Amanda Bynes Venturing Out from Mental Health Center in O.C.

Amanda Bynes is doing much better in the mental health facility where she's currently getting treatment ... and now she's even allowed out on her own.

TMZ obtained videos and photos of the former child star out and about in Orange County, CA over the weekend -- the first time she's been seen in public since she checked into the center.

Sources close to Amanda tell TMZ ... she's graduated to the center's minimal supervision group, which allows her to leave the property at certain hours so she can shop for herself or take walks.

We're told Amanda's doing well enough right now she doesn't have to be under lock and key ... though our sources say she's still planning on staying at the center for the foreseeable future as she continues working on herself and her mental health.

Amanda likes being at this facility, we're told, because she has medical staff, therapists, and other patients around her ... which provides company and social interaction, as opposed to being isolated in her old apartment.

Folks who noticed Amanda in public this weekend tell TMZ ... she was leaving a smoke shop around 6:30 PM Friday and she was alone and appeared in good spirits.

We're told she was also spotted Saturday afternoon at a nearby Ralph's supermarket, leaving with a shopping bag full of items.

As we first reported ... Amanda checked into the Orange County facility at the start of July, because she felt like her outpatient care was lacking.