A LA CARTE : TREATING MOM ON HER DAY.

Byline: Larry Lipson

Here are a few last-minute restaurant suggestions for Mother's Day:

Adriano's

Address: 2930 Beverly Glen Circle, Bel-Air.

Phone: [phone].

Cuisine: Italian.

Comments: This is a top-quality ristorante where show-business titans and statesmen gather, many nearby residents of stately Bel-Air.

Picks: The Mother's Day brunch ($30) from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. is a prix-fixe meal offering choices from a formidable list of appetizers, entrees and desserts.

Buon Gusto

Address: 15535 Devonshire St., Mission Hills.

Phone: [phone].

Cuisine: Italian.

Comments: The is an attractive restaurant hosted by actor-restaurateur Benito Prezia.

Picks: Triple-toned salad, fusilli alla fantasia, linguine alla pescatore and scampi, steak and veal dishes are recommended for Mom's Day. Also available from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. are several specials of the day.

California Canteen

Address: 3311 Cahuenga Blvd. W., near Universal City, Hollywood.

Phone: [phone].

Cuisine: European-American bistro.

Comments: This charming Euro-style bistro adorned with bullfight posters from Spain trots the globe for its recipes and is favored by the young acting set.

Picks: Special dishes for Mother's Day are marinated dill salmon salad ($9.50), stuffed avocado (with crab meat, rock shrimp and chives, $7), smoked chicken and tropical fruit salad ($8.50), poached eggs hollandaise with asparagus and smoked salmon ($8.50), roasted rib eye with shiitake mushrooms and madeira sauce ($15), coulibiac of salmon (in pastry, $15), roasted duck breast with sherry sauce ($16) and grilled swordfish with tropical salsa ($17).

Cha Cha Cha Encino/Calypso

Address: 17499 Ventura Blvd., Encino. Calypso at 3255 Sawtelle Blvd., West Los Angeles.

Phone: Cha Cha Cha: [phone]; Calypso: [phone].

Cuisine: Carib-Latino.

Comments: These two lively restaurants under the same ownership are colorful in both environment and fare.

Picks: A brunch buffet served from 10:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. is $18 per person ($9 for children under 9). Items include fruits, six salads (curried beef, shrimp, avocado and pineapple, Chino y Latino, tomato and basil, tropical garden), pasta, poached salmon, swordfish skewers, roast lamb with chili crust, carioca chicken, egg dishes, plantains, saffron rice, black beans, baked goods, coffees and teas.

Matterhorn Chef

Address: 13726 Oxnard St., Van Nuys.

Phone: [phone].

Cuisine: Swiss-Italian-German-French.

Comments: Chef-owner Ueli Huegli is a talented chef who makes his European dishes hearty or light, your choice.

Picks: A substantial four-course meal served from noon to 9 p.m. features dishes ranging from chicken scaloppine ($18.50) to rahmschnitzel and spaetzels ($19.50) to steelhead salmon ($20) or filet mignon and lobster ($26). Other entrees include a smoked pork loin and veal sausage plate, duckling a l'orange, sauerbraten and red cabbage, a trio of pastas and cold plates (poached salmon or sliced roast beef). Choose from three soups, three salads and desserts.

Out Take Cafe

Address: 1065 E. Green St., Pasadena; 12159 Ventura Blvd., Studio City.

Phone: Pasadena: [phone]; Studio City: [phone].

Cuisine: Contemporary Californian.

Comments: Beautifully wrought dishes here can be amazingly inexpensive from the regular menu, an eclectic mix of recipes roving from Europe to Asia to the Americas.

Picks: Mother's Day specials ($6.95 to $15.95) include a radicchio and chicory salad with bacon and goat cheese, a seafood (Manila clams, shrimp, bay scallops) pasta dish with red and yellow peppers, grilled veal chop or black Angus rib-eye steak, herb-roasted chicken with blueberry sauce and a grilled ahi tuna entree.

Valencia Country Club

Address: 27330 N. Tourney Road, Valencia.

Phone: [phone].

Cuisine: Teppanyaki Japanese.

Comments: Teppan show cooking takes place at tables for 10.

Picks: The prix-fixe cost is $28.50 for a meal from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. that includes soup, salad and a hibachi chicken and filet mignon entree combination.

MEMO: Do you have a question about restaurants? Mail it to Larry Lipson, P.O. Box 4200, Woodland Hills, Calif. 91365-4200, and look for the answer in a future dining beat column in L.A. Life.