It depends.  If you're looking for a relatively nice city that is centrally located and easy to get to, I'd recommend Irvine.  Newport is very nice, but a bit too west, and Huntington is probably a little too north with too much traffic (read: a pain to drive to).  I think the South Coast Plaza area in Costa Mesa would also work.  It's close to a huge mall and a lot of businesses.

My two cents...