Paperfish gets new chef, still very red inside

loup de mer with wild mushrooms

You could be excused if perhaps you've confused Paperfish with Sugarfish (new Nozawa sushi place in Marina del Rey) or even Rocksugar (giant pan-Asian Cheesecake Factory-owned place in Century City). But Paperfish is the Patina-owned place with the very red, modern interior in the former Maple Drive space, that S. Irene was not overly thrilled with when it opened. So the menu has been retooled under new chef Kevin Meehan, who headed up the kitchen at Patina for the last few years. We tasted a selection of the new dishes at a media dinner, and I think this menu will please the cocktail-sipping, cocktail-dress wearing ladies who were dining there. Everything is light and fresh, and we particularly liked the whole loup de mer above, decorated with lovely chanterelles and the unusual oxtail croquette, with tender shredded meat encased in a golfball-sized crust. As far as the New Line execs, agents and attorneys who used to dine at Maple Drive, well, no more New Line, and not much manly meat -- so we'll see if mille-feuille of crab and carmelized black cod are enough to lure the business crowd.