<i> Star</i> Food

Ruth Reichl is being presumptuous when she writes that everybody who lives in Los Angeles dreams of stumbling into a neighborhood restaurant full of stars (“Shane--A New Kind of Spaghetti Western,” Oct. 16).

Although I enjoy good food, I go out of my way to avoid places where these so-called stars frequent. As to Reichl’s description of the Beverly Glen Shopping Center’s parking lot being full of Ferraris, Jags and Mercies, is she implying that it’s not OK to drive an American car? I know people in Europe who would give their eye teeth for a Cadillac. They now drive Mercies.

Why is a pedigree associated with an overpriced foreign car? A turkey could be behind the wheel, but because it’s a Jag, immature people presume that he’s got class. An automobile is designed to get you from point A to B--that is all.

Anything else that an automobile stands for, such as an extension of oneself, smacks of personal insecurity.

VICKI ADAMS

Los Angeles