fruit. Order a margarita for $3 and your refills are free. The restaurant is at 840 E. Whittier Blvd. (714) 525-1320.

And if you’d like to learn from an expert how to prepare traditional Mexican dishes for el Cinco, come to the Robert Mondavi Wine & Food Center on Friday from 7 to 9 p.m. Using family recipes, Rosanne Ruiz, the center’s executive chef, and her mother, Mary Jean Rujiz, will demonstrate how to make homemade tortillas, salsa and chili rellenos . The cost is $48 a person; the center is at 1570 Scenic Ave., Costa Mesa. (714) 979-4510.

The Red Onion Southern California chain is thinking big--big enough to qualify for entry into the “Guinness Book of World Records.” The goal: to hold the largest Cinco de Mayo party in history on Sunday. Each location, including the four in Orange County, will ask guests to “sign in please” so documentation can be sent to Guinness. In case you can’t wait until Sunday, however, festivities begin on Friday at 4 p.m. with the Baja happy hour and all-you-can-eat Mexican buffet. Double drinks will be single-priced, and there will be dancing and entertainment all evening. Saturday will feature a variety of food and drink specials, and on Sunday, the fiesta starts at 4 p.m. in all locations except Santa Ana.

There will be a Mexican buffet until 7 p.m., and $5 buys five drinks, plus games, contests and pinata breakings. At the Santa Ana location only, a special carnival from 3 to 7 p.m. Sunday will raise funds for Muscular Dystrophy. There will be door prizes, games, booths and auction items. You’ll pay $7 for five drink tickets and an all-you-can-eat buffet, $2 of which will go to Muscular Dystrophy. Red Onion locations: 101 E. Sandpointe Ave., Santa Ana, (714) 556-7701; 450 N. State College Blvd., Orange, (714) 939-8590; 16450 Pacific Coast Highway, Huntington Harbour, (714) 846-3339; 1446 N. Harbor Blvd., Fullerton, (714) 526-8191.