RESTAURANTS : ENCORE DU CHAMPAGNE : Divorce, Restaurant Style: The Chef Left, the Wife Stayed, the Food’s Doing Fine

The best restaurants are always Mom and Pop places. This is a fine old French tradition honored in most three-star establishments. Mom and Pop are also a Los Angeles institution: Think of Dave and Maude (Chasen), Gerard and Virginie (Ferry, L’Orangerie) or Wolfgang and Barbara (Puck-Lazaroff, Spago, et. al.).

But what happens when Mom and Pop divorce?

In the case of Patrick and Sophie (Healy), one of Southern California’s most celebrated restaurant couples, everybody sighs and says, “Poor Sophie.”

“How did this happen?” the cognoscenti wanted to know when the news was announced about three months ago. “They were such a nice young couple,” they said. “Patrick is so talented.” “That’s the end of Champagne.”

Sophie Healy thought otherwise. Although her husband, who was also the chef, had departed with the wine cellar, the mailing list and the telephone number, she had no intention of quitting. She renegotiated the lease, renamed the restaurant and rehired most of the staff. And then she opened Champagne Bis ( bis means “encore” in French).

And promptly had lousy luck. Nobody knew that the restaurant had reopened, and those who did couldn’t remember its new name. With very little money, replacing the wine was a problem. Customers were sparse. Still, Sophie Healy and her chef, Vaughn York, formerly Champagne’s sous chef, were optimistic. They knew that if they just held on, things would work out. Then York’s mother fell ill.

He flew off to New York, and the kitchen fell apart. That, of course, was the night that the critic came.

“Poor Sophie,” the critic said, pushing the dreadful food around her plate. “She really shouldn’t have tried to open the restaurant without her husband.” The critic looked around at the empty chairs. She waited until the waiter wasn’t looking, then emptied her full plate into her napkin. She stuffed the napkin into her pocket and beat a hasty retreat.

But every restaurant deserves a second chance. So, she went back. “There won’t be a soul in the restaurant,” she warned her guests as she opened the door. They walked down a long hall, past an enormous arrangement of flowers, into the dining room--and a cacophony of voices. “What are all these people doing here?” she asked.

Eating well, is the simple answer.

Before the menus even appeared, it was clear that this evening would be different. The waiter arrived with a savory little pot of pureed eggplant surrounded by warm toast, and it was wonderful. The wine arrived, and it was wonderful, too. The waiter was knowledgeable. The busboy was efficient. Champagne Bis may not be Champagne, but when the chef’s in the kitchen, it is a very pleasant place to be.

Sophie Healy has had the sense to distill the original Champagne menu down to its essence. That menu was divided into four parts: contemporary California/French, classic French, rustic French and spa cuisine. Now there’s just one menu containing elements of all four. Patrick Healy’s signature dishes--the 175-calorie eggplant soup, the crispy Norwegian salmon, the bacon-wrapped rabbit--are all here. But the menu is starting to lean away from the inventive contemporary cuisine that is his strong suit to the rustic food that York seems to prefer.

Consider three of the best appetizers. The foie gras terrine is as rich and wonderful as it was when Healy made it, surrounded by warm toast wrapped in napkins and bits of Port aspic that glisten when they catch the light. And the minced lobster salad is as elegant as it ever was, the shellfish ensconced on a little throne of chopped vegetables. It’s the sort of dish you’d expect to find in a fine French restaurant. But neither can hold a candle to the wild-mushroom ragout, a lusty dish redolent of red wine and potent with pepper. This is bistro food for the ‘90s.

On the other hand, the few remaining spa dishes just aren’t very good. The eggplant soup is uncomplicated, but Healy managed to make each of the 175 calories count. I’ve had it twice now at the new restaurant, and both times it had all the appeal of antique vegetables. And the sole, served in a heap of strips, was very proper and very dull.

But order York’s pasta--which changes every night--and you can end up with something really impressive. One night there was shocking-pink beet pasta with a field of greens strewn across the top, dotted with sauteed langoustines. The dish was simple, delicate and surprising.

The kitchen also did well with special requests. Could the rabbit be served without bacon? The waiter looked dubious, but said he’d ask. “Yes,” he said, returning with a bemused smile on his face. Even without the bacon, the rabbit was fabulous, perched on a bed of fried sage and surrounded by delicate corn souffles.

But the best dishes here are the big ones: the cassoulet, the veal shank, and above all, the daube of lamb cooked in red wine and rosemary. The daube was sealed with dough: When the crust was broken and the top of the iron casserole removed, the smell of braised meat, rosemary, onions and cooked wine went wafting into the air.

What to have next? The cheese cart, of course. Champagne was famous for its cheeses, and Champagne Bis honors the tradition. At $12.50, it’s an indulgence, but this is good ripe cheese from the best cheese shop in town, and so amply served that four people can easily share.

After this, dessert may not be necessary--cookies and chocolates arrive with the coffee--but if you must have a major sweet, opt for Floating Island. It’s a big, pale, fluffy mound of baked egg whites covered with caramelized sugar and floating on a sea of vanilla and raspberry sauce.

Much of this is Patrick Healy’s food--not a bad thing, considering that he is one of Southern California’s most talented chefs. But with Healy now consulting to Xiomara in Pasadena, Champagne Bis needs to move in its own direction. And it’s not quite clear what that will be.

But one thing is clear: Nobody needs to say “Poor Sophie” anymore. Pop may be gone, but Mom’s doing just fine.

Champagne Bis, 10506 Little Santa Monica Blvd., Los Angeles; (310) 474-6619. Lunch served Tuesday through Friday, dinner Tuesday through Sunday. Beer and wine. Valet parking. All major credit cards accepted. Dinner for two, food only, $50-$105.