RESTAURANT REVIEW : Hal’s Secret to Success Lies in Lively Mix

When I told a friend I was going to Hal’s for dinner, he said, “Are you taking ear protectors?”

“Ear protectors?”

“You know, those things people wear on aircraft carriers for the noise.”

I wish I’d taken this suggestion seriously. But I didn’t remember this high-end neighborhood hangout being quite so clamorous. On that Tuesday night, however, Hal’s is packed and loud as a rock dance in a gym. In fact, acoustically, Hal’s resembles a gym: a big, wide-open hall with exposed trusses and all hard surfaces, from the ash wood walls to concrete slab tables. Add a full house of well-dressed, upscale twenty- and thirtysomething adults, all of whom must yell to be heard. When several tables empty and the noise level dips, the hostess cranks up the music. We give up trying to talk, gaze dumbly at the art--paintings by Ed Moses, Peter Alexander, Joni Mitchell; sculptures by Laddie John and Guy Dill--and hope the waiter hurries up so we can eat and run.

So. Unless you’re fond of such high-level hubbub, you might want to save Hal’s for Sunday evening, or for lunchtime, when the jazz is on low in the background, there’s more a mixed-age, neighborhood clientele and the possibility of conversation.

Hal’s has been around for eight years now, which is substantial for an L.A. restaurant, and it has survived, I think, by shifting with the times. Back when it opened and there was a thriving art market, Hal’s was touted as a swank, hip neighborhood watering hole for local blue-chip artists and other celebrities. Today, very few artists can indulge in a $13 hamburger and now the prosperous young crowd derives from the film and TV industry. Rarely, in one place, have I seen so many hyper-groomed young actresses vamping for their dates. In quieter moments Hal’s retains a comfortable neighborhood vibe: Some families bring young children, one couple has an obvious spat, including a passionate makeup kiss.

Lunch and dinner menus change weekly, with a handful of favorite items held over forever. Neither Hal’s reliable hamburger nor grilled half-chicken should be missed. The chicken is especially good: golden, sticky-crisp, moist. Both chicken and burger come with terrific fries.

The food is generally pretty good, but there are disappointments. At dinner, you get a choice of soup or salad (Caesar or tossed green) with every entree. The soups are interesting and often good--and as often improved with a dash of salt. Acorn squash soup is straightforward, velvety. Cream of cabbage, a celadon color and mildly rich, is punched up with ribbons of shiitake mushrooms and red peppers. Sweet and appealing, a soup of Fuji apple is much zippier (fresher?) at lunch Friday than it is Sunday night--and it never did need the clump of gluey nutmeg noodles.

A short-crusted onion tart appetizer is OK, closer to a luncheon quiche than a classic pissaladiere. The “open-face” crab and sole ravioli is essentially creamed fish on large square noodles--not bad, not great. But two bright red Anaheim chiles, stuffed with “Oaxacan” cheese and chopped vegetables and lolling in a goat cheese cream are a visual and gastronomic delight.

As a bar and grill of the ‘90s, Hal’s is called upon to have a serviceable steak, which it does, and a decent hunk of salmon, which it does. (Although why serve it with grilled tomatoes when tomatoes are so tasteless this time of year?) There’s always a pasta, which is the chef’s weak suit: Radiatore with vegetables is achingly bland; cappellini with whitefish and garlic cream is gluey and too rich.

With the ever-changing menu, chef Manuel Mares keeps us and himself interested. Some of his entrees are unusual and memorable: I love a stew of beautifully cooked, tender veal sweetbreads with wild mushrooms served in a nest of spinach. And tasty, moist twice-cooked duck legs, with custardy polenta, sauteed pears, a luscious mixed fruit relish and a heady sprinkle of Gorgonzola and walnuts are brilliant: the perfect autumn meal.

* Hal’s Bar and Grill, 1349 Abbot Kinney Blvd., Venice . (310) 396-3105. Open for lunch Monday-Friday. Open for brunch Saturday and Sunday. Open for dinner seven nights. Full bar. Major credit cards accepted. Dinner for two, food only, $36-$75.