Santa Monica Dining

 Buffalo Club
 1520 Olympic Blvd., Santa Monica 310-450-8600 A sophisticated supper club with luxurious leather chairs, generous booths and a magical garden with Chinese lanterns strung overhead. The surprise is the excellent American menu. Try the spicy buffalo wings, the classic crab cakes and, in season, juicy soft-shell crabs.

 Josie
 2424 Pico Blvd., Santa Monica 310-581-9888 Josie isn't just another neighborhood spot. Walk through the doors, and it could easily be San Francisco or New York. First courses run from the classic (mushrooms in puff pastry or a cherry tomato tartlet) to gutsy (grilled cuttlefish with chorizo). Every night there are a handful of specials, many of them based on game.

 P.F. Chang's China Bistro
 326 Wilshire Blvd., Santa Monica 310-395-1912 Here the idea is to eat wok-style MSG-free Chinese food in an upscale setting with American.

 Royal Star Seafood
 3001 Wilshire Blvd., Santa Monica 310-828-8812 With this entry from the owners of Monterey Park's acclaimed Ocean Star Seafood, Westsiders don't have to trek eastward to experience a bustling Hong Kong-style seafood restaurant.

 The Beach House
 100 W. Channel Road, Santa Monica 310-454-8299 This restaurant serves up the kind of comfort food you need after a ride along the bike path or a heated e-mail exchange with your agent.

 Whist
 1819 Ocean Ave., Santa Monica 310-451-8711 This hip restaurant inside the new Viceroy Hotel is serious, but fun. The rather plain dining room is trumped by the whimsical retro-glamour of the bar, which sprawls out into a patio area with two postage stamp-sized pools surrounded by a series of cabanas.

 Yangtze
 1333 Third Street Promenade, Santa Monica 310-260-1994 At Yangtze, you'll find the flavor of the Pacific Rim right on Santa Monica's Third Street Promenade.

 Yankee Doodles
 1410 3rd St., Santa Monica 310-394-4632 This oh-so-American chain of sports bars has been described as Disneyland for adults. There are pool tables, air hockey tables, foos-ball, shoot 'em up video games, a virtual reality ski game and big- screen televisions covering the walls that play every sports game worth watching.
 

 Chinois on Main
 2709 Main St., Santa Monica 310-392-9025 Wolfgang Puck's foray into Franco-Asian cooking is a fusion that has dazzled for 19 years. Regulars tend to ignore the specials in favor of classics such as the baby back ribs in a dark, sticky sauce redolent of star anise, the rich Shanghai lobster embellished with flash-fried spinach, or the meaty Mongolian lamb chops with cilantro sauce.

 P.F. Chang's China Bistro
 326 Wilshire Blvd., Santa Monica 310-395-1912 Here the idea is to eat wok-style MSG-free Chinese food in an upscale setting with American.

 Royal Star Seafood
 3001 Wilshire Blvd., Santa Monica 310-828-8812 With this entry from the owners of Monterey Park's acclaimed Ocean Star Seafood, Westsiders don't have to trek eastward to experience a bustling Hong Kong-style seafood restaurant.

 The Hump
 3221 Donald Douglas Loop South, Santa Monica 310-313-0977 The Hump--the nickname used by World War II pilots for Mt. Everest--is off to a flying start.

 Yangtze
 1333 Third Street Promenade, Santa Monica 310-260-1994 At Yangtze, you'll find the flavor of the Pacific Rim right on Santa Monica's Third Street Promenade.
 

 Bistro 31
 2900 31st St., Santa Monica 310-314-6057 Bistro 31 is actually a class being taken by culinary arts majors at the Art Institute of Los Angeles.

 Chez Mimi
 246 26th St., Santa Monica 310-393-0558 With its inviting, slightly bohemian ambience, Chez Mimi feels like a French country auberge. If the food was less formulaic and every dish rang true, you would never be able to get a table.

 Chinois on Main
 2709 Main St., Santa Monica 310-392-9025 Wolfgang Puck's foray into Franco-Asian cooking is a fusion that has dazzled for 19 years. Regulars tend to ignore the specials in favor of classics such as the baby back ribs in a dark, sticky sauce redolent of star anise, the rich Shanghai lobster embellished with flash-fried spinach, or the meaty Mongolian lamb chops with cilantro sauce.

 JiRaffe
 502 Santa Monica Blvd., Santa Monica 310-917-6671 JiRaffe may be the ideal Santa Monica restaurant. The food from home-grown surfer-chef Raphael Lunetta is an amiable mix of California and country-style French. He does wonderful things with foie gras, wild mushrooms and salads. And he's especially strong on seafood.

