MRK Public gastropub to close after 12 years in San Clemente
Twelve years after helping usher in San Clemente’s modern gastropub era, MRK Public is preparing to pour its final pint.
Chef and co-founder Rayne Frey announced this week the restaurant’s last regular day of service will be on Saturday, May 16, along with one final sendoff planned for Tuesday, May 19.
“We are now in our final week of operations here at MRK,” said Frey in a video posted to social media on May 12, thanking customers and staff “for all the love and support over the last 12 years.”
The May 19 farewell, as Frey described, will be “kind of a last goodbye,” which will features whatever food and beer remains in-house, along with the chance for longtime patrons to toast MRK staff one last time.
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“Come say goodbye to your favorite servers, have a toast with us and one final cheers goodbye,” he said.
Frey first announced the closure of his El Camino Real restaurant in a lengthy March 30 Instagram post, citing a desire to focus on family, personal well-being and “a calmer, slower placed life.”
“It’ is time for me to pack up my knives,” he wrote. “As much as you have a passion for something, it’s just time to step down and focus on what matters most.”
Opening in 2013, MRK Public - short for its founders Moriah Robison, Rayne Frey and Kai Robison - took over the site of the former Love Burger drive-in. It soon turned into one of the coastal enclave’s defining neighborhood restaurants at the height of Orange County’s craft beer and subsequent gastropub boom, building a following through comfort food and rotating local beers.
Over the years, dishes like pork belly banh mi, short rib sandwiches, Vietnamese-style chicken wings and lemon ricotta beignets became menu staples, while the restaurant’s patio became a regular spot for families. In 2017, food critic Brad Johnson ranked it one of the best places to eat in Orange County, writing, “Asian flavors dominate much of the menu. Vietnamese-style sweet-and-spicy chicken wings are a hot, finger-licking mess. Ahi tuna poke is outstanding. Beer drinkers will appreciate the well-curated selection of beers.”
In his farewell message, Frey reflected not solely on the eatery itself, but the relationships that formed inside it. “What we built together over the last 12 years was more than just about food, it was a place of connection, conversation, celebration and community,” he wrote. “Those conversations are what I will miss the most about MRK Public.”
No word yet what restaurant, if any, will replace MRK Public.
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This story was originally published May 13, 2026 at 1:11 PM.