Figs: Just Like a ‘50s Dinner Party

It’s unlikely that Figs, open just over two months on the site of the old Alouette restaurant in West Hollywood, will ever become a power spot, or that its food will show up on the glossy pages of Vogue or Elle. But that’s partly what makes Figs so appealing.

Its owners, it seems, aren’t trying to run an important restaurant. You get the feeling that the people here are cooking and serving food they want to eat. It’s the kind of food, in spirit, that a talented ‘50s housewife might have served at a dinner party. There’s even the right music--society lounge standards from the likes of Bobby Short, and sometimes live musicians at the restaurant’s baby grand.

Salads are big, fresh and American: a crisp wedge of iceberg lettuce with house-made Thousand Island, a good Caesar salad that can be ordered with extra anchovies (or none), a plateful of butter lettuce dressed with oil and vinegar and covered with thin shavings of hard-boiled egg.

Main dishes come with smooth, buttery mashed potatoes and a plate of vegetables for the table--on a recent visit there were heaps of corn, creamed spinach and white beans stewed with flecks of celery. Portions are huge; you get hefty plates of things like tender osso buco , thick blackened pork chops, chicken with mustard sauce, crisp-skinned duck (called “Society Duck” on the menu). And there are souffles: appetizer cheese souffles; chocolate or fig (the best of the three) for dessert. Julia Child would be proud.

Figs, 7929 Santa Monica Blvd., West Hollywood, (213) 654-0780. Entrees $8 to $18.