Shane--A New Kind of Spaghetti Western : Your Wait for a Table Is Time Well Spent

Shane, 2932 Beverly Glen Circle, Los Angeles. (213) 470-6223. Open daily for dinner. Parking in lot. Beer and wine. Visa and MasterCard accepted. Dinner for two, food only, $25-$50.

Everybody who lives in Los Angeles secretly dreams that he will one day stumble into the neighborhood restaurant of the stars. It won’t be one of those snooty joints where they come swooping through, bejeweled, blowing kisses and under the personal protection of a polished maitre d’. This will be a cozy joint, the sort of place they hit when they’re in the mood for a snack. You’ll wander in wearing bluejeans and find yourself surrounded by famous folk drinking beer, eating pizza and behaving just like ordinary people.

Of course those places don’t actually exist. You and I know that when the stars really feel like relaxing, they just stay home. At least they used to until the latest word in casual chic made its appearance in Beverly Glen a couple of months ago.

The Beverly Glen Shopping Center looks just like any other suburban shopping mall. But when you get out of the car you find that up here on top of the mountain the air is very sweet. And as you walk through the parking lot you can’t help noticing that the cars snuggled into the spaces between the white lines are not Fords, Pontiacs and Chevrolets, but rather Ferraris, Jags and sleek Mercedes.

Shane is just like the parking lot. This is a pizza parlor with a pedigree. Owner/chef Michael Kurland used to work with Wolf gang Puck. So did owner/maitre d’ Gerard Izard. Their silent partner is another friend, which is why Puck and his wife, Barbara Lazaroff, contributed their expertise for free. Puck consulted on the menu. Lazaroff designed the interior, turning a tiny space into a fantastic southwestern wonderland. (The place is worth a visit just to see artist Mike Payne’s tile work on the stairs.)

But this is no Spago. The feeling here is so relaxed that you’d feel silly if you dressed up for dinner, and the prices are so reasonable that you couldn’t spend a lot of money if you tried. Most of the appetizers are under $5 and no entree exceeds $13.75. The problem here isn’t in getting a bad table--it’s in getting a table at all. The place is so tiny that it is usually packed; even the stars have to wait.

Izard manages the waiting crowds with aplomb; he must be among the most charming maitre d’s in town. Even on the busy Saturday night when somebody triggered the smoke alarm, inundating the kitchen with foam (and thereby putting it out of commission for the evening), he didn’t lose his cool. Noting that the pizza oven is outside of the kitchen proper, he handed out free beer and pizza for those who wanted to stay, made reservations elsewhere for those who didn’t.

The pizza, unfortunately, has a tendency to be soggy. This is a shame considering that the toppings are terrific; I especially liked the one with lamb sausage, sage and red chiles.

Most of the appetizers are good. The best of them is Santa Fe chicken soup, a rich stock loaded with cilantro and a touch of chile in which float large, light, square ravioli that taste as if they’re filled with sweet potatoes. There’s a fine crunchy chopped summer vegetable salad which offers the occasional surprise of bits of artichoke and avocado, fried calamari with a sort of saffron-enriched aioli, and a variety of salads including the inevitable Caesar. The dressing’s a little thin on this one, but the toast that takes the place of croutons is excellent.

Pastas here are good (Kurland used to work at La Pasteria). My favorite is ravioli stuffed with spinach and ricotta in a pleasantly tangy sauce punctuated with the sweet/sour flavor of sun-dried tomatoes.

Most of the entrees have a southwestern accent. Grilled chicken comes in a rosemary and lime butter with a heap of French fries. A thin slice of grilled swordfish sits in a puddle of a thick, intriguingly spicy sauce that the kitchen calls “green chile pesto.” The disappointing “duck tostada” seems more like a salad; it’s got lots of lettuce mixed with strips of fried tortilla, strips of duck, strips of apple. Beef quesadilla turns out to be a plate-sized sandwich of tortillas and cheese topped with some substantial slices of steak; it’s not a bad idea. The Tuscan white beans that come with the “scallopini” of lamb are mixed up with corn. Does the corn make it Tuscan? Does it matter?

When push comes to shove, it probably doesn’t. Just as it doesn’t matter that the desserts are more sweetly satisfying than they are memorable. Creme caramel has accents of orange. The fresh fruit tart is a sort of messy custard-topped cookie with lots of fruit and even more gooey caramel sauce. The Mexican brownie, which comes in slices with ice cream on the side, is a little bit dry. The version of tarte tatin that is served here reminded me of baked apple topped with caramel. My favorite way to end a meal at Shane is with a dish of coffee ice cream topped with chocolate sauce-- the kind that hardens as it cools. It’s sort of like a grown up hot fudge sundae.

Because in the end you don’t really come here for a great gastronomic experience. You come because it’s cute and cheap and friendly. You come because everybody here is good looking, and everybody looks like he is having a good time. You come, ultimately, because by the end of the evening you will probably have forgotten that Warren Beatty is sitting at the next table, looking like just another guy who’s dropped in for dinner.

Recommended dishes: Santa Fe chicken soup with ravioli, $4.50; ravioli with sundried tomatoes $4.50 as an appetizer, $7.75 as a main course; pizza with lamb sausage, $8.50; grilled chicken $9.75; beef quesadilla, $11.75.