Italian seduction

Providence

New pastry chef Adrian Vasquez is a big fan of panna cotta. “It’s just sexy smooth,” he says. At this sophisticated mid-city seafood specialist, he’s doing a milk chocolate panna cotta made with Valrhona Jivara, a serious chocolate person’s chocolate. He tops it with a crunchy cocoa-coconut streusel, itty-bitty handmade coconut marshmallows and a Kahlua gel.

* Panna cotta, $12. 5955 Melrose Ave., L.A., (323) 460-4170.

The Dining Room at the Ritz-Carlton Pasadena

You can always count on Craig Strong, the chef at this most civilized dining room, to do things a little differently. His lemon verbena panna cotta is no exception. He serves it in a martini glass and tops the chilled lemony cream with candied Marcona almonds and fresh blackberries. On the side is a slice of pretty green pistachio pound cake.

* Panna cotta, $12. 1401 S. Oak Knoll Ave., Pasadena, (626) 568-3900.

Sage

For the summer, pastry chef Valerie McDaniel is serving up a toasted almond panna cotta she makes by steeping almonds in the cream overnight before cooking it. The cool, supple panna cotta is surrounded by warm cherries jubilee with fruit from the Santa Monica farmers market. There’s also a quenelle of vanilla sweet cream on the plate topped with a homemade pistachio macaron.

* Panna cotta, $8. 2531 Eastbluff Drive, Newport Beach, (949) 718-9650.

Sona

A crunchy, lacy macadamia nut cookie covers the surface of the silky rosewater panna cotta at David and Michelle Myers’ grown-up restaurant row dining room. The plate also features warm braised raspberries and cool litchis marinated in black pepper.

* Panna cotta, $12. 401 N. La Cienega Blvd., West Hollywood, (310) 659-7708.

Blend

In La Quinta, a part of SoCal not known as a hotbed of serious foodie dining, this 6-month-old restaurant from Kevin and Kori Kathman (he’s the savory guy; she does the sweets) has raised the bar. Kori’s dessert offerings include a passion fruit panna cotta set atop fresh blueberry sauce.

* Panna cotta, $8. 78073 Calle Barcelona, La Quinta, (760) 564-4771.

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-- Leslee Komaiko