Splash Chef Wades Into New Venture

Serge Surges Ahead: Chef Serge Burckel has handed in his two-week notice at the Euro-Cal-Asian cuisine Splash. He’s leaving the Redondo Beach restaurant at the end of the month to open his own eatery because, as he puts it, “I’m waiting 20 years to do my own place.” Burckel bought Robert Gadsby’s old space on La BreaAvenue and will turn it into a contemporary restaurant called One. His wife will run the front ofthe house, while he handles the kitchen. One--the name was chosen because it symbolizes unity and teamwork (and is easy to remember, they hope)--will serve comfort food for lunch. The dinner menu will be reminiscent of Splash’s. Even as you read these words, Splash’s designer, Jacques Halbert, is busy designing and decorating One. Look for it to open in March or April.

Bliss Out Under the Banana Trees: Romy Weiss wants you to come to his new restaurant and eat healthy Brazilian food under a banana tree. Weiss, from Rio de Janeiro, came to L.A. via New York about eight months ago for the same reason nearly every other New Yorker comes out here: the weather. He opened Amazon Juice Co. in Santa Monica about four months ago and redecorated in January. Now antique tables and chairs sit indoors under his 90-foot banana tree, and velvet curtains and bookcases line the walls.

On the menu are healthful salads, soups, sandwiches, breads, and (of course) fresh juices and smoothies. Most of the dishes are Brazilian. The tuna salad with beets and celery is called Yemanja, after a Brazilian goddess of the ocean. Amazon Juice Co. is open from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday and from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday. The restaurant is small, but Weiss plans to add another two small tables under the banana tree in the back of the store.

* Amazon Juice Co., 624 Santa Monica Blvd., Santa Monica; (310) 451-5858.

Bite-Size Bits: Pentimento, the newest member of the Patina family, has opened at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art at 5905 Wilshire Blvd. Taking over the former gift shop space, Pentimento serves soups, appetizers, entree salads and desserts, with item prices ranging from $4 to $13. The tabletops are made of blue imperial granite and the counters are blue pearl granite. One wall is done in cherry wood. The cafe is open every day except Wednesdays from 11:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. . . . Pastis is instituting Monday night prix fixe dinners. The rustic French meals will run about $23 each, and include an appetizer, main course and dessert. The series begins March 1 with onion soup, lamb-shank stew and chocolate fondant. Pastis is at 8114 Beverly Blvd. in L.A.; (323) 655-8822 for reservations. . . . Flint’s, the new American speak-easy style restaurant and bar is now open for dinner nightly from 6 p.m. to at least midnight. It’s at 3221 Pico Blvd. in Santa Monica, but you have to look closely to find it: There’s only a teeny sign in the window. Better yet, call for directions: (310) 453-1331.

Get Gas on the Internet: Chasen’s Chili is now available for purchase via the World Wide Web at https://www.chasenschili.com. They’ll FedEx a 2-pound carton anywhere in the country for $15, plus tax and shipping (to California addresses, that will add about $12; elsewhere, $17.50). So having a big box of chili sent to your house in L.A. will set you back about $27. That had better be good chili.

Chinese New Year celebrations: Chang’s Mandarin and Sichuan restaurant in Brentwood celebrates the Year of the Rabbit through Saturday. For $16.95 a person, you can have a special menu that includes soup, an appetizer and a main course consisting of four different dishes. The meal also comes with fruit and tea, and can be ordered at lunch or dinner. But there’s a catch. The minimum order for this deal is two meals, even for takeout.

* Chang’s, 11726 San Vicente Blvd., Brentwood; (310) 207-2295.

ObaChine in Beverly Hills offers a three-course menu plus a Champagne cocktail for $38 a person today and Friday. Choose the Lucky Duck, the Auspicious Boar or the Prosperous Bull (really steak) for your entree.

* ObaChine, 242 N. Beverly Drive, Beverly Hills; (310) 274-4440.

Watch traditional lion dance performances, with masked dancers and musicians winding among the tables, at Yujean Kang’s in West Hollywood at dinner Friday and Saturday. A special New Year menu includes an appetizer, entree, vegetable, noodles and dessert for $38 a person.

* Yujean Kang’s, 8826 Melrose Ave., West Hollywood; (310) 288-0806.