RESTAURANT REVIEW / SEAFOOD & BEVERAGE CO. : Landmark Dining : The fish is prepared marvelously, with few disappointments. But the menu is more ambitious than it needs to be.

There’s plenty of history behind the imposing old Victorian residence in Ventura that now houses the Seafood & Beverage Co.

It was built more than 100 years ago by Carlo Hahn, who raised his family of 13 children on the premises. In the 1950s and ‘60s, the home was a Christian boarding house for women; men were forbidden to cross the threshold. Having survived the bulldozers that decimated so many other fabulous dwellings of that era, the Carlo Hahn house, as it is called, went on to become a historic landmark--as well as a restaurant.

The mansion is a Victorian fantasy painted teal and white, with lots of gingerbread detailing outlined in tiny white lights. The effect is somewhat reminiscent of a Mississippi riverboat, which is appropriate since the restaurant serves fish to the exclusion of almost all other dishes.

You can find a lone hamburger and a solitary chicken breast on the menu, and the specials may include occasional pork ribs or steak in concert with shrimp scampi. As for the rest, it’s all seafood, and it comes in a myriad forms and flavors.

I thought that the menu was actually more ambitious than it needed to be. If they made it simpler, perhaps they could lower the prices and attract a wider clientele. They certainly deserve it, for they prepare their fish marvelously, with few disappointments.

The downstairs of the restaurant consists of three separate dining rooms, plus a spacious pink and green bar with a small dance floor. During several visits, I never saw anyone in the bar. My favorite place turned out to be the dining room in the back where the comfortable banquettes, soft pink lighting and good service made it a pleasant, homey place to eat.

Shrimp cocktail arrived with large, fresh, delectable shrimp. Ceviche, while satisfying, nevertheless tasted as if it had been prepared in cocktail sauce rather than the traditional lime juice. Thick New England clam chowder, on the other hand, was as traditional as it gets, with chewy clams, chunks of potato and tender cooked celery.

Salads consisted of ice-cold lettuce with stalwart croutons and excellent homemade dressings. If you feel like eating salad, go ahead and order one of these. Don’t bother with the crab Louis. The crab was shredded and tasteless--a reason for joy if you happen to be one of the crabs left in the sea.

Every other entree I tried came with fish as fresh as promised, cooked to perfection. Sea bass Veracruz had been broiled over mesquite and was covered with a stir-fry medley of peppers, baby shrimp, tomatoes and sweet onions. It was sort of like eating two meals at once.

Cajun shark had all the spicy, potent flavors of Louisiana cooking. This was a particularly nice piece of fish, thinner and more delicate than most shark. Fresh mini salmon ($13.95) was covered with a hot, appetizing white sauce full of tiny shrimp.

They give you plenty of choices here for side dishes. Whipped potatoes were heavenly one night and gluey on another. You can’t miss with plain rice or baked potatoes, but I thought that the sweet-and-sour coleslaw was particularly tasty.

Forget the desserts. They weren’t nearly as fresh as the fish. One of the highlights of the menu, however, was the cioppino , a fine fish stew with a robust tomato base, good seasoning and an amazing array of fish, including lobster and mussels. One serving ($12.95) is probably enough for four. Our waitress told us that customers regularly drive up from Los Angeles for cioppino and thrift shopping on Main Street. The cioppino alone is worth the drive.

* WHERE AND WHEN

Seafood & Beverage Co., 211 E. Santa Clara St., Ventura, 643-3264. Open for lunch and dinner 11:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. weekdays and 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. weekends. Full bar, parking lot. American Express, MasterCard and Visa accepted. Dinner for two, food only, $32 to $62.