A Bone to Pick

“There’s no excuse for this skirt steak,” remarked a friend as he wrestled with a tough piece of grilled meat at Lala’s. Harsh words--beef is the soul of an Argentine restaurant such as this. To be fair, Lala’s menu does go a little further, with pastas, chicken dishes and seafood, and there’s even a section of vegetable shish kebabs and meatless sandwiches.

Lala’s is generally crowded, anyway--it seems to get some spillover from Asanebo, a wildly popular Japanese restaurant elsewhere in the same Studio City mini-mall. Of course, it’s certainly cool-looking. A flamboyant fiberglass ceiling gives the entire dining room a faint orange glow.

The best starter is the appetizer combo: three empanadas (beef or chicken), a Spanish-style potato frittata (tortilla) and a huge, tasty chorizo (like a European sausage, not the highly spiced Mexican chorizo). The empanadas are well made, though the pastry could be crisper.

Ensalada rugola is a mound of arugula, lettuces, spinach, tomato and Parmesan, tossed with a mild, creamy dressing. It’s huge--half an order would be enough for four.

Among the pastas, penne Rosa is al dente pasta tubes in a pleasantly creamy tomato sauce. Cabello de angel, however, is mushy and overcooked.

The main dishes are a hit-or-miss affair. One big miss is pollo a la brasa, a grilled half-chicken marinated in a lemon-orange sauce. The bird comes with encouraging grill marks on its crisp skin, but when you get close to the bone you find pink, nearly raw meat.

Another miss is entrana, that tough skirt steak. And it’s a pity, because the garlic and herbs on the meat are delicious, and so is the house chimichurri, something close to a vinaigrette dressing for meat: olive oil, garlic and minced herbs. You’ll probably end up dipping your bread in it.

One of the best dishes here is milanesa, the Argentine cousin of chicken-fried steak. It’s a flat, long strip of beef pounded so thin it literally spills over the edges of the plate. Each bite is crisp and meaty; you wonder why other dishes here can’t be as good.

Another good beef dish is costilla, a grilled rib-eye steak. Considering this is the same price as entrana, the choice seems no contest. It’s tender, properly marbled and perfectly grilled--everything an Argentine steak should be.

For dessert, the best option is helado dulce de leche, a sensationally rich caramel ice cream.

Long story short: Lala’s has promise, but so far it’s a work in progress.

BE THERE

Lala’s, 11935 Ventura Blvd., Studio City. Open 11 a.m.-10 p.m. daily. No alcohol. Parking in lot. All major cards. Dinner for two, $27-$45. Suggested dishes: combo appetizer, $9.95; penne Rosa, $7.95; milanesa, $8.95; helado dulce de leche, $3.50. Call (818) 623-4477.