Sunset dining: a time to coast

One of the best things about living in Los Angeles is driving out to the beach and having drinks and snacks or dinner somewhere casual, with a great view of the water, just as the sun sets, a lovely ocean breeze blowing in. But there aren’t exactly a plethora of such spots. Pedals at Shutters on the Beach comes close, but when the weather’s fine, you might miss the sunset by the time you get a table.

Just in time for summer (that is, if summer ever decides to show up) comes Ocean and Vine, the new restaurant at Loews Santa Monica Beach Hotel. (Though it has been quietly operating for eight weeks, the restaurant opens officially tomorrow.)

Gone is Lavande, the formal dining room where Alain Giraud cooked before he opened Bastide. Now in that same space, there’s an indoor fire pit with a banquette circling it. A stylish bar faces the water; grab one of the eight seats for a smashing view.

Out on a patio perched over the beach, there are mini-fire pits to sit around while you have a well-mixed cocktail (try the “Key lime pie” -- Cruzan vanilla rum, lime and pineapple juices, cream and Navan, Grand Marnier’s vanilla-infused Cognac) and appetizers. But even from inside the dining room, the views are terrific -- in the direction of the sunset, you can see the twinkling lights of the Ferris wheel revolving on the Santa Monica pier.

If the name Ocean and Vine at first makes you do a double take -- is it near the corner of Sunset and Vine? -- that may be deliberate. Ocean views aside, the owners seem to be going more for Hollywood hip than beachy cool, with the back-lit bar and the sleek lounge furnishings. The focal point inside, just beyond the fire pit, is an installation of strings of shimmering seashells, glamorously lit from below by ever-changing colored lights.

They couldn’t resist doing the “small plates” thing. Some of these are fun, and some are not so small. A big bowl of Prince Edward Island steamed mussels comes with herb bruschetta that are good for soaking up the delicious coconut chipotle broth. You’d expect foie gras that’s served with brioche to be a terrine, but here it’s seared, served atop the brioche, with a drizzle of pomegranate glaze on the plate. Decent Hog Island oysters on the half shell are accompanied, weirdly, by a shot glass of something called Meyer lemonade, apparently for drizzling on the oysters. (If putting a sugary lemonade on oysters sounds like a bad idea, it is.) They also come with a rather dry tarragon pesto and grated horseradish.

The night I was there, chef Gregg Wangard (who comes to Loews via The American Club in Kohler, Wis.) also offered a “market inspired flight: artichoke prepared three ways.” This plate had a small cup of lovely artichoke chicken soup, a nicely steamed artichoke, including a healthy portion of its steam, with an aioli, and a spinach artichoke fondue with toasts to dip in.

There are big plates, too. My cumin-scented Muscovy duck breast was cooked rosy medium-rare and served with creamy grits and a huckleberry gastrique. Dry-aged rack of lamb was perfectly cooked, served with delicata squash gnocchi and some tired green beans. Guatemalan chili rellenos, filled with chorizo, potato and carrots were terrific, but the three sauces that accompanied them were flavorless.

The wine service is a little goofy, and the restaurant really plays it up (Ocean and Vine -- now I get it). Wines by the glass come in three sizes: four- , eight- or 16-ounce pours. Order a four-ounce pour, and it comes in a carafe. The server pours a little in your class, leaving in a little in the carafe. Such a small amount to divide in two!

But it’s nice if you just want a taste. We ordered an eight-ounce pour of a 2003 Honig Sauvignon Blanc to share between two of us with two orders of oysters -- it was the perfect amount, because the oysters come two to an order. And it’s great to have a choice of more than 20 wines in 16-ounce pours -- that’s a little more than half a bottle. How swell it would be to sit outside on the patio or at the bar with a carafe of Gruner Veltliner and a bowl of those mussels. There’s also a list of full bottles, mostly predictable American choices, with a few assorted bottles from Europe, Australia, Chile and Argentina.

The dessert menu is kind of minimalist. There’s a “single-vineyard” Valrhona chocolate trio, including warm caraibe chocolate cake, manjari chocolate creme brulee and bittersweet guanaja. A lackluster Meyer lemon strawberry short bread is served with lemon poppy seed sorbet.

And then, because s’mores have become de rigueur at Santa Monica beach hotels, there’s “gimme s’more gimme s’more.” If only they’d let you grill them over the fire pit.

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Ocean and Vine

Where: Loews Santa Monica Beach Hotel, 1700 Ocean Ave., Santa Monica

When: Breakfast, 6:30-11 a.m. daily; lunch, 11:30 a.m.-2 p.m. daily; dinner, 6 p.m.-10 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday.

Cost: Full bar. Valet parking $3 with validation. Small plates, $8 to $18; large plates, $14 to $29; desserts, $8 to $12.

Info: (310) 576-3180.