Fun on Tap at Gordon Biersch

“Babe alert,” said the pretty blond woman, just a couple years out of her teens, to her girlfriend dressed in mall-modified grunge.

“Total!” said her friend, setting down her dark malt lager as she spotted the two twinkle-eyed hunks walking out of the AMC theater and into view of the Sunday-night dinner crowd on the open-air terrace of the new Gordon Biersch brewpub.

The most persistent thing you hear about the brewpubs called Gordon Biersch--there are three in Northern California--is that they’re great places to cruise for dates. The new Pasadena branch is no different: There is plenty of beer, plenty of noise and plenty of room to search and stroll.

But Gordon Biersch is trying to reach beyond the singles market. Huge, modern and ready for a crowd, it’s located in one of L.A. County’s newest public spaces, the freshly gentrified One Colorado complex, designed to seem more European town square than Southern California mall. Gordon Biersch is destined to become a gathering place for all sorts of people, looking for love or not.

The food, a mix of Mediterranean, Asian and American cooking, shows signs of serious-chef frippery. The trendy Italian pasta tripolini comes with pan-seared mushrooms; flatbread is served instead of pizza. But too much thought went into some of the dishes. Dressed mixed greens are overdone with goat cheese, pieces of flatbread and a big scoop of hummus on top; chicken pot pie is topped with herbed bread crumbs instead of a proper crust. Still, the grilled shrimp served with a corncake and nicely spiced cabbage slaw works well. And there are familiar beer-food staples, including calamari, ribs, sausages and burgers.

The house-made German-style beer is fine--nothing with the character of, say, Dead Cat Lager, or even Sierra Nevada--but refreshing. And it prompts one of the most welcome opening lines to be uttered by a waiter or waitress: “Would you like a free sampler of our beers?”

* Gordon Biersch, 41 Hugus Alley, One Colorado complex, (818) 449-0052. Dinner for two, food only, $30-$55.