 Mélisse
 1104 Wilshire Blvd., Santa Monica 310-395-0881 It's a thrill walking into such a grown-up restaurant, where waiters are dressed in suits and ties and the room is full of large, festive groups. Several of the best dishes, such as the splendid côté de boeuf for two, are served table-side, and the chef's tasting menu is always a treat.
 

 Amici Mare
 2424 Main St., Santa Monica 310-314-2119 A spin-off of the cozy, celebrity hideout Trattoria Amici in Beverly Hills, Amici Mare offers the same menu of flavorful Northern Italian cuisine.

 Capo
 1810 Ocean Ave., Santa Monica 310-394-5550 Marder has created another appealing and intimate beachside hangout in the spirit of West Beach Cafe.

 Drago
 2628 Wilshire Blvd., Santa Monica 310-828-1585 Celestino Drago has created a simple yet elegant restaurant that serves the rustic, rarely seen dishes of his beloved Sicily

 Il Ristorante di Giorgio Baldi
 114 W. Channel Road, Santa Monica 310-573-1660 This modest place near the beach feels as laid-back as a family restaurant along the Tuscan coast. Signor Baldi cooks the food of his childhood: a smooth brown puree of borlotti beans festooned with fettuccine, tiny sweet clams and fat white beans, and spaghetti in an understated tomato sauce.

 Valentino
 3115 Pico Blvd., Santa Monica 310-829-4313 Mention any Italian wine, no matter how obscure, and Valentino owner Piero Selvaggio can find it in his 174,000-bottle cellar. Everything conspires to seduce you into ordering what Valentino does best, the extravaganza menu, a series of little courses that can be tailored to the night, the wines and the whims of either the customer or the chef.
 

 Ocean Avenue Seafood
 1401 Ocean Ave., Santa Monica 310-394-5669 This upscale seafood restaurant is one of the best in town.

 One Pico at Shutters on the Beach
 1 Pico Blvd., Santa Monica 310-587-1717 One Pico is a great place to enjoy a classic California sunset and an inventive, relatively healthful cuisine.

 Rooke's
 2460 Wilshire Blvd., Santa Monica 310-828-2217 Piano music every evening; live bands/and or jazz singers/bands Thursdays-Mondays at 8 p.m. Full.

 Round Table Restaurant
 2460 Wilshire Blvd., Santa Monica 310-828-2217 The popular Round Table buffet is a good bet if you're starving and strapped for cash.

 Royal Star Seafood
 3001 Wilshire Blvd., Santa Monica 310-828-8812 With this entry from the owners of Monterey Park's acclaimed Ocean Star Seafood, Westsiders don't have to trek eastward to experience a bustling Hong Kong-style seafood restaurant.

 The Lobster
 1602 Ocean Ave., Santa Monica 310-458-9294 Remember that scruffy little seafood place that sat vacant at the end of Santa Monica Pier at Ocean Avenue for so many years? Well, it's back. Ocean Avenue Seafood

 The Lobster
 1602 Ocean Ave., Santa Monica 310-458-9294 Remember that scruffy little seafood place that sat vacant at the end of Santa Monica Pier at Ocean Avenue for so many years? Well, it's back.
 

 Kay & Dave's Cantina
 262 26th St., Santa Monica 310-260-1355 Local residents swear by this neighborhood Tex-Mex fixture in the heart of Brentwood, and it's particularly popular with young families.

 Lares Restaurant
 2909 Pico Blvd., Santa Monica 310-829-4550 Lares' food is assertive--big, meaty versions of Mexican dishes with boisterous sauces, the plates loaded with bulky food. The Santa Monica restaurant can be boisterous too, when margarita-happy customers join in with strolling mariachis.

 Lula Cucina Mexicana
 2720 Main St., Santa Monica 310-392-5711 The menu features popular Mexican dishes along with more unusual specialties, including squash blossoms stuffed with cheese.

 Mariasol Cocina Mexicana
 401 Santa Monica Pier, Santa Monica 310-917-5050 This rustic, airy Mexican restaurant makes the most of it's locale, offering outdoor dining on two different patios. No matter where you sit, you are surrounded by ocean waves.

 Rebecca's
 101 Broadway, Santa Monica 310-260-1100 With Border Grill, La Serenata de Garibaldi and the new Rebecca's all within a few blocks of one another in Santa Monica, now when you feel like Mexican food at the beach, it's going to be tough to choose. Keep in mind, though, that Rebecca's is open very late.