SECRET GARDEN WORTH DISCOVERING.

Byline: Larry Lipson Daily News Restaurant Critic

Picture this sleepy main drag in the quaint little town of Moorpark when those upstart horseless carriages first rolled down High Street.

It hasn't changed much. Gas lamps still line the street. And so do pepper trees.

Stop at 255, a restored 83-year-old building. It has recently emerged as a treasure of a restaurant called the Secret Garden.

You can tell that the owners poured a fortune into this obvious labor of love.

They used 6-inch planks to build the impressive wood floor. They gave the entire place a Victorian look, quietly elegant, featuring padded wall coverings and 100-year-old unmatched antique tables brought in from England.

The chandeliers and lighting fixtures are similarly antique.

Most new patrons receive a quick tour by the owner-host, a cheerful, gray-haired man named Bob Sofsky who points out the patio area in back and then takes you to the secret garden itself, an outside dining area complete with thousands of plantings, manicured lawn areas, a magnificent gazebo, all getting ready, no doubt, for the upcoming June wedding season.

Back in the restaurant's candlelit dining room, beams of light from chandelier and candle shimmer off Limoges plates resting on silver ones, impressive crystal and silver place settings.

Freshly cut orange and yellow tulips decorate the magnificent, beautifully finished antique wood tabletops.

Once comfortably seated, diners are brought the blackboard menu, which, according to Sofsky, change as much as 90 percent each week.

But don't look for highly innovative cuisine here. It's a menu of safe and comparatively familiar items, usually listing one or two chicken dishes, a lamb plate, a steak, maybe ahi tuna and at least one additional fresh fish offering.

One night recently, there were six entrees ranging from $28 to $31. But if that sounds overly expensive, tuxedoed waiter Miguel, who provides service that's as good as you'll find in any restaurant in the Los Angeles area, will patiently explain that the price includes the mushroom soup du jour and a choice of three salads - a Caesar, a Greek and a mixed green.

So if you deduct in your head $8 to $10 for these two starters from the entree tab, you'll see value there.

Portions are certainly generous enough to satisfy most appetites.

Good crunchy breads aid in the satisfaction. Both the soup and the salads meet standards of respectability.

Entree plates are also generally well put together, evidence that there's someone in the kitchen who knows how to initiate and direct the stove-to-plate-to-table process.

Baby vegetables come up firm and tasty. Sauces are not reduced to salty stickiness.

Comforting, lasting flavors are noticeable one time in a fettuccine dish ($28) stuffed with pieces of moist chicken and tossed in a marsala wine sauce.

Filet mignon ($31) is of good quality, thick, juicy, topped with Roquefort cheese. Loin of lamb ($32) arrives invitingly rare for one diner, with wild mushrooms and a rich port wine sauce.

Whitefish and salmon ($29) could have been slightly less cooked, but thankfully had not dried out and had moisture on hand from a skillfully wrought beurre blanc flavored with basil and tomato.

For those who like to eat plenty before the main course, the Secret Garden's Maryland crab cakes ($9) are plump and full of crab meat instead of filler, and the coconut shrimp ($10) offer excellent crunch and taste.

There's a thick souffle of chocolate ($9) for dessert and usually a few additional goodies such as tarts and mousses ($6 each) available for the sweet-toothed.

Definitely worth the trip to Moorpark, the Secret Garden will, of course, come into its own when the weather gets warmer and garden dining becomes sensible.

And when it no longer can be termed a secret.

THE FACTS

The restaurant: The Secret Garden.

Where: 255 E. High St., Moorpark.

When: Open for dinner only from 5:30 to 10 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday.

Recommended items: Blackboard menu changes often. Maryland crab cakes, coconut shrimp, filet mignon with Roquefort cheese, chicken fettuccine marsala, lamb loin with port sauce, whitefish and salmon in basil-tomato beurre blanc.

How much: Entrees from $28 to $32, include soup du jour and a choice of one of three salads, desserts are $6 each except ultra-dense chocolate souffle for $9. Beer and wine. Major credit cards.

Wine list: Impressive list of 100 labels reveals only eight under-$20 bottles, 13 at $25 or under.

Reservations: Necessary. Call [phone].

Our rating: Three and One Half Stars for food; Four Stars for service; Two and One Half Stars for wine.

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Photo

Photo: Head chef Jorge Gutierez, left, and his assistants display lamb loin, Secret Garden Salad and Heart Shaped Crepes, all specialties of the Secret Garden restaurant in Moorpark.

David R. Crane/Daily News