SATURDAY LUNCH

Sometimes it seems like there’s nowhere to eat a decent meal on a Saturday afternoon. That’s not quite true--as the following restaurants prove. BISTANGO (133 N. La Cienega Blvd., Los Angeles, (213) 652-7788). Bistango is fun, the service is kind and the rooms are spacious. Their $12.50 prix-fixe lunch is a popular item, including choice of soup/salad and a lunch entree. There’s a gently grilled baby salmon with sun-dried tomatoes that is a superior introduction to California cuisine--but it’s their pizza that takes the prize. Thin-crusted, with jolts of garlic and riotously colored yellow, green and red peppers, the ratatouille pizza is superb. Desserts here are quite incredible, like the Coupe Bistango, a gargantuan adult sundae made with homemade ice cream. Lunch from 11:30 a.m. All major credit cards. Full bar. Valet parking. Lunch for two, $15-$25.

CAFE JACOULET (91 N. Raymond Ave., Pasadena, (818) 796-2233). Named for artist Paul Jacoulet, whose Japanese prints decorate the walls, this restaurant serves a surprisingly eclectic blend of food. The menu mingles California cuisine, fine French dishes with the occasional Japanese touch and straightforward favorites like superb soups and salads and hamburgers. The room is bright, lively and attractive, and there is a good wine list with very fair prices. Lunch noon-3 p.m. V, MC, CB, D. Beer and wine. Lot parking. Lunch for two, $12-$22.

CITRUS (6703 Melrose Ave., Los Angeles, (213) 857-0034). This restaurant is as hot as a firecracker. It’s a lovely place for a weekend lunch. An outdoor patio has a view into the kitchen. Inside, the restaurant is clean and white with open beams and huge windows looking out to the patio. The menu is bold and pretty remarkable. There’s an exotic “lasagna” made of escargots and fried parsley. Duck is unusually cooked and delicious. Fish plates are more uneven, the best being tuna served with bean sprouts in ginger-sesame sauce. But it’s not just the good service or the food that fills seats here: Citrus has captured the mood of Los Angeles. Lunch noon-3 p.m. All major credit cards. Full bar. Valet parking. Lunch for two, $24-$32.

THE DARWIN (312 Wilshire Blvd., Santa Monica, (213) 458-4143). The menu has evolved from English pub food to more sophisticated contemporary fare. Grilled breast of chicken comes with a salad dressed in balsamic vinaigrette as a large appetizer at dinner or a fine entree for lunch. The steamed clams are as good as you’ll find on the West Coast. Louisiana crab and corn cakes are wonderful. The chicken curry, an old menu hold-over, has been improved, the gigantic portion heaped onto saffron rice, and served with side dishes of coconut, chopped peanuts, good chutney, currants. Lunch 10:30 a.m.-3 p.m. All major credit cards. Full bar. Lot parking. Lunch for two, $10-$24.

GOURMET GOURMET (Windsor Center, 19014 Ventura Blvd., Tarzana, (818) 344-7111). Gourmet Gourmet’s casual decor and open kitchen create a pleasant impression. Both dining rooms are light and airy with blue-and-white cafe curtains. Both lunch and dinner menus feature a selection of four cold appetizers and three types of pizza: vegetable, basil and onion; wild forest mushroom, Italian sausage and rosemary; marinated shrimp, sun dried tomatoes and broccoli. The lunch menu has an appetizing selection of sandwiches, omelets and four entrees. There are also Pritikin-style appetizers, soup and entrees; no oil, butter, eggs or salt are used. Lunch from 11:30 a.m. Reservations. MC, V. Beer and wine. Lot parking. Lunch for two, $15-$40.

JOSS (9255 Sunset Blvd., Los Angeles, (213) 276-1886). Everything about this first-class restaurant is unusual. The wine list, with its red and green Chinese calligraphy, looks like an oversized Christmas card. The post-modern dining room is full of dramatic lines and sharp pastel geometry. But the menu is the real surprise, especially the superb Mongolian lamb, sizzling in Shoa Shing rice wine, and “shrimp with nuts of olive mellow,” a sauteed dish that contrasts the crunchy sweetness of nuts against pungent roasted garlic and crispy ginger. Dim sum are fabulous here, certainly the most sophisticated and delicate in the city. The $7.25 pre-fixe lunch includes appetizer, main course, dessert and tea or coffee. Lunch from 12:30 p.m. All major credit cards. Beer and wine. Lot parking. Lunch for two, $15-$40.