Luxe lunch

Maison Akira

This pretty Franco-Japanese restaurant serves lunch Tuesday through Friday. In addition to French classics such as duck pate and escargot, chef Akira Hirose offers three bento boxes daily. The “gourmet” version includes about half a dozen dishes; chilled Maine lobster salad and Snake River Farm kobe steak are just a sampling.

* Gourmet bento box, $29. 713 E. Green St., Pasadena, (626) 796-9501.

Water Grill

Pistachio and citrus marinated hamachi crudo, which is akin to sashimi, and sauteed Australian ocean trout with coriander-fennel spiced artichokes are among the offerings at this handsome dining room. Don’t do fish? No worries. Chef David LeFevre does a steak, even chicken with white grits.

* Crudo, $17; trout, $30. 544 S. Grand Ave., downtown L.A., (213) 891-0900.

Spago

In fine weather, the patio is the spot to take in the scenery -- isn’t that so and so? -- and savor Lee Hefter’s cooking. At lunch, the kitchen turns out a number of salads that go well beyond Caesar. There is, for example, a Japanese barbecue salmon salad with cucumber, avocado and seaweed. But who can resist the soft omelet with Gruyere?

* Salmon salad, $23; omelet, $21. 176 N. Canon Drive, Beverly Hills, (310) 385-0880.

Patina

The two-course “business lunch menu,” the particulars of which change daily, might be the best deal at this Hagy Belzberg-

designed looker. And we love that there’s an optional “sommelier’s suggested glass of wine” to accompany it. For those who want to order off the menu, there are plenty of delicious choices such as slow-roasted monkfish with bacon essence.

* Business lunch, $25. 141 S. Grand Ave., downtown L.A., (213) 972-3331.

Cafe del Rey

What could be more civilized than a leisurely midweek lunch with a view of the marina along with a glass of something white or red? Chef Frank Fronda’s menu ranges from playful (a trio of tuna sandwiches) to complex (coriander-rubbed tai snapper in coconut broth). He even does a burger with spiced fries.

* Tuna trio, $18; tai snapper, $16. 4451 Admiralty Way, Marina del Rey, (310) 823-6395.

*

-- Leslee Komaiko