The following are summaries of recent Times...

The following are summaries of recent Times restaurant reviews.

Amici, 3220 Park Center Drive, Coast Mesa. (714) 850-9399. Open Mondays through Fridays from 11:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. , Mondays through Thursdays from 5:30 to 10:30 p.m., Fridays and Saturdays from 5:30 to 11:30 p.m.

Massimo Navaretta is alive and well at Amici, making even more of an impression than he did at Scampi, his previous success. This is a serious new restaurant that is small and intimate, all deco lines and salmon-colored sconces, and what comes out of the kitchen is equally stylish. Special antipasti like potato souffle with porcini and lightly fried zucchini blossoms are pure magic; wonderful scampi are flown in from Europe and are fabulous eaten from the shell. Great pastas, excellent imported wines.

The Food Court at Yaohan Market, 665 Paularino St., Costa Mesa . (714) 557 - 6699. Most concessions open daily from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m .

If you are looking for a crash course in contempo Japanese, look no further than Yaohan Market in Costa Mesa and its colorful Food Court. Several concessions are in full swing here, serving a variety of Japanese lunch and snack foods including bento (Japanese lunch box), ramen and curry rice; there’s even a bona fide sushi bar. You also will find a bakery that serves Japanese versions of such Western dishes as clam chowder and spaghetti--and a large number of curious, puzzled customers. Good, cheap fun.

The Original Pancake House, 1418 E. Lincoln Ave., Anaheim. (714) 693-1390. Open Tuesdays through Sundays from 6 a.m. to 2 p.m.

The Original Pancake House is one of the very best restaurants in Orange County. Just ask anyone who has eaten there. All the batters are made with sourdough yeast and come straight from the grill--light, finely textured, and complex. The Belgian waffles are eggy and crispy, and the apple pancake, a giant golden puff with a cinnamon-glaze topping, is one step away from nirvana.

Prego, 18420 Von Karman Ave., Irvine. (714) 553-1333. Open Mondays from 11:30 a.m. to 10:30 p.m., Tuesdays through Thursdays till 11 p.m., Fridays till midnight, Saturdays from 5 p.m. to midnight, Sundays from 5 to 10:30 p.m.

Prego, 4 years old, remains one of the area’s most impressive Italian restaurants. The exterior is that of a Tuscan villa; inside, it’s elegant and neo-classical. The kitchen serves mostly northern Italian fare that is all the rage now: homemade pastas, rotisserie meats, sumptuous desserts. It’s best to stick to basics here--wood-fired pizzas, terrific roast duck and lamb. Service ranges from gracious to arrogant, but there are plenty of excellent Italian wines to toss around.

The Cat and Custard Cup, 800 E. Whittier Blvd., La Habra. (213) 694-3812 or (714) 996-6496. Open Mondays through Fridays from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., Mondays from 5:30 to 9 p.m., Tuesdays through Fridays till 10 p.m., Saturdays till 10:30 p.m., and Sundays from 5 to 9 p.m.

Cafe El Cholo, 840 E. Whittier Blvd., La Habra. (213) 694-4600 or (714) 525-1320. Open Mondays through Saturdays from 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m., Sundays from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m .

The Cat and Custard Cup and Cafe El Cholo are located across a La Habra parking lot from one another and their themes couldn’t be more divergent. One is a lovingly reconstructed English pub with a campy Continental menu and dark, medieval trappings. The other is bright, festive and Mexican, with fajitas, guacamole and frosty margaritas. Both are charming, cheerful, and worth a wide detour.