If you’re ever driving down Bristol in Santa Ana and are suddenly in need of a zen moment or just some really good sushi, well then I would say you are in luck. Some of my favorite Japanese restaurants and hangouts are nearby…

For a nice meditative experience, swing by The Camp’s Milk + Honey. Sipping a lychee iced tea or noshing on a green tea shaved ice in the zen gravel garden will cheer up anyone’s day. Hop across the street to Mitsuwa, a local Asian market, and pick up some of their too-cute cookies. From Pocky sticks to rice candy, the packaging of these treats are almost as good as their yummy interiors. Mitsuwa celebrated its 20th anniversary at its Costa Mesa location this year and continues to be the spot for finding something a little out of the ordinary. Boasting a large food court and unique gift shops, you can pick up anything from Dim Sum to porcelain tea sets. 

Take a nice stroll around the Noguchi garden nestled between some office buildings just a few lights down the street. Isamu Noguchi’s sculpture garden entitled California Scenario is the artist’s contemporary rendition of a traditional Japanese garden. As the artists’s interpretation of Southern California’s natural landscape, the garden displays a wide range of the varied terrain found here. Including both a forest walk and desert mound, it is easy to feel dwarfed by the scale of the sculptures and the expanse of the garden. Contrasting both wet and dry elements, deserts and meadows, this place feels magical and is an excellent place to clear your mind from the busy work week.