A LA CARTE : SUPER-COOL SUMMER ICE-CREAM DESSERT TREATS.

Byline: Larry Lipson

As the sun begins to shine longer, thoughts turn to refreshing ice-cream desserts to cool us off. Certain restaurant kitchens take pride in the concoctions and creations they come up with, while others stick to classic recipes.

Here are a few restaurants with ice-cream desserts worth consideration:

Beach House

Address: 100 W. Channel Road, Santa Monica.

Phone: [phone].

Cuisine: American.

Comments: This is a brand-new restaurant hosted and owned by Liza Utter, who used to be the co-owner of La Cachette. It's on the former Les Anges site with ex-Saddle Peak Lodge chef Josie LeBalch supervising the cooking.

Picks: LeBalch and Utter offer ``Liza's Beach House dream `Sunday.' '' Priced at $7, it's made with fresh strawberries, crushed chocolate-chip cookies, chocolate and vanilla bean ice creams, hot caramel and hot fudge. Incidentally, LeBalch makes her own syrups.

Bel-Air Bar & Grill

Address: 662 N. Sepulveda Blvd., Bel-Air.

Phone: [phone].

Cuisine: New American.

Comments: This is a convenient restaurant situated adjacent to the San Diego Freeway (405). It's friendly, near the Getty Museum and has very good food at reasonable rates.

Picks: Beginning Friday, Chef Robert Lia's kitchen will be making a dessert called Strawberry Razzmatazz ($5.75), a smoothielike blend of fresh strawberries, a raspberry liqueur and vanilla ice cream plus grenadine, whipped cream and a maraschino cherry. There'll be another refreshing treat ($5.25) made with vanilla ice cream and blackberry cabernet sorbet plus fresh peaches and a blackberry brandy coulis.

Gypsy Grill

Address: 16911 Ventura Blvd., Encino.

Phone: [phone].

Cuisine: Mediterranean-French.

Comments: Popular, contemporary-style restaurant has moderately priced international fare with strong Euro-Gallic and even Moroccan influences.

Picks: Traditional baked Alaska ($5.50) here is made with chocolate sponge cake, vanilla bean ice cream, soft meringue and Grand Marnier. It's served dramatically flaming. It'll be available periodically throughout the summer.

JoeJoe's

Address: 13355 Ventura Blvd., Sherman Oaks.

Phone: [phone].

Cuisine: New American.

Comments: Perhaps it should now be called TomTom's. Founder-chef Joe Miller recently sold the restaurant to a group headed by talented resident chef Thomas Munoz. But don't expect any drastic food direction changes, chef Tom carries on in true JoeJoe fashion.

Picks: Pear, blackberry and port crisp with honey-glazed vanilla ice cream ($5) here starts with pears and blackberries cooked in port wine. The cobbler-style crisp is warmed, then covered by the ice cream that is topped with honey.

Lavande

Address: Loews Santa Monica Beach Hotel, 1700 Ocean Ave..

Phone: [phone].

Cuisine: French Provencal.

Comments: Chef Alain Giraud, formerly at Citrus, has opened the new main hotel restaurant here and is receiving kudos for his Provencal fare.

Picks: Vacherin glace, $7 at dinner, $6 at lunchtime, the name taken from the shape of a French cheese, here is done with lavender ice cream and is a meringue and strawberry arrangement. It's very colorful and extremely refreshing.

Marvel Mania

Address: Adjacent to CityWalk, 1000 Universal Center Drive, Universal City.

Phone: [phone].

Cuisine: International.

Comments: Latest of the ``eatertainment'' restaurants locally, this one is based on Marvel Comics characters, both good and bad. So far we're lucky - the food has been more good than bad.

Picks: You need a crowd to handle the Galactus ($34.95). Call it a mega-sundae. It consists of 12 generous ice-cream scoops (made locally by Dandy Don's HomeMade Ice Cream in Van Nuys) topped with hot fudge, marshmallow, caramel and raspberry sauces, cherries, nuts and whipped cream. Phew.