Santa Anita Village, Arcadia, CA

Santa Anita Village is a postwar neighborhood on Arcadia's west side, south of Huntington Drive near Michillinda Avenue, and its main street corner has turned into one of the city's handiest little food stops. The houses behind it are low, steady and mid-century, which makes the busy plaza feel like a small downtown for the blocks around it. Homes are mostly ranch houses from the years after World War II, joined by traditional designs and some clean-lined mid-century modern houses. Streets are shaded by mature trees and easy to walk, with single-story houses set on regular lots. A few newer two-story houses have replaced originals, but the postwar look still sets the tone. The H Mart plaza is the neighborhood's everyday hub. Beyond the Korean supermarket itself, the plaza holds Kyodong Noodle for jjamppong and black bean noodles, Kazu Mori for sushi, Sogongdong for tofu stew and a Tous Les Jours bakery cafe. For parks, Hugo Reid Park sits just north across Huntington Drive in Peacock Village, with ball fields, tennis courts and batting cages beside Hugo Reid Elementary. A quick drive east on Baldwin Avenue brings you to the 127 acres of gardens at the county Arboretum. Daily errands are close, especially groceries. For more variety, the Baldwin Avenue and Duarte Road corridor in West Arcadia adds dim sum halls, Taiwanese cafes and 99 Ranch Market, and Westfield Santa Anita covers the rest. Huntington Drive and Michillinda Avenue connect to the 210 Freeway and to Pasadena. The tradeoff is that the neighborhood's own retail comes down to one plaza, and its lot fills fast at dinner and on weekends. Most evenings still end the same way in Santa Anita Village, with a short walk home from H Mart carrying groceries and a box of pastries.