El Adobe de Capistrano

The restaurant site has been recognized as a California State Historical Landmark. Situated just two short blocks south of the historic Mission San Juan Capistrano and the Train Depot. The building was originally two separate structures. The northern section was originally the home of Miguel Yorba Adobe, built in 1797. The southern half housed the Juzgado (court and jails) and was established in 1812.The walls forming El Adobe’s cocktail lounge were part of the original Miguel Yorba Adobe. The wine cellar is now housed in the Juzgado’s dungeon-like cell. The ground beneath the foyer served as a passageway for Seeley & Wright stagecoaches, until the advent to the Santa Fe Railroad in 1888.

The former jail, in which currently stands the restaurant’s wine cellar, is said to be haunted by a ghost. The apparition of a headless friar has also been seen in front of the restaurant.