Paws Awhile

Top Dog: It’s a dog’s life. But at least at Metro Diner in Culver City, customers with a creature on a leash can get some respect, which is something Scott Broffman and his Irish setter Maxwell rarely got.

“When restaurants see you coming down the sidewalk with a dog, they try to get rid of you. Or rush you through,” says the lawyer and partner in the Culver City diner. On the weekends when Broffman often flips pancakes or pours coffee for fun, Maxwell can be sighted lounging on the patio, where dog biscuits and water bowls are on the house.

The outdoor tables with waiter service give customers a place to linger over meatloaf or fish and chips, admire wagging tails and sample the house specialty, waffles.

That item has been Broffman’s “thing” ever since he got a waffle maker as a gift a couple of years ago. He beefs up commercial mixes with a few hits of malted milk powder, and no ingredient is off-limits when it comes to experimenting: blueberries, bananas, chocolate, tropical fruit, nuts--you name it.

Although faux maple syrup comes with the waffle, Broffman keeps his own stash of genuine Vermont in the back. So diners who brown-bag their own bottles of the genuine article can expect understanding instead of a knuckle-rap from this cook.

“Real maple syrup is just too expensive to serve. But if enough people ask for it, who knows?”

* Metro Diner, 11188 Washington Place, Culver City. Hours: 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Saturday, 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Sunday; (310) 839-5717.

Fuel Stop: For runners lacing up their Nikes and New Balances for the 12th annual Los Angeles Marathon this Sunday, the most important meal of the race takes place about 18 hours before.

Veteran marathon runners advise novices to eat early Saturday, go heavy on carbohydrates, stay away from anything unfamiliar and drink water like a fish. To help supply pre-race calories to the estimated 20,000 runners, many restaurants offer discounts and specials to participants and cheerleaders.

At the downtown race headquarters, the Regal Biltmore Hotel, a one-mile warmup race Saturday at 8:30 a.m. will be followed by a pancake breakfast in Pershing Square Park. The $15 fee covers race, T-shirt and eats; breakfast for non-runners is $5, with proceeds going to charity. There will be two pasta buffets that day, too: from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Saturday in the hotel’s Smeraldi’s Ristorante and from 4 to 9 p.m. at Grand Avenue Sport Bar ($15.50 per person at either place). . . . Restaurateur Kozo Hasegawa will be running his eighth marathon, and his new Monsoon Cafe in Santa Monica will offer a big bowl of soba noodles in a mild fish broth from 11:30 a.m. ($7). Monsoon Cafe, 1212 3rd St., Santa Monica, (310) 576-9996. . . . Recent surgery sidelined marathon runner Chris Tesari, owner of Bruno’s Ristorante, but he welcomes athletes and friends with a 10% discount on any menu item from 5 to 7 p.m. Bring your race number as proof. Bruno’s Ristorante, 3838 Centinela Ave., West Los Angeles, (310) 397-3777. . . . Dane Petchul isn’t a runner, but he feeds running clubs regularly at Chicago Chicago Pizza & Pasta. Runners and hangers-on will get a 10% discount from 11 a.m. Chicago Chicago Pizza & Pasta, 4533 Campus Drive, Irvine, (714) 854-3000.

Such a Deal: Sunday brunch at Gustaf Anders in Costa Mesa for $19 per person between 11:30 a.m. and 2 p.m. . . . Chinese New Year runs through March 29 at Panda Inn locations, with special menu for $16.88. . . . Complimentary glass of Veuve Clicquot Champagne with prix fixe three-course menu ($50) in the Dining Room at Regent Beverly Wilshire March 3 through 8 as it hosts chefs from Hotel Le Bristol in Paris. . . . Hong Kong food festival at Chez Melange in Redondo Beach with special a la carte menu on Saturday only. . . . Favoritz Restaurant in the Promenade, Woodland Hills, and the Oaks in Thousand Oaks offers “Dinner and a Free Flick” every Wednesday and Thursday, from 3 p.m. to closing. Parties of two must spend a minimum of $17.50 each in order to get the free movie pass. . . . Every Monday, Cava hosts a three-course all-you-can-eat paella evening that includes soup or salad, paella (your choice of seafood, chicken or grilled vegetables), dessert and sangria or mango passion ice tea. $16.95 per person. 5-11 p.m. Cava at the Beverly Plaza Hotel, 8384 W. 3rd St., Los Angeles, (213) 658-8898. . . . Tea, finger sandwiches, scones with Devon cream and pastries highlight afternoon tea at Ye Olde King’s Head, Monday through Friday from 3 to 5 p.m. $11.95 per person. Ye Olde King’s Head Restaurant, 116 Santa Monica Blvd., Santa Monica, (310) 451-1402.