RESTAURANT REVIEW : An Ordinary Grill Aspires to Greatness

The Alley Grill is new, well-designed and seems, at first, just like a nice neighborhood restaurant. It turns out to have higher ambitions.

The first indication of a serious bent at the Alley Grill is found among the appetizers. Griddle-seared spinach pancakes served with black caviar and sour cream were simple, attractive and tasty. Grilled eggplant in a red bell pepper sauce was a real try, but didn’t make it. Still, even though it was disappointing, I was struck by the freshness of the ingredients.

The same freshness came through in the Alley Grill’s Chinese chicken salad--it was about the most satisfying salad of its kind that I’ve eaten. And the angel-hair pasta with scallops in a tomato-jalapeno-cilantro sauce was everything a pasta dish should be: light, fully flavored, complex but not overly complicated and a joy to eat.

Unfortunately, the entrees were disappointing. The Jamaican barbecued chicken breast was too heavily marinated in orange juice for me. The same was true of half a dozen large shrimp that had been split in their shells and grilled.

The one excellent entree encountered was a special: grilled salmon with cilantro salsa. And a New York steak was tasty, but outclassed by the wonderful french fries that accompanied it.

There’s also a good selection of pizza. The chicken pizza, though modern in its topping--lime-marinated chicken, red onion, mozzarella, avocado and a terrific salsa--was old-fashioned in the best ways. The cheese was thick and moist, and the crust, thick and, well, crusty.

Desserts, however, are a major problem. Tarte tatin with caramel sauce and cashews? Fried ice cream can be fun, but here, coated with a substance that suspiciously resembled Frosted Flakes, it wasn’t.

There’s a modest wine list--mostly California wines and a couple of imports priced between $11 and $30--and service is attentive. All in all, it’s a restaurant I’d be glad to have in my neighborhood.

Recommended dishes: spinach pancakes, $6.95; Chinese chicken salad, $7.95; chicken pizza, $7.95; angel hair pasta with scallops, $11.95.

Alley Grill, 14058 Ventura Blvd., Sherman Oaks. (818) 986-4450. Open Sunday through Thursday 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m., Friday and Saturday until 11 p.m. Full bar. American Express, MasterCard and Visa accepted. Valet parking. Dinner for two, food only, $35 to $55.