Orange Karate Center

My son has been attending OKC for the past 6 years and is close to attaining his black belt. I can honestly say OKC has become a MAIN reason why our son is the thriving, mature, respectful individual he is today SPECIFICALLY because of the influence on his character by Sensei John and Sensei Becky. He is in leadership at school, he volunteers, he has a high GPA, and he’s valued by his friends due to the quality of his character. This isn’t just a karate studio, folks. This family owned and operated dojo will take your son or daughter in and wrap them into their arms and take excellent care of your son or daughter’s future self. They reshape, challenge, strengthen, and mold a solid sense of self by techniques that are lost to current society. Namely, you will pass ONLY when your skill sets are demonstrated with excellence. This isn’t an «everyone gets a trophy who participates «dog and pony show. This is REAL SELF ESTEEM building. The magic found here is priceless.
Thank you, OKC.

Our son has been a student at Orange Karate Center for nearly 4 years, since he was 5. Here’s what he has to say about it:
«Orange Karate Center is the best dojo. They help you train a lot and reach your goals. The main Sensei, Sensei John is very, very funny but is serious about karate. His mom, Sensei Becky is very nice and kind. We have different Sensei’s on different days. For example on Fridays and sometimes Thursday’s Sensei Knight teaches us. All I know is that Orange Karate Center is a very, very awesome dojo.»

Our son has been going to OKC for almost two years at this point and his experiences at the dojo have been hugely beneficial for him on multiple levels. He enjoys the classes and even takes private instruction with Sensei John on occasion. The focus on not just teaching martial arts but on helping build strong, trustworthy, responsible and focused individuals is probably my own favorite element of the instruction. The staff has always been professional and kind to our son although they also can be strict to keep the students on task. This is not a «belt factory» where they pass the kids through to make it look good to the parents and they are honest and professional with their assessments. Our son failed a belt test last year because he had not prepared properly and it was possibly the best lesson he could have learned. As parents my wife and I are incredibly happy with the experiences our son has had at OKC and Senseis’ Becky, Chuck and John (among others at the dojo) have been fantastic positive influences on our now 10 year old son. I cannot recommend Orange Karate Center highly enough if you are looking for a dojo for yourself or your children.

Families and kids do not come first. Since the moment I walked into that place with my child, there was an uncomfortable energy with the employees. The heavy set lady seemed to be nice at first, until you hear her respond with her smart ass remarks, as if she’s trying to make you feel stupid. The way she responds to children was very fake & in a way where it makes the children not want to ask anymore questions. My child is a very upbeat happy & polite kiddo, she loved being in Karate but it was nothing like we expected. It’s not «upbeat fun environment». The gentlemen working there (John i believe) seemed as if he had NEVER worked with 5yr olds. Plenty of times I’ve heard him respond to the kids’ comments as if they were stupid & he was annoyed. That really bothered me because I would Never answer a child in that manner. He’s very monotone and NOT «upbeat» WHATSOEVER. They showed ZERO enthusiasm towards their kids. And whatever little enthusiasm they had, was very fake and forced. My kiddo will continue karate at another place. And we would never recommend this place to anyone.

Called to check out this facility for my 5 ½ year old son and spoke to the woman who answered the phone. She asked how I found out about them and I told her my son’s speech therapist recommended them to help his focus, as he is an active little boy. She proceeded to ask me if my son was ADHD and I told her no. I told her he was a normal five year old with lots of energy. From that point on she kept referring to my son as having «special needs» and I corrected her explaining that he was not «special needs” — he has already participated on numerous sports teams and activities and has performed excellently. She told me she recommended we start with the class through the city, which is at their studio, so they could «assess» my son before proceeding. She also explained that «they deal all the time with these sort of children». She might want to remind herself that she is not a licensed behavior therapist and have no business self-​diagnosing my child. We will gladly find another karate studio where they don’t make absurd accusations and biased judgements before meeting the child.

Our son has been going to OKC for over 2 years. He is always excited about going to karate and when he is here he really gets focused on the task at hand. The instructors are great, especially sensei John. He is patient when he need to be, but also expects that the kids listen and try their best. It is a family owned and run business. I have recommended them many times and will continue to do so.

