Chef Isaac Rivera gathered fans during stints at Il Sole, the Drago Restaurant Group and Valentino Las Vegas, but he couldn't wait to reopen the original Cucina Paradiso, which nearly lasted until Y2K in Redondo Beach before reappearing in LA proper.

Unusual food doesn't require a frenetic decor: The simple square dining room looks dipped in cream, the music welcoming and low-key. Our leisurely recent visit was accompanied not by when-the-moon-hits-your-eye affronts but by Coldplay and Guster. Since our first visit was also on a Thursday that also happened to be on Rosh Hashanah, we pretty much had the place to ourselves—but even on busier nights there wouldn't be any danger of bumping elbows with other diners. Rivera's appetizers could be meals unto themselves: The prosciutto is plentiful and the sauteed scampi is drizzled in a mixture of garlic, olive oil and white wine that begs for more attention from the basket of bread. Entrees like the chicken ravioli with a creamy parmesan sauce are pleasant and reasonably portioned; entrees like the whole free-range chicken are pungent, homey and large. Room must be saved for the panna cotta, a chilled wonder that translates as "cooked"—what else?—"cream." —Lonny Pugh