Nick & Stef’s Beefs Up Downtown Scene

What to Do Tonight: Nick & Stef’s, the new downtown steakhouse from Joachim Splichal, opens today. “The names came from our boys,” explains Splichal, who, with his wife, Christine, owns Patina and six Pinot restaurants in the Southland, Napa Valley and Las Vegas. Nick & Stef’s, on Hope Street on the second level of the Wells Fargo Center where Stepps used to be, is positioned to grab business folks at lunch as well as theater- and Staples Center-goers at night. Splichal hopes patrons will take advantage of the parking spaces in his building and walk to their after-dinner entertainment venues. (Walk! What a concept!) The steakhouse features a huge bar that flows from inside the restaurant, out through a glass wall and onto a large wraparound patio. It also sports two private dining rooms and two main dining rooms with brown leather banquettes and dark, woodsy colors. Beyond the entryway is a glass-enclosed wine cellar and a series of other sights that might give a vegetarian pause: a climate-controlled room where the boeuf ages, a butcher area and a wood-burning grill. Hagy Belzberg designed the space--he’s responsible for Pagani’s sleek look. Says Splichal of his new venture, “It’s up-to-date, young, fresh, sexy. We want to take steak into the next century.” Shortly after doing so, Splichal will open up Pentolino, an Italian takeout and quick-food restaurant next to Nick & Stef’s. Pentolino, however, will have no indoor seating; it will open onto the office building’s food court area. Look for it to debut in about 10 days.

* Nick & Stef’s Steakhouse, in the Wells Fargo Center, 330 S. Hope St., L.A.; (213) 680-0330.

What Else to Do Tonight: A little restaurant called Red Banana opens tonight in Los Angeles. Chef-owner Paul Martel spent his 21st year cooking in Paris, and worked at the Four Oaks in Bel-Air back when Claude Segal and Fred Eric were waving their spatulas there. Martel was also Segal’s sous chef at the now-closed Drai’s. After that, he was opening chef at the short-lived (seven months from opening to closing) Amadeus Restaurant and Mozart Bar in Beverly Hills. Though Cal-French cuisine is his specialty, Martel says he plans to add Asian touches to his food at Red Banana. Says Martel, “For me, the biggest pleasure is to go out to the dining room and see people happy.” His partners in Red Banana are the very French Xavier Leclercq and Marie-France Ilous, who designed the interior with burnt orange walls, red velvet booths and a dark wood bar--and lots of red banana plants. The rear dining room is open to the sky, effectively making it a patio on which diners can smoke. The restaurant is now open for dinner Monday through Saturday.

* Red Banana, 8222 1/2 W. 3rd St., L.A.; (323) 653-2121.

Chef Shuffle: Robert Lia has left Bel-Air Bar & Grill to cook at Geoffrey’s in Malibu. “It’s a gorgeous place to work--very professional staff as well,” says Lia of his new post. He won’t be making any sea changes to the menu, though, just tweaking the presentation at first. After that, he’ll add his own dishes week by week, trying them out as nightly specials. Geoffrey’s is at 27400 Pacific Coast Highway; phone is (310) 457-1519. . . . Meanwhile, the empty post at Bel-Air Bar & Grill has been filled by Michael Lotterstein, who used to own the now-closed Terrazza of Bel-Air, just up the hill on Beverly Glen Circle. He’s now making bouillabaisse, osso buco, and pan-roasted salmon with crispy polenta. Bel-Air B&G; is at 662 N. Sepulveda Blvd., Los Angeles, (310) 440-5544.

To Chew On: The minuscule Beverly Hills Italian cafe Porta Via has just expanded to the space next door. Now the restaurant can seat about 40 people instead of just 15. Owner Peter Garland has also added a full liquor license--and dinner. Chef Jesus Trejo turns out dishes like wild mushroom and spinach lasagna and marinated roasted chicken. “Now it’s more like a neighborhood bistro,” says Garland. Porta Via is open for breakfast, lunch and dinner Tuesday through Saturday. On Sundays, the cafe serves brunch and dinner, and on Mondays it’s lunch and dinner only. It’s at 424 N. Can~on Drive, near Brighton Way, (310) 274-6534. . . . Rix has pulled a switcheroo on which nights it’s closed. As of now, the Santa Monica restaurant is no longer open on Mondays, but it is open on Sunday for dinner. This allows newly installed chef Gordon Naccarato to whip up hearty three-course family meals on Sunday nights. Adults pay $30 a person, children 6 to 12 pay $10 each, children younger than 6, free. Upcoming meals might include Yankee pot roast, meatloaf, lobster lasagna or shepherd’s pie. Rix is at 1413 5th St., (310) 656-9688.

A Sip of Spain: Xiomara Ardolina is throwing a wine dinner at her Pasadena restaurant, Xiomara, Tuesday to introduce diners to the pleasures of Spanish wine. She’s pairing dishes like ceviche, mango-rum glazed prawns and Nicaraguan skirt steak with vintages from 1972, 1996 and 1998. The six-course dinner plus wine is $65 a person.

* Xiomara, 69 N. Raymond Ave., Pasadena; (626) 796-2520.

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Angela Pettera can be reached by voice mail at (213) 237-3153 or by e-mail at pettera@prodigy.net.