New Color for Aubergine

Building a Better Eggplant: Aubergine, Tim and Liza Goodell’s Newport Beach restaurant, finally will reopen March 20. The Goodells have been remodeling it while they ran Troquet, their second restaurant, in South Coast Plaza. The reborn Aubergine has twice as much seating. (The popular chef’s table just outside the kitchen remains.) The walls are now in shades of deep red, chocolate and putty, and the tabletops are graced with new china and crystal. A private dining room has been added and an arbor-shaded patio that seats 15. New three-, six- and nine-course tasting menus will be featured nightly. If you’re looking for a little Goodell cooking before March, Troquet is offering two choices on Valentine’s Day: a three-course dinner ($50) and a five-course dinner ($65).

* Troquet, 3333 Bristol St., Costa Mesa; (714) 708-6865.

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Less Creature, More Comfort: Maui Beach Cafe’s decor has grown up to match its food. The giant dolphins and shark that loomed over diners have been donated to the UCLA Children’s Hospital, and the brightly colored walls have been redone in tasteful sand tones, with chairs and upholstery to match. Some of the serving platters will be rectangular ceramic in blue and green hues. The printed menu is now held together with wooden chopsticks and raffia. “Asian tapas” have been added to the culinary repertoire, and many dishes are now available ohana, or Hawaiian family-style. All of this comes just in time for a four-course Valentine’s meal served from 6 p.m. Feb. 12-14 at $42.95 per person.

* Maui Beach Cafe, 1019 Westwood Blvd., L.A.; (310) 209-0494.

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Musso’s Survives: The venerable Musso & Frank Grill on Hollywood Boulevard had a little kitchen fire a couple of Saturdays back. The place was evacuated that evening and closed for two days, but it is open again with no noticeable difference. The creamed spinach was never in peril.

Rocken Back: Rockenwagner reopens for lunch as of today, but before you get too excited, you should know it’s only one day a week. Thursday. Why that particular day? Mostly to take advantage of the produce at the Wednesday Santa Monica’s Farmers’ Market. The weekly changing menu will offer wines by the glass and half bottle to accompany it. Brunch remains a mainstay on Saturdays and Sundays. There’s a special three-course Valentine’s brunch Feb. 14 at $25 a head. That night there’s a five-course dinner at $62.

* Rockenwagner, 2435 Main St., Santa Monica; (310) 399-6504.

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Connolly’s Revised: Connolly’s Restaurant on West Pico Boulevard, having bucked the status quo menu-wise since it opened, is retrenching. In place of his labor-intensive range of five prix-fixe menus per night, John Connolly has introduced a set menu to be enhanced by a single weekly changing prix-fixe menu. This actually gives diners more options, because there are more dishes altogether. He’s also nixed lunch and is now open only Tuesday through Saturday for dinner. But on Valentine’s Day, he’ll offer a three-course Champagne brunch ($25).

* Connolly’s, 11510 W. Pico Blvd., L.A.; (310) 479-2133.

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Valentine With a Small V: The new restaurant vermont on Vermont Avenue has a three-course Valentine’s menu ($40) including pan-roasted monkfish in a saffron sauce with whipped potatoes and English peas.

* vermont, 1714 Vermont Ave., L.A.; (323) 661-6163.

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First-Time Valentine: Another newcomer, the Beach House in Santa Monica Canyon, is offering a three-course meal for $65 per person that features these entrees: New Zealand red snapper, Cornish game hen, Colorado rack of lamb and roasted Maine lobster.

* The Beach House, 100 W. Channel Road, Santa Monica; (310) 454-8299.

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Crustacean Love: At Crustacean in Beverly Hills, the An family has devised a five-course menu for lovers that pairs the first four dishes with different glasses of Champagne and dessert with lotus tea. The menu runs to prawns, crab, lobster and sea bass in various cooking styles. The tab is $130 per couple.

* Crustacean, 9646 Little Santa Monica Blvd., Beverly Hills; (310) 205-8990.

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Moonlight Romance: For a swingin’ time in the Valley, try Moonlight on Ventura Boulevard. On Valentine’s Day the place jumps to swing and boogie-woogie from the ‘30s, ‘40s and ‘50s by the Eric Ekstrand Swing Band. Dinner is a four-course meal anchored by a mixed grill entree of filet mignon, prosciutto-stuffed chicken and Atlantic salmon. The price of the meal, including cover charge, is $46.50 per person. Seatings are at 5:30, 8 and 10:30 p.m.

* Moonlight, 13730 Ventura Blvd., Sherman Oaks; (818) 788-2000.

For more Valentine’s Day listings, go to the Restaurants & Cafes page at www.calendarlive.com.