VALLEY CROWD CAN SAY OLE! TO TAPAS AND WINE PAIRINGS.

Byline: Larry Lipson Restaurant Critic

CALL THEM small bites, little plates or tapas, they provide a very popular way to dine in the evening, despite the fact that the bill can jump up significantly if you happen to be more than a little hungry.

The informality of this type of meal-taking appeals strongly to younger diners, while those with older stomachs also like the idea of being able to enjoy dishes with smaller portioning.

Consequently, it made sense to a struggling restaurant like Tournesol in Studio City to discard its French kitchen and reinvent itself as a Spanish tapas cafe.

Ole, as it's called, has chosen brown tones over yellow, dim lighting over bright and Spain over France in its new incarnation.

Dim even turns into dark in some areas. In fact, there was so little light at one end of the dining room during the first visit, a staffer evidently had trouble seeing a bottle of Spanish tempranillo red wine standing on our table and knocked it over while placing the first tapas order in front of us.

Luckily the bottle fell off the end of the table, missing us completely and landing on the floor, sloshing its contents toward the next table, which was vacant.

Profuse apologies came spilling forth, and we happily moved with a replaced bottle to a slightly brighter part of the room, the limited brightness a result of two large, adequately lit, colorful depictions of bullfighting activities centered on the wall above two booths.

Although Ole's version of gazpacho ($6), basically a thick puree of heirloom tomatoes, was expected first, the initial plate delivered was a warm assortment (placa caliente, $12) of four listed tapas offerings.

It was a good start. All of them had merit.

There was a combination of tasty sauteed mushrooms (setas) and artichokes (alcachofas) sharing honors with a piece of fried goat cheese (queso frito) sweetened with honey.

A little heap of fluffy fried calamari (calamar vasco) and a thick wedge of the traditional Spanish omelet (tortilla Espanola) were the remaining tidbits.

A snow crab cake ($9), better than expected, and sliced flatiron steak ($8) that was tough in spots, followed.

Flanlike goat milk custard (mamia, $7), thankfully not oversweetened, decorated with fresh berries, provided a welcome ending.

Eluding the darker surroundings the second time, we successfully requested the same seating.

This time we ordered two tapas and two entree plates.

Ole's paella ($20), a nontraditional rendition, lacks the yellow hue of most Spanish paellas. However, the soft rice melange with a hint of saffron, studded with chorizo, chicken, squid, scallops and shrimp plus a fringe of mussels en shell, presented a satisfying main dish.

So did a serving of juicy, garlicky lamb chops (cordero con ajo, $23) accompanied by skin-in mashed potatoes.

Preceding these were a neat arrangement of whitefish ceviche perched on mashed avocado ($8) and a sort of bay scallop sashimi creation surprisingly accompanied by sliced banana and pomegranate seeds ($8).

Oh yes, pomegranate seeds. The chef loves them. They showed up with the ceviche and with the lamb and are used in a marinated chicken dish called pollo de la Granada ($16).

A touch of bright red in the low-lit, shadowed confines of Ole.

Larry Lipson, [phone]

larry.lipson(at)dailynews.com

OLE TAPAS BAR

Food: Three stars - Service: Two and one half stars - Wine: Two and one half stars

Where: 13251 Ventura Blvd., Studio City.

Hours: Open for happy hour (5 to 7 p.m.), dinner and snacks from 5 to 11 p.m. Sunday through Thursday, 5 p.m. to midnight Friday and Saturday.

Recommended items: Heirloom gazpacho; bay scallops with banana; fried goat cheese; fried calamari, mushrooms and artichokes; whitefish ceviche; Ole paella; lamb chops; goat's-milk custard.

How much: Starters and small plates from $5 to $12, entrees from $16 to $21, desserts from $5 to $9. Full bar. All major credit cards.

Wine list: Single-page starting list offers 41 bottles ($20 to $160) and 25 wines by the glass ($5 to $10). About half of the labels are Spanish. A pleasant red is Marques de Caceres Tinto Rioja 2000 ($24). Corkage policy allows better labels in at no fee - but no cheapies.

Reservations: Helpful. Call [phone].

CAPTION(S):

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Photo:

Mussels en shell surround the well-wrought paella, which also includes chicken, squid and scallops, at Ole Tapas Bar.

David Sprague/Staff Photographer