Our grandaughter has been involved with this dojo since the beginning of the year.
We have attended every lesson and are very, very impressed with the staff and the quality of training. It has been helpfull to her in her school and home life. OKC has a gift of patience and stress to children that Karate is a discipline important throughout their entire life. This is a place of learning and sensei John and owner, sensei Becky are truly professional. I love that this is not a place of babysitting, but of true disciplined training meant for a lifetime. I would recommend this place to any child or adult. Kudos to Orange Karate Center!

We signed our son up through the city program to go to Okc. I think this is a great way to see if it’s a fit with your child before making a commitment. This is a family owned business which I love. The lady at the front desk Becky is the owner. I found her to be very professional and helpful and overall a very nice person who is passionate about what she does. The nice thing about this studio is you don’t have to sign an expensive contract like most places and its very affordable. The over all experience for my son was very rewarding. It really helped his focusing ability because he has Adhd and it really boosted his self esteem. I highly recommend this Studio

Signed our little one up for a month trial and after the first day we may be pulling him out. As another reviewer said the «heavy set lady» at the front wasn’t very nice. The thing that really bothered me however, was the fact that the instructor spent a majority (25 minutes) of a 30 minute lesson talking about rules and going over concepts. I know groundwork needs to be set but mind you, these are 4 year olds. The last 3 minutes (literally) were spent blocking and punching; that was my son’s favorite part… why couldn’t we have done more of this?

My son and I BOTH study karate here. I started studying at another dojo (a very «traditional» Japanese style one) as an adult in 1994 and continued for roughly 14 years. When my sensei had to retire I took a break for a few years. Recently my son expressed an interest in karate so we signed him up for one of the classes here that was offered through the city.
I was impressed with the attitude of the sensei’s here. They taught karate with a long term vision in mind. They didn’t expect my son (a total beginner) to grasp it all immediately. Just come to class. Participate. Learn. Grow.
They also expected the students to be respectful and helped guide them in that direction.
As an adult student in the strange situation of having 14 years experience at another dojo and unexpectedly having to switch, they were accommodating and understanding.
It’s been a great place for both me and my son to train hard and grow as individuals.
Solid martial arts taught here!

DO NOT GO THERE IF UR CHILD IS A BEGINNER! If atleast he/​she knows about the class he/​she will get it. If not HOPEFULLY he/​she will TRY to learn, if not the instructors will just let the kid stand there the whole time doing nothing. You would think they would try and help the kid a little bit. But nope. My husband has coached baseball for some years and not once has he had just left a kid behind not knowing what they’really doing. You teach them help them understand the concept atleast. And also the heavy set lady in the front is very rude. She gave me a attitude once she didn’t see my child on the list for the class. But once she called the city and the reassured her that I paid for that class her attitude towards me quickly changed to being some what nice. She yelled not asked but yelled at my child to get off the stairs. Mind u the only reason she was on them was cuz there were no other seats in the little lobby of thier’s. Its not like she was on the stairs playing on them just simply sitting on the step. So don’t waste ur time nor money on this place. Find some where else to go.

I really liked taking the Kickboxing Cardio class here. The staff is friendly. They give you a good workout and make you feel at home. If I didn’t move so far away I would still take the class.

I read the previous reviews and wished I had their experiences. I tried it through the trial offer they had, and compared to other training I have had, it was weak. Thinking it was just me, I enrolled my son for a months course, and it was disjointed with no set training plan. The lead instructor acted as though he was being bothered by being there. The female instructor did seem to enjoy teaching the little ones. I opted for MAI Champions in Anaheim. Cleaner studio, nicer people.

Excellent in every way. Fair prices for everything and they don’t scam you like some of the trendier Martial Arts places do. If you sign up for Karate (Sho Ryn Ryu style is what they teach there), you get kickboxing classes for free. And I mean REAL kickboxing — not this froofie stuff that gyms offer. This is wearing gloves, kicking the crap out of punching bags and instruction by a certified black belt. You will sweat. You will get stronger. You will feel great. Oh, and it;s family owned and run by this darling (yet slightly intimidating) Irish family.