ALFRESCO EATING

Although it’s not quite time for a picnic on the grass, it is certainly time to think about dinner on the patio. Or, for that matter, lunch. Here are a few fine places to consider. (All prices exclude drinks.) CAMELIONS (246 26th St., Santa Monica, (213) 395-0746). Camelions has the feel of an Italian country villa, with trellis-lined, tree-shaded patio areas. Chef Elka Gilmore likes her flavors clean and unmuddled: lovely veal scallops are soft and yielding as butter. The marinade for grilled, rare baby lamb is not another added flavor, but an intensification of the taste of lamb. Gilmore recently won a national seafood cooking contest, and she has fine ways with fish. Other highlights include angel-hair pasta with sun-dried tomatoes, roasted peppers, basil and Parmesan and a beautifully grilled chicken bathed in a deep-toned, creamy sauce. Open for lunch and dinner Tues.-Sun. All major credit cards. Reservations essential. Full bar. Street parking. Dinner for two, $35-$80.

CHA CHA CHA (656 N. Virgil Ave., Los Angeles, (213) 664-7723). There’s an electricity here that zaps you when you walk in the door; the baby blue dining room and patio are charged with fun. The menu is part Cuban, part Colombian, part Puerto Rican, part Mexican, with a bit of Cajun thrown in. Flavors are fresh here, and the food is as attractive as the wild flowers that adorn every table. The superlative sopes de pollo consists of little cornmeal cups holding cubes of chicken, black beans, minced tomatoes, cilantro, onions and sauteed papers. “Cha cha chicken,” breast of chicken marinated in lime and served with an orange sauce, is delicious. Pollo poblano, a version of chicken in mole sauce, is even better. Swordfish Latino is served with a delightful tomatillo sauce. And the patio, which faces the street, brings a little bit of country charm to an otherwise unappealing landscape. Open for lunch Mon.-Sat., dinner daily. AE, D. Beer and wine. Valet parking. Dinner for two, $20-$40.

CITRUS (6703 Melrose Ave., Los Angeles, (213) 857-0034). One of the most attractive outdoor areas in town, with a glass wall that lets you sit outside and look into a light, bright airy kitchen with a huge bouquet of flowers sitting on a granite counter. The menu is bold and pretty remarkable: There’s an exotic “lasagna” made of escargots and fried parsley. Duck is unusually cooked and delicious. Scallops come topped with a little frizz of fried Maui onions. The restaurant is new, but already very popular; even with reservations, expect a wait. It’s not just the good service or the food that fills seats here: Citrus has captured the mood of Los Angeles. Open for lunch and dinner Mon.-Sat. All major credit cards. Full bar. Valet parking. Dinner for two, $50-$70.

IL CIELO (9018 Burton Way, Beverly Hills, (213) 276-9990). In addition to lovely courtyards (one discreetly shaded from the street by a wrought-iron fence, another on the side with a gurgling fountain), an entrancing cottage with white walls and a trompe l’oeil sky painted on the ceiling, there’s also the pleasure of truly solicitous service. It’s easy to feel you’re walking on air, sitting on clouds. Several entrees are delightful: Smoked scamorza cheese baked with eggplant is delicious. There’s a fine version of carpaccio that’s been quickly seared, covered with Parmesan and doused with truffle oil. The kitchen sometimes soars with their numerous risotti--one deep black with squid ink, topped with scampi, another with fresh melon or a version simply cooked with Parmesan cheese to a rolling, seductive richness. Open for lunch Mon.-Fri., dinner Mon.-Sat. Sunday brunch. All major credit cards. Beer and wine. Valet parking at night. Dinner for two, $38-$70.

LALO AND BROTHERS (17237 Ventura Blvd., Encino, (818) 784-8281). Leave Ventura Boulevard and enter a demi-rustic, demi-elegant world of “French-California” cuisine--a spacious, romantic dining room with wood-beamed ceiling, wrought-iron chandeliers, melon-colored tablecloths and an attractive patio area. The food is more interesting than the typical restaurant fare: oysters with green chile pesto and cabbage come stuffed with lobster in beurre blanc. Loin of lamb with wild mushrooms is perfumed with a jolt of Pernod. Even better--quite wonderful--is a large plate of grilled shrimp in tequila on a lake of orange beurre blanc , set on lovely white tableware. The large shrimp are perfectly cooked, the multilayered sauce fresh and piquant. The hosts are more than gracious and very willing to please. Open for lunch Mon.-Fri, dinner Mon.-Sat. Reservations. All major credit cards. Full bar. Lot and valet parking. Dinner for two, $36-65.

MICHAEL’S (1147 3rd St., Santa Monica, (213) 451-0843). You’d be hard-pressed to find a prettier place to be on a sunny day or warm evening than in this gorgeous garden with its plants, its art and its gurgling fountains. The menu here was the first to define French-California cuisine, and it has not changed since the restaurant opened (although the numerous specials do change daily). Lunch and dinner include wonderful salads, pasta dishes, and entrees of elegant simplicity. The brunch is very American and very good. There is a superlative wine list. Open for lunch and dinner daily, brunch on weekends. All major credit cards. Full bar. Valet parking. Dinner for two, $80-$120.