CAFE EUROPA IS NOT FANCY, JUST GOOD

A few weeks ago, I wrote here about the unlikelihood of finding tasteful food in a tasteless environment. It somehow figured then that a few days later I’d find myself enjoying a perfectly satisfying meal in a restaurant the size of a large broom closet, with the ambiance of a basement rec room.

With its rough-hewn-look wood paneling, Tiffany-shmiffany lamps, corny German knick-knacks and illuminated wall picture, the new Cafe Europa on the nether end of Beverly Drive near Olympic Boulevard won’t be winning any awards for interior design. Nor is it the kind of place where Madonna and Sean Penn, or even Elliott Gould or Marsha Mason might be seen. You might see Elmer Dills, though, who has been there, as have Carroll O’Connor, his wife and friends.

To be sure, the cafe’s lack of pretension leads to modest expectations and adds to a sense of coziness and warmth. Much about the place shows that owner Ingrid, a sort of German version of Annie Hall in frizzy hair and man’s tuxedo jacket, cares. The pink tablecloths are spotless; the small wine list is thoughtful and modestly priced, and the food, cooked by Ingrid’s partner Toni, is fresh, carefully prepared and nicely presented.

We started our meal with a Danish herring salad--a little fish mountain of tender herring in cream dressing with just enough dill, chopped apple and onion to keep things interesting, flanked by colorful salads of fresh carrot and raisin and red cabbage and onion. We also shared Shrimp “Costa Brava,” four big, fat, beer-battered fried shrimp served with a tangy apricot-pimiento sauce.

From entrees ranging from homemade Swiss or Bavarian Bratwurst ($8.95) to broiled lamb chops marinated in garlic, herbs and mustard ($15.95), as well as rouladen, Wiener schnitzel and chicken Dijon, we chose duck, sauerbraten, Hungarian goulash and that night’s special, roasted rabbit in a mushroom, tomato and basil cream sauce. The rabbit was white and tender, the sauce just fine; the goulash was not the deliciously intense, cooked-until-it’s-falling-apart version my mother makes, but it was of good quality.

The sauerbraten, however, was some of the best I’ve had, especially at the price--$12.95--its sweet-and-sour raisin sauce compelling enough to merit sopping up with bread--if only there had been some worthwhile bread on the table besides a brown-and-serve variety of rolls. In light of the lovely spatzle with the entrees, however, this lapse in the starch department was forgotten.

The duckling, too, at $12.95 seemed a bargain. The skin was nice and crisp, the bird meaty, if slightly dry. Tender, though, and with sauce (served on the side) that wasn’t yucky-sweet orange goo but a nicely piquant orangy-mustardy concoction given fire and extra interest with ground ginger.

For dessert, there was a wonderful homemade apple strudel served with good vanilla ice cream, and an airy homemade chocolate cake with enough stewed cherries and whipped cream between the layers and pleasantly bitter chocolate shavings on top to bring the rather dull cake alive.

Nothing terribly fancy about any of it, just the kind of solid, comforting, substantial meals you’re in the mood for sometimes, the kind you might cook at home if you had the time. And it’s a measure of the food and the general atmosphere that people linger long after their meals.

One night we arrived late, at 10, just as the kitchen was closing. Ingrid welcomed us, however, and when we were seated, there were two large parties in the room just finishing dinner (one table of six--apparently businessmen and their wives--and one of eight--a more bohemian, professorial crew). It says something about the place that both tables stayed long over their coffee and dessert, relaxing, laughing, talking, so that all of us paid our checks and left Cafe Europa at the same time.

Cafe Europa, 326 1/2 S. Beverly Drive, Beverly Hills 90212, (213) 277-2200. Open Monday s -Friday s , 11 a.m.-10 p.m.; Saturday s , 5-10 p.m.; closed Sunday. Beer and wine only. Credit cards accepted. Dinner for two, food only, $25-$50.