Busy Suburb of Los Angeles

Each time I'm in Cerritos, I think of all of the many small ethnic restaurant options available. There is Pioneer Street, which is where a plethora of Indian restaurants and business reside, South Street is lined with Chinese restaurants, bakeries, markets, and there are Japanese, American, Hawaiian, Mongolian, and most other types of food in-between. Notice an Asian theme here?

Besides food, there is a very nice, relatively new Cerritos Performing Arts Center. I feel like it is the best cultural center in this part of LA County because they book many famous names, like Johnny Mathis, as well as offer audiences to see famous shows like the Merry Widow and Romeo and Juliet.

Quick Tips:

Cerritos mall/shopping center is also one of the best places to shop in the area. It's just off of the 605 freeway, exit South Street. They have a Nordstoms (always the main draw for me) and 2 other department stores, a movie theatre, and all the generic indoor mall stores one needs. By no means the largest mall, it does the job. Even if you don't want to shop, it's fun to hang out at South Street Deli for pickles and Dr. Brown sodas.

Best Way To Get Around:

Pretty much like the rest of Los Angeles, people drive to get around the city. However, there is a free shuttle, that I've never taken (sorry, I usually try to be environmentally conscious), that goes from major points of interest in the city, i.e. the public library, city hall, etc.

If you’re in the mood for a sweet treat (as I usually am), a great place to stop is the Diamond Bakery. Although Diamond Bakery is a chain of Chinese bakeries, their desserts are not compromised. This particular shop is one of the smaller scale ones, but I’ll take what I can get nearby. Slices of assorted individual cakes (including chocolate mousse cake, strawberry, German chocolate, cheesecake), highly addictive Chinese Almond Cookies (my favorite), fresh breads, Chinese egg tarts, and buns are available (take out only) at low prices. Enjoy!

Mirak appears to have a nice clientele from the neighborhood. The sushi chefs are friendly and always willing to accommodate Sake toasts/shots with those sitting at the sushi bar and the wait staff are always ready to find something to satisfy the most unusual of Japanese tastes. I can’t say that the salmon teriyaki (overdone) or sesame chicken (a little soggy) entrees weren't quite to my liking, however, the tempura, free Edamame, chicken terriyaki and eel/California roll were delicious. As this restaurant is close to my friend’s house and serves some tasty entrees, I would certainly go back for a quick lunch (great lunch combo deals!) or a casual dinner.

Cerritos/Lakewood area contains so many Asian restaurants that it is sometimes hard to sort through to figure out which are the good ones. Thai Villa -is definitely an authentic Thai restaurant that Thai people actually seem to frequent! I typically try a new restaurant only if I see other people sitting inside, chowing down on appetizing entrees. When I arrived at Thai Villa at 7:30PM (on a Friday night), it was rather empty; only two or three parties eating. A friend, however had recommended this restaurant to me, so I entered with my friends and ordered Thai ice tea, papaya salad, curry chicken, and Phad Thai (I always use Phad Thai as a standard of measure for all Thai restaurants).

How was it? In short, very nicely Thai. The ice tea was just right - not too bitter, not too sweet, and ice cold. Although tasty, the papaya salad is only for those who really love spicy food. Curried chicken was excellent, and spicy as well, just like Thai food is supposed to be! And last, but most definitely not least, the Phad Thai noodles were DELICIOUS! My friends and I loved them and virtually licked the plate clean. It is an added bonus that the prices are very reasonable - $35/for three of us, including tax & tip, AND, they have take-out.

By the time we were getting ready to go, it seemed as though the restaurant was waiting for us to leave to get the party started! While we were enjoying our food, many more customers had come in and sat down for a relatively late dinner. The place was nearly full. One huge party was going on as well. Disco lights came on and a live singer began doing her thing on a small stage in one corner of the restaurant. Quite a transformation from a quiet, charming little restaurant into a happening party scene. I was surprised that they’re open until 2AM on Fridays/Saturdays, but that’s good news for me when I want a late night snack!

Yum, yum, and yum. My favorite fancy restaurant in the Cerritos area is actually located in the city of Bellflower, just about 5 minutes away from the Cerritos shopping mall (since there's not much else in Bellflower that I would write about, I figured that I could throw this into my Cerritos journal).

My family and I have been dining at Cafe Camellia over the past 10 years now, celebrating anniversaries, birthdays, and graduations. Not strictly French, it is more a French-Asian restaurant, and is owned by a Chinese couple who have also opened up two other restaurants nearby. Although I've tried the other two, this one remains our favorite for the food and open atmosphere. One word of advice: just ignore the large pictures of animals that stare at you while eating. The delicous food will distract you.

To start, their soups are always, and I mean always excellent (and I'm not usually a soup-person). Unless you are dying for uncooked greens (and yes, their salads are very fresh and delicious too), opt for the soup. They change seasonally, from carrot to cauliflower to my favorite - butternut squash. In the summer, they often offer a chilled soup, since it does get pretty hot outside. Also notable: the salmon w/potato cake appetizer is tasty, though you may not want to order it if you're watching your sodium intake.

Sorry, I'm not a wine connoisseur, but the restaurant does have a nice assortment of them. . .

The entrees at Cafe Camellia range from duck and lamb to pasta, to fresh seafood. They have nightly specials as well - my last visit, just a few weeks ago, I had their special curried Mahi-mahi. It was REALLY good. No fishy taste, light, flaky - nothing to complain about and my plate was clean. Most of their entrees are served with the house specialty - scalloped potatoes, and seasonal vegetables to round out the meal.

Last, and certainly not least, the desserts: go for the creme brulee. If you don't like creme brulee, there are several other good ones to choose from. I had a nice, light, cakey (versus the traditional biscuity) strawberry shortcake once, and there is usually a pretty nice chocolate cake as well.

CC is the perfect restaurant for good food without the without the high prices, snootiness and overcrowding of the more popular/famous/trendy restaurants in LA.

My family and I love sweets, which is why this is the second bakery I'm reviewing in the Cerritos neighborhood.

Honey Bakery deserves special notice as it bakes the most delectable Croissant Bread that I haven't been able to find anywhere else. For those who love carbs or Hawaiian bread, this is for you! Sweet, slightly layered bread that tastes like croissants but is a little less greasy and much more versatile. The loaf comes whole, but you can get it sliced when you purchase it.

Best way to eat it is to toast it and spread on the Nutella. I've also just been eating it plain, as an accompaniment to soup.

Nothing else in the bakery is really noteworthy, just this bread! There are individual and whole cakes available as well as some Chinese custards, but I've had much better. Seriously, the bread is worth a trip though! I'm thinking of making chocolate bread pudding with my next loaf. . .