Charming Country Inn

It seems like a long time since Kathy Gallagher’s closed. And it seems that for most of that time there have been work crews banging about the building, knocking down walls, building up patios, instituting intriguing transformations. At long last all that is over: Mabe, 8722 W. 3rd St., (213) 276-6223, has finally opened. And it is easy to see why it took so long.

This beautiful new restaurant has all the charm of a country inn. Comfortable chairs embrace tables topped with baskets of wild flowers. Breezes blow in the open windows and the scene is lit by sconces that look like sculpture. Upstairs a sofa sits in front of a fireplace while an open door leads to patio (with what must be admitted is not exactly the best view in town).

The menu is nice too; fans of Claude Segal’s wonderful food at Four Oaks will find that he is cooking a few familiar dishes like carrot and ginger soup or fish coated in black pepper. Of the dishes I tried, I especially liked round black ravioli in lobster sauce, a cool, light goat cheese flan and really crispy sweetbreads topped with the tiniest grapes. Service is still on the slow side, but the room is so comfortable and so pretty that you probably won’t mind the wait.