The suspension of reality is so complete at Bistro Provence that when you depart, you half expect to hear a goat bleating out back or to find a field of lavender spreading out from the front door. It's almost startling to discover that you're in a shopping center parking lot in Burbank, between a Vons and a Starbucks.

With its food, decor and service, the restaurant deftly taps into the gentle rhythms of southern France, dishing up the comfort foods of the countryside but at an astonishing value.

Dinner is a three-course prix fixe, priced at $27.50, and on a cool, late-winter evening, we were drawn to the slow-cooked meats on the entree menu.

Beef bourguignon was prepared as short ribs cut off the bone - and it doesn't get any more tender than that. The rich, juicy meat nestled in a bed of horseradish mashed potatoes that was studded with carrots and celery. A sprinkling of lightly friseed onions on top completed a pleasing contrast of textures.

Twice-cooked pork was a portion of shoulder, and one of the cooking methods was clearly braising, because it, too, was melt-in-the-mouth tender. This is a fatty cut, which means a lot of flavor is imparted to the meat, but it also requires a bit of excavation with knife and fork to get to the good stuff. At the end of the course, I had a little Mount Fat at the edge of my plate.

The pork was topped with a whole-grain mustard sauce to rev up the flavor a bit more, and was presented on choucroute - essentially a mild sauerkraut - with potatoes, apples and bits of salty bacon that complemented the pork well.

This Provencal cooking skill is all the more impressive when you consider that Bistro Provence's chef-owner, Miki Zivkovic, hails from the former Yugoslavia. Zivkovic was a Hyatt Regency cook in Belgrade when he fled the Baltic hostilities of the 1990s, emigrating to California. His French-cooking passion was ignited under Alain Rondelli in San Francisco, and he later worked in Joachim Splichal's Patina Group, including at Pinot Bistro in Studio City, before opening his own place.

Zivkovic is having some fun in that kitchen. Roasted beet salads are on just about every menu in winter, but usually as discs of beets, accompanied by dollops of goat cheese. Here, the red beets are served tartare - roasted, diced, mixed with horseradish, garlic and capers, and fashioned into a short, stubby cylinder. The extra ingredients provide some delightful zip, and the herbed goat cheese on a crouton is packed with flavor, too.

A wedge of Roquefort was a highlight of another starter, a salad of Belgian endive, watercress and enormous caramelized walnuts. The quality of the cheese on the appetizers compelled us to order a cheese plate at the finish, and it was a winner, especially with its accents of apples, dates and bread.

At its best: Country-French classics nicely done, with a few culinary wrinkles to surprise you.

Could be better: Classic dishes are listed on a mirror behind the bar - coq au vin, bouillabaisse, etc. - but it's only a tease; you have to call ahead and order these specially, we were told.

Eric Noland (818)713-3681

eric.noland@dailynews.com