Before the bar scene starts, try Woody’s

Many locals have probably never eaten at one of the best restaurants in town. Woody’s has a cozy atmosphere, reasonable prices and very tasty food. The service is friendly, knowledgeable and attentive but not intrusive. People may be intimidated by its famous gay bar scene on the weekends, but it doesn’t seem at all like a private club during the week or for an early dinner anytime.

Chef Jonathan Hubbard says, “I like to feel special when I go out somewhere, and my customers should feel special too.”

He has been at Woody’s for four and a half years, and his fine dining concept includes great service, good food and good value.

When you enter this former Laguna Beach cottage, there is a very attractive, well-landscaped outdoor patio and bar with hanging umbrellas that seem to float over the outdoor seating and romantic soft lighting, creating a relaxed, charming atmosphere.

The interior space, divided in two parts, retains the cottage character with exposed ceiling, wood floor and stone fireplace. There is a large bar area including several tables and, in the back, a dining area with an ocean view. The walls are adorned with framed art deco-style posters. In addition to candles, the dining room has contemporary track lighting with small hanging fixtures above each table, providing soft illumination.

As we sat down, the waiter arrived with the menus and a welcoming attitude. From our very first contact, we saw that he was knowledgeable and professional. Water and bread arrived as we were perusing the menu. We noted that the bread was actually cold, so Elle caught the waiter’s eye. He came right over, and when she asked if the bread could be heated, he whisked it away with a smile and returned it in a few minutes nicely warmed.

We chose ahi poke for our starter: a generous portion of very fresh ahi and rock shrimp tossed in a tropical fruit salsa, served in a martini glass and topped with a crispy wonton. The subtle taste of the tuna was zipped up by the pineapple salsa, and the rock shrimp added a chewy textural contrast and another layer of flavor.

Some of the other appetizers that we resisted were the duck confit spring rolls with sweet curry dipping sauce; blackened chicken empanadas with roasted corn and black beans, topped with avocado coulis and pico de gallo; and the spaghetti torta filled with fontina, parmesan and sun-dried tomatoes in a tomato cream sauce.

If you just can’t make up your mind, there is an appetizer tower with calamari, spring rolls and pan-roasted mussels.

We passed on the saffron mussel chowder and ordered a pear salad, a lighter choice. We have a serious pet peeve with overdressed salads. Too much dressing detracts from the flavors of the ingredients and makes the salad soggy. Unfortunately, this one was swimming in dressing, and the pears were tasteless.

The spinach salad with pistachios and goat cheese, tossed in raspberry vinaigrette, sounds like a nice variation on a classic, as does the wedge of romaine with stilton dressing, orange supremes and candied walnuts. There are several other salads, including a Caesar that can be ordered with grilled chicken or calamari.

There is an extensive entrée menu that features several steaks, a filet of beef and hoisin and ginger-braised beef short ribs on wasabi mashed potatoes, topped with a tropical fruit salsa. Hickory-smoked pork tenderloin with an apple chipotle caramel sauce and braised lamb shanks on horseradish mashed potatoes round out the meat dishes.

The poultry dishes include a pan-roasted chicken breast topped with a thyme, tomato compote and the honey-glazed duck breast. Elle can never resist duck breast in any preparation. We requested it cooked rare, and the waiter agreed that it was best eaten that way. It was slightly less than rare but still quite delicious with its crispy skin and juicy meat, sauced in a slightly sweet green peppercorn port glaze.

It was accompanied by seasonal vegetables -- haricots verts, sugar snap peas, a baby carrot and a tidbit of turnip, all cooked to crunchy goodness. For fish and seafood, there’s the ever-popular rare ahi (in this case crusted with candied ginger), salmon du jour, grilled swordfish on saffron risotto and orange glazed shrimp and scallops. We ordered the sesame-crusted mahi mahi with a mango beurre blanc.

The fish was deftly cooked, and the buttery sauce was nuanced with the richness of mango, served with the above lovely vegetable mélange. But, the star of the plate was the plebian potato. Tiny cubes of purple potatoes cooked in butter were luscious little morsels verging on the sublime; maybe the best potatoes we have ever eaten! One final entrée is the vegetarian offering: the parmesan-crusted eggplant over linguine with a Spanish marinara sauce.

There are six other pastas on the menu, including a spaghetti Bolognese made with ground chicken, a classic beef stroganoff over egg noodles, and linguine and mushrooms with apple-wood smoked bacon and sun-dried tomatoes, in a cream sauce.

For desserts, there are the old standbys: vanilla bean crème brulée, warm flourless chocolate cake and berries with Chambord and ice cream. Then there are two that don’t appear often on restaurant menus: the opera cake with chocolate and coffee cream, and a unique take on lemon chiffon cake -- a small, cloud-like angel food cake, hollowed out and filled with luscious lemon custard, “iced” with whipped cream and drizzled with an intense strawberry coulis. Each bite was a little bit of heaven.

The pleasant waiter, the good food and the moderate prices proved that the chef has successfully put his philosophy into practice.

IF YOU GO

*WHAT: Woody’s at the Beach

*WHERE: 1305 South Coast Highway, (949) 376-8809

*WHEN: 7 days

Bar: 4 p.m.

Dinner: 6 p.m.

*PRICE: Starters: $8 - $28.50

Soups and Salads: $5.50 - $8

Entrées: $11- $29.50

Desserts: $6 - $8

Prix Fixe Dinners: Tuesday through Thursday, $20 and $30

*WINE: $17 - $63

By the glass: $4.50 - $9

Champagne splits $6 - $3320051209imh5ntnc(LA)20051209ir5mfcknMARK DUSTIN / COASTLINE PILOT(LA)Candied ginger-crusted rare ahi on purple rice topped with Asian vegetables and soy glaze is a favorite at Woody’s at the Beach. 20051209imh5ognc(LA)