Rancho Santa Margarita Lake — Attraction in Rancho Santa Margarita

I love this lake! Enjoy beautiful mountain and lake views while walking around the lakeside sidewalk or much on some food and sip a cocktail at one of the lakeside restaurants. I recommend the Sushi place, Yamame (Best sushi in town, in my opinion) or Pizza e Vino (delicious pizza but a bit pricey) for dinner, Blind Pig for small appetizers, craft cocktails and live music, and Carmelitas for their dessert caramel-stuffed churros or flan or maybe even a uniquely flavored margarita. The Blind Pig and Carmelitas have the best lakeside views. The lake is not very well lit at night so if you are by yourself I recommend visiting during the day or at least visit with another person at night to be safe. This area is generally safe and family friendly but it doesn’t hurt to be cautious. There are small paddle boats available to rent at the lake clubhouse, but whatever you do, don’t touch or swim in the water, it’s not sanitary or safe for human consumption. There are many ducks and geese in the area so watch out for their droppings, it gets everywhere. Also, the lake and the walking path is pet-friendly. There is a large Christmas tree during the holiday season and a popular fireworks show for the city’s 4th of July/ Independence Day celebration. The lake can get very crowded on the weekends as it is a popular leisure spot for locals. Parking is free in the lake shopping center, just a few steps from the lake. I recommend this little man-made lake to locals and tourists alike. It is a wonderful place for grabbing a meal, enjoying beautiful views, taking a walk or...

Cool place to take a nice walk enjoying some fresh air. Excellent spot for a nice walk, jog or run.

We came on a Tuesday evening, around 5:30 pm. The place was active, people jogging, dog walking, fishing, walking, running, exercising, etc.

We did about 4 laps walking while sipping on our boba from Ding Tea (Next to the Lago). It was nice and relaxing.

Parking can get really crowded, specially if trying to park next to the restaurants and shops. The Lago has its own parking lots (2 of them) and they are usually busy also depending on the time of day.

That’s why when we come, we park on the restaurants and shop’s parking lot, there is more space, still very crowded sometimes, so we parked almost at the end of the lot, the distance from there to the Lago is very short still.

The parks whole loop is about a mile long. Excellent way to...

Fairly new to the area and was looking for a place to fish , had never been here before . Nice lake, walking area , waters a little murky but otherwise we'll maintained area . Very crowded but everyone seemed respectful for the most part but if your looking for peace and quiet not the place. Heard this place used to have monsters in it but reviews have been mixed as of the last few years. I've caught fish or seen people catch fish everytime I go , ussually smaller bass and catfish but every once in awhile you'll see a decent size one might just need to let them...