Magnolia Park, Burbank, CA

Magnolia Park is the Burbank neighborhood people cross town for on a Saturday, mostly to browse the vintage clothing racks, film prop resellers and small cafes along West Magnolia Boulevard. That commercial strip gives it more foot traffic than the quieter residential blocks of Chandler Park to the east, and the storefronts are still mostly independent. Homes in Magnolia Park are mostly single-story houses on flat, compact lots, a mix of older bungalows, Spanish-style cottages and postwar ranch houses. Plenty have been remodeled or expanded, and a scattering of two-story rebuilds now stands beside the originals. Small apartment buildings fill in closer to the busier streets. Eating out is a big part of the routine here. Pinocchio serves meatballs and squares of lasagna cafeteria style, and Handy Market fires up a Saturday barbecue with tri-tip and ribs. Coffee runs deep, from Black Elephant on Lima Street, which pours Stumptown, to Romancing the Bean on the boulevard. Outdoor time leans on the Whitnall Highway parks, a long green strip with a running track and fitness equipment, and on the Chandler Bikeway, a 2.2-mile path built on an old rail line along the north side of the neighborhood. Verdugo Park adds tennis courts and the city's aquatic center. Errands are easy on foot for anyone within a few blocks of Magnolia, and the bikeway makes a car-free ride toward the North Hollywood Arts District realistic. Weekends bring a crowd of visitors, and street parking near the busiest blocks gets tight when the bakery is packed. Because so many shops are owner-run, the racks and window displays along Magnolia turn over often enough that a regular evening walk rarely looks quite the same from one month to the next.