Leisure Town, Vacaville, CA

Leisure Town in Vacaville takes its name from the road that runs through its busiest shopping stretch, and the area works as two places at once. Behind the retail corridor sit quiet streets of single-story ranch homes, along with condominiums and manufactured homes. A community center in the older core has pools, fitness rooms and bocce courts. Green space is easy to find. Nelson Park and Patwin Park both touch the Alamo Creek path, a shaded route that stretches 4.4 miles, and Hawkins Park and the Arbor Oaks dog park round out the list. The Vacaville Cultural Center Library at 1020 Ulatis Drive opened in 1993, and the performing arts theatre shares the campus. A youth theatre company also performs in the area. On the shopping side, Sprouts, Walmart Neighborhood Market and Grocery Outlet give three different ways to stock a kitchen, and Starbucks handles coffee. The Jelly Belly Outlet is the sweet detour for anyone passing through. Food has real range. The Original Mel's Diner is the comfort-food standby, Que Onda Tacobar and Blue House Korean BBQ add tacos and tabletop grilling, Pampas Brazilian Steakhouse covers the steak night, Togo's and West Coast Sourdough handle the quick sandwich, and Roline's Uniquely Filipino and Uncle Sharkii Poke Bar broaden the list. Most of the big chain names are here too, from In-N-Out to Olive Garden, which helps when a group cannot agree. Because so much sits in one corridor, a single loop can cover a library return, a grocery run and dinner. The cost is volume. Leisure Town's shopping district fills with cars at lunch and on weekends, and getting from the quiet streets to the stores means driving. The creek path balances it out for Leisure Town, since a morning ride there feels far from the parking lots.