The Casual Bistro on the Block

Meteigner Mellows. Jean Francois Meteigner of La Cachette has decided to go casual. No, La Cachette isn’t being taken down a notch. Meteigner is just opening a new place on La Cienega near L’Orangerie, tentatively named Bistro Provencal. It will have a wood-burning pizza oven in the middle of the dining room cranking out tomato-sauceless Provencal versions of the pie. Prices at the new place will be more provincial as well, coming in at under $17 an entree. The chef will be Lionel Deniaud, formerly of Hollywood Cantina. Look for it Decemberish, with the usual restaurant opening date leeway.

*

Just When You Thought It Was Safe. Right down the street from Meteigner’s new operation, another marine-motif eatery is opening where La Mer Brasserie used to be: the Shark Bar, which will join Shark Bars in Manhattan and Chicago. Chef Scott Freer’s menu will be Southern and Soul--he grew up in New Orleans--with not a bit of shark on the menu.

So, why the name? “It’s just an edgy New York name,” Manager Chris Hale says. Whatever. He hopes to open by mid-September.

*

King 1, Erpicum 0. OK, so maybe Larry King was right after all. We all knew Eclipse had been in Chapter 11 reorganization for a while, but nobody wanted to admit that it was actually for sale. Well, according to U.S. Bankruptcy Court documents, Eclipse is thisclose to being sold for $250,000, “the best and highest offer received by Debtor regarding the Assets to date.”

The court papers specify that Debtor (that’s Bernard Erpicum) asked the court to authorize “the sale of the Assets free and clear of all claims, liens and interests.” Hmmmm. So it was for sale all along. And that’s some major clearance, since, says Michael Good, Eclipse’s lawyer, the number of creditors reaches well over 100.

As for the sale date, court documents say it “shall be scheduled for Sept. 4, 1997, or as soon thereafter as is reasonably practicable.” Good wasn’t giving up the name of the buyer, but no matter--we found out on our own. George Pagani, former maitre d’ at Coco Pazzo, is the mystery man. Pagani, who has been looking for a restaurant location for the past 3 1/2 years, left Coco Pazzo two weeks ago in anticipation of completing the sale.

*

Name Change Operation. Kings Road 818 in Sherman Oaks, which opened in March, has decided to change its name to Bistro 818. Lawrence Casperson (who also owns the original Kings Road Espresso Bar-Cafe on Beverly--in effect, Kings Road 213) is hoping the moniker adjustment will clue people in that at dinnertime, the new Bistro’s food is more highbrow than Kings Road Cafe’s. The chef is Darin Eckermann, formerly sous-chef at Joe’s in Venice and Woodside in Brentwood, another of Casperson’s restaurants. Bistro 818, 14502 Ventura Blvd., Sherman Oaks; (818) 789-9044.

*

Larry Is History. Bob Mandler, self-proclaimed Chinese Chicken Salad King, is opening yet another Chin Chin, this one on Beverly Drive. The space used to belong to Larry Parker’s Diner, but when asked if he was going to keep any of the decor, Mandler blurted, “Oh, God, no! We’re gutting it.” Construction will begin in six weeks; opening date won’t be until some time in December.

*

N’Awlins Times 4. Cafe N’Awlins in Burbank has quadrupled its seating area by taking some space from the office next door. This isn’t as amazing as it sounds; it only had five tables when it opened. But it does mean you can bring more friends with you when you want to satisfy that Cajun craving with chef Mark Antoine Foster’s shrimp Creole. Says Foster: “We see a lot more happy faces now. People don’t have to wait.” Cafe N’Awlins, 122 N. San Fernando Road, Burbank; (818) 563-3569.

*

Another St. Steve’s. Steve Garcia, former partner of John Sedlar in the now-defunct Saint Estephe in Manhattan Beach, has moved back to his hometown of Santa Fe. There, in an old building on the Camino Real, he has opened Cafe San Estevan, a small space (seats 50) with a flagstone fireplace and patio. The cooking, done by Garcia this time, is regional New Mexican. Says Garcia about his new baby: “I’m not doing anything extraordinary; I’m just doing something that I love.” Cafe San Estevan, 428 Aguafria, Santa Fe, N.M.; (505) 995-1996.