On Turkey Day, Take Flight From Your Kitchen

It’s time to decide whether to bake the bird yourself or dine out, thereby missing out on the cooking and cleanup.

To help your decision, we’ve rounded up some dining options for Nov. 22. They start with earlier seatings and move on to later dining. Prices do not include tax or tip.

If Thanksgiving brunch sounds fun, Breeze has you covered. This new restaurant in the remade Century Plaza Hotel & Spa sets up its buffet at 11 a.m. and serves until 4 p.m. Chef Andreas Nieto and his crew will be making mimosas, flapjacks and eggs cooked to order for those who just woke up. Early risers can tuck into petite steaks, molasses-glazed turkey, maple duckling or braised short ribs. Gravlox, chilled seafood, salads and cheeses round out the offerings. The buffet costs $45. Breeze, in the Century Plaza Hotel & Spa, 205 Avenue of the Stars, Century City; (310) 551-3334.

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If your family likes to stuff itself early in the day in order to work off the calories or see a movie later, here are some ideas:

The Dining Room and the Lobby Lounge of the Regent Beverly Wilshire both begin serving their three-course holiday meals at 11 a.m. The fancier of the two, the Dining Room, stops at 8 p.m. and offers five entree choices, one of which is turkey. The price is $61 for adults and $24 for children 12 and younger. At the Lobby Lounge, which serves until 11 p.m., turkey is one of two entree choices. The cost of the three-course meal is $38. The Dining Room and the Lobby Lounge at the Regent Beverly Wilshire, 9500 Wilshire Blvd., Beverly Hills; (310) 274-8178 or (310) 858-2384 for the holiday reservation line.

The Ritz Restaurant & Garden will serve its traditional Thanksgiving meal. Though the Newport Beach dining institution has just been purchased by Tim Goodell of Aubergine in Newport Beach and Fred Glusman of Piero’s in Las Vegas (more on this later), longtime owner Hans Prager won’t hand over the Ritz until after the new year. Thanksgiving at the Ritz includes a choice of Diestel turkey with brioche-pecan dressing, poached salmon, Colorado lamb sirloin, pork chops with lingonberries, and filet mignon with sauce Diane. The three-course meal will be served from 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. The price is $39.50 for adults and $15 for children 11 and younger. The Ritz Restaurant & Garden, 880 Newport Center Drive, Newport Beach; (949) 720-1800.

Pooch’s plans a holiday buffet with three seatings: 11:30 a.m., 1:30 p.m. and 3:30 p.m. Get turkey carved to order, or opt for seared salmon, game hens or almond-crusted pork loin. Supporting dishes include appetizers, stuffing, potatoes, stewed greens, onion risotto, salads and petit fours for dessert. The tab is $32 for adults; $15 for children 12 and younger. Pooch’s, 260 Portofino Way, Redondo Beach; (310) 372-1202.

Tallyrand Restaurant in Burbank serves a turkey dinner every day of the year. On Thanksgiving, it offers a full traditional meal of turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, yams and pumpkin pie for $11.95 from noon to 8:30 p.m. Tallyrand Restaurant, 1700 W. Olive Ave., Burbank; (818) 846-9904.

Pinot Provence in Costa Mesa dishes up four courses with choices that include leek soup, pumpkin ravioli, roasted turkey or French cod, and pumpkin pie or pecan tart from noon to 9 p.m. The price is $39. Pinot Provence, in the Westin South Coast Plaza, 686 Anton Blvd., Costa Mesa; (714) 444-5900.

One of the oldest restaurants in L.A., Taix French Restaurant does American Thanksgiving with turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, yams, vegetables, salad, soup, and pumpkin pie for $18.95. It’s served from noon to 8 p.m. Taix French Restaurant, 1911 Sunset Blvd., Echo Park; (213) 484-1265.

Chez Melange presents four courses with plenty of entree choices. Some of them are turkey with sage stuffing, braised lamb shank with polenta, roasted pheasant, herb-crusted halibut, grilled vegetable platter, veal Porterhouse, prime rib, and duck l’orange. Served from 2:30 to 8 p.m., it runs from $27.95 and $39. Chez Melange, in the Palos Verdes Inn, 1716 Pacific Coast Highway, Redondo Beach; (310) 540-1222.

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Each of the Patina restaurants--Patina, Nick & Stef’s Steakhouse, Pinot Hollywood, and Pinot Bistro--has its own take on Thanksgiving dinner. All offer four-course prix-fixe dinners with choices for each course, and all are taking reservations from 3 to 9 p.m. with the exception of Pinot Bistro, which starts serving at 2 p.m.

Patina’s $55 dinner offers choices like poached foie gras au torchon , squash agnolotti , free-range turkey, roast suckling pig, and pumpkin financier tart. Patina, 5955 Melrose Ave., L.A.; (323) 467-1108.

Nick & Stef’s $45 menu includes winter squash soup, warm potato salad, roasted turkey, prime rib, pork rack, pumpkin pie, and pear tart Bordelaise. Nick & Stef’s, Wells Fargo Center, 330 S. Hope St., downtown L.A.; (213) 680-0330.

For $35, Pinot Hollywood will feed you sweet potato and lime soup, compote of quince over greens with jerk beef, oyster and pancetta skewers, stuffed turkey breast, pot roast with grits, poached sturgeon, and pecan and Bourbon tart. Pinot Hollywood, 1448 N. Gower St., L.A.; (323) 461-8800.

And finally Pinot Bistro brings you gratin of chestnut gnocchi, roasted turkey, maple-glazed ham, grilled beef chateau with braised Belgian endive, and chocolate silk pie for $35. Pinot Bistro, 12969 Ventura Blvd., Studio City; (818) 990-0500 .

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At Locanda del Lago, Enrico Glaudo is preparing an Italian-influenced meal from 4 to 10:30 p.m. It begins with sturgeon carpaccio and pumpkin ravioli, followed by pan-roasted salmon rolled with spinach or a roasted turkey breast with a chestnut-stuffed drumstick. Dessert is an apple strudel. The meal is $39, or, when paired with wines, $54. Locanda del Lago, in Third Street Promenade, 231 Arizona Ave., Santa Monica; (310) 451-3525.

Carafe restaurant will set up a communal “friendship table” on Thanksgiving where dinner begins at 6:30 p.m. (Elsewhere in the restaurant you can eat from 4:30 p.m. to 9 p.m.) The four-course meal begins with butternut squash soup and mixed baby greens. Choose among turkey with all the trimmings, beef, striped bass or pasta for your entree. Dessert choices include pumpkin pie, tarte tatin and profiteroles. The cost, wherever you sit, is $25. Carafe, 8284 Melrose Ave., L.A.; (323) 655-8880.

Watch this space for more Thanksgiving dining listings next week.

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Angela Pettera can be reached at (310) 358-7647 or pettera@prodigy.net.