Smoke gets in their eyes

It’s Saturday night, and Brandon Boudet is at his grill, a stainless steel and cast-iron beauty fueled with white oak logs. He’s got a couple of whole snappers on there, some hanger steaks, carrots brushed with butter and nutmeg. His tongs are at the ready. His guests await.

But this isn’t a backyard barbecue. It’s Dominick’s, the hot-again Italian spot on Beverly Boulevard, where Boudet is executive chef.

Boudet is among this city’s most enthusiastic chefs when it comes to wood-fired grilling. “A wood-burning grill is much more attractive to me than a six-burner stove,” says Boudet.

“It gives you that sensation of not being in a kitchen. Takes you away from it a little bit. Makes you feel like you’re at a Sunday barbecue.”

Boudet does just about everything on the grill -- Kobe beef, Jidori chicken, whole fish, vegetables -- as well as peaches and cherries, which he serves with homemade gelato for dessert.

In fact, the dish most frequently ordered at Dominick’s is grilled split artichokes with grilled lemon halves. “If you leave the lemon on there for about three to five minutes, the inside flesh gets really jammy,” says Boudet.

“Also it has that light, smoky flavor. We don’t even serve a dipping sauce.”

The chefs at Spago also use white oak (along with charcoal) to fire their new grill, which chef de cuisine Thomas Boyce calls, lovingly, “a monster.”

“It’s this big corrugated steel thing, like a tank,” says Boyce. “I love cooking on it. I just think it gives a really intense, smoky, woody flavor that pairs well with a lot of other flavors. Occasionally we’ll do pork. We don’t cook [the pork] on it. We roast it in the wood-burning oven and to warm it up, we warm it through on the grill.

“Last week we did roast pork with figs or peaches; the smoky richness pairs really well with sweetness.”

Other items that get the grill treatment at Spago: lamb and a cote de boeuf for two.

At Saddle Peak Lodge, the kitchen works with a combination of woods, specifically mesquite, apple and cherry, to grill items such as double pork chops, beef medallions, venison chops and, when in season, spot prawns. A combination of woods is also favored at the three Spark Woodfire Grill locations, where they burn olive wood, mesquite and oak to cook steaks, baby back ribs, fish fillets and shrimp.

Why three kinds of wood?

“It’s like when you’re making blends of wine,” says Danilo Terribili, one of the owners. “This is the same thing. You’re getting a more complex aroma out of mixing the wood.”

-- Leslee Komaiko

Small bites

* Sterling Steakhouse, the latest project from Chris Breed and partners (the guys behind hot spots White Lotus and Pig ‘n Whistle), opens July 8 in the former Sunset Room space. In addition to classic steakhouse fare such as prime rib and lamb chops, the menu features a number of seafood dishes, including crab stuffed lobster tail.

Sterling, 1429 Ivar Ave., Hollywood, (323) 463-0008.

* In honor of the Japanese holiday Tanabata (Star Festival), Umenohana in Beverly Hills is offering a special $65 prix fixe dinner menu July 7 through July 13. The multi-course feast includes tofu siu mai and lobster-soy potage.

Umenohana, 443 N. Canon Drive, Beverly Hills (310) 860-9236.

* The Four Seasons Hotel has started its annual summer barbecue series on the terrace of Gardens restaurant. The next ‘cue is July 13, and the theme is All-American. Following that, on Aug. 17, the hotel’s new executive chef, Ashley James (most recently at the Four Seasons Buenos Aires), and his team will re-create a New England clam bake. The price is $75 per person.

The Four Seasons, 300 S. Doheny Drive. Beverly Hills, (310) 273-2222.

* On Tuesday evenings, Yi Cuisine is serving dim sum such as pork buns and shrimp dumplings as well as its regular menu.

Yi Cuisine, 7910 W. 3rd St., L.A. (323) 658-8028.