Parkway Grill’s Smiths Get Ducz in a Row in Pasadena

Ducz in the ‘Hood: We have the scoop on the new restaurant being opened by the Parkway Grill guys. Bob and Gregg Smith took over the old Abiento space in Pasadena last year, and we hadn’t heard a peep about their progress until now. They’re calling their new restaurant Ducz. When asked about the name, Bob Smith told us, “We were trying to find something that was just a little bit out of the ordinary and not too Asian.” They did that for sure. The new restaurant will apparently be not too Asian, not too French and not too Californian. Head chef Fred Iwasaki comes from Wolfgang Puck’s Chinois on Main in Santa Monica. The opening date is slated for spring.

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Capri Capper: You may remember that Vittorio Lucariello left his post as chef at the northern Italian restaurant Primi on Pico Boulevard in Los Angeles back in September. He went back to Italy to work on the isle of Capri, but now he’s resurfaced in Beverly Hills, at Il Cielo. Il Cielo’s owner is from southern Italy, and he and Lucariello see eye to eye on a lot of things, so you can guess how the menu will look: long on southern Italian food. Lucariello will rely on his recent Capri experience to rework the dishes. The new menu will debut in about a month. He’ll also make sure the restaurant hosts more winemaker dinners. * Il Cielo, 9018 Burton Way, Beverly Hills; (310) 276-9990.

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Dickens of a Dinner Revisited: “A Taste of Two Cities” returns at the Regent Beverly Wilshire from Feb. 28 to March 2. In this dining series, the hotel brings a chef from another city (usually across one ocean or another) to Beverly Hills to cook with J.P. Amateau, chef of the Dining Room. This time it’s Bruno Oger, who’s being flown in from Hotel Majestic in Cannes, France. There, Oger runs the Villa des Lys restaurant, which has earned a star in the Michelin guide. He and Amateau have created a four-course menu (to be served from 6 to 9 p.m.) that includes a warm escargot salad in a potato basket, a black truffle risotto, pan-seared venison chops and chocolate caramel cake. The price, which includes wine, coffee, tax and tip, is $75 a head. Make your reservations with maitre d’ Pamela Gonyea.

* The Dining Room of the Regent Beverly Wilshire, 9500 Wilshire Blvd., Beverly Hills; (310) 274-8179.

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Try These Tidbits: I Cugini has a new lunch tasting menu. It’s three courses for $20, plus tax and tip. You choose an appetizer, an entree and a dessert. The lunch menu is available every day but Sunday from 11:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. I Cugini is at 1501 Ocean Ave. in Santa Monica; (310) 451-4595. . . . Chef Hans Goplen has made the patio at the Farm of Beverly Hills doggy-friendly. Your pooch can nosh on Goplen’s handmade dog biscuits or scrambled egg whites while you down your meal. His winter menu for humans features dishes such as baked lobster tacos and ahi tuna three ways. The Farm is at 439 N. Beverly Drive, Beverly Hills; (310) 273-5578.

Angela Pettera: (213) 237-3153 or pettera@prodigy.net