A bistro’s comfy embrace

Beverly Boulevard between La Brea and Fairfax avenues is fast becoming a regular restaurant row. El Coyote gets a constant, clamorous crowd, of course, but now, joining Jar, Angelini Osteria and Opaline, a new American bistro has moved into the neighborhood, taking over the space vacated by the long-suffering Atlantic. That restaurant-club couldn’t survive on its sole claim to fame: that it was designed by Madonna’s brother, Christopher Ciccone.

The new place is called EM Bistro, after owner Charles Nuzzo’s 10-year-old daughter, Emily. Where Atlantic was dark and clubby, EM is all white. And clubby.

It has a softer, less edgy look than some of the other newcomers. Bubble chandeliers give the dining room a light spritz of giddiness. If Goldie Hawn were a room, this would be it. The chairs are so comfortable, in fact, I can imagine the restaurant might sometimes have trouble getting people to move on. But maybe that’s the point.

EM’s American bistro menu is just as comfy. At the bar, while you wait for a table or your friends, you can munch on homemade potato chips that are pretty much irresistible, shaggy deep-fried artichoke hearts with horseradish cream or a fine pizzetta covered with fresh bufala mozzarella, tomatoes and olives.

The chef is Anne Conness, former chef de cuisine at Alex, and she can cook. Her classic Caesar salad is just that. She makes a good seared tuna salad dressed up with avocado, ripe mango and sweet Maui onions. But the best starter may be her steamed mussels with lentils and curried leeks. The flavors just sing.

She’s putting her new rotisserie to good use with a terrific center-cut pork roast on the bone and a saddle of Colorado lamb. The desserts are from pastry chef Natasha MacAller, and they’re worth the wait. Remember her brown butter plum tart at Union? It’s here, along with a lovely clementine pound cake and a deep, dark red velvet chocolate and raspberry tart.

Out with the old, ring in the new, I say, if the new is as easygoing and sophisticated as this new bistro. Who could have guessed five years ago that Beverly Boulevard would become a dining destination?

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EM Bistro

Where: 8256 Beverly Blvd., Los Angeles

When: Dinner, 6-10 p.m., Tuesdays-Thursdays; 6-11 p.m., Fridays and Saturdays; starting March 23, brunch, 11 a.m.-3 p.m., Sundays. Full bar. Valet parking.

Cost: appetizers, $6 to $14; main courses, $15 to $26

Info: (323) 658-6004