Scandia Trying to Regain Its Past Glory

Remember Scandia? Next question. Want to hear how it’s doing?

Fine, sort of, but it could be better considering the food, prices, ambiance and service bargain it is today. In fact, I can think of no better place for holiday celebrations than Scandia.

It’s all dressed up now, spruced up and ready to go. A rallying cry is in the air. Raymond L. MacCurtin, executive chef of Scandia’s heyday success, is back. The place has been gussied up with new paint, polish and shine.

The huge wingback brown leather chairs still have their zippy swing. The copper is shiny, the Danish Blue Onion pattern china is intact. The waiters are eager and professional and the food better than I remembered it back in its heyday when you couldn’t get the dour Ms. Teddy Hansen, who co-owned the place with brother-in-law Kenneth Hansen, to slip you in no matter what or how much.

It’s no secret that Scandia was down on its luck in the ‘70s and ‘80s. It has had a tough time climbing out of that dusty, musty time.

I had visited several times before its renovation a year or so ago and, boy, did it need sprucing up.

Customers, who in its heyday would beg, borrow and steal for a reservation before 11 p.m., much less prime time, were no more. The thrill of Scandia had gone. The excitement of bustling waiters, the polish and panache of the service, had whittled away to nothing. The food had somehow diminished in quality and quantity. The furnishings had faded and so had the verve of management.

But it’s all lovely now.

So why isn’t it doing a land-office business? Why aren’t cars blocking Sunset Boulevard to get into Scandia’s original free-standing parking lot?

Why aren’t the hoi polloi, the celebrities, the show-biz and business moguls pulling deals over akvavit and those terrific Swedish meatballs at one of the best-looking bars in town?

The changing food tastes of the American restaurant diner had a lot to do with the fading of Scandia, but now that we have gone full circle with nouvelle cuisine, uptown, downtown and all around the world tastes, I think Los Angeles diners, in particular, are beginning to appreciate that our hearts and our palates are still grounded in basic Continental cuisine.

You know the stuff I mean: chateaubriand for two--or more--great Caesar salad, top-grade steaks and chops, the lovely soup Suedoise, tournedos Rossini like you forgot could exist, seafood bonne femme only a fine saucier can master, veal Oskar done to perfection.

If you’ve ever tried Scandia’s specialties, the gravad lax served with French fried salmon skin trimmings and the wonderful mustard-dill sauce would have stuck in your mind. It’s still superb at Scandia. You also may remember with fondness other Scandia specialties: Viking Sword (made with skewered breast of turkey, chateaubriand, pork chop medallions, tomatoes, and mushrooms served flaming on a sword), and the bof med log (the tenderloin steak topped with a mountain of crisp golden brown onions fried in butter). This chef doesn’t fool around. You get a plateful of the best-looking meat, beautifully steamed vegetables presented in the traditional Continental manner. My tournedos Rossini, for instance, were a sight for sore eyes. I had forgotten what a beautiful dish it is, with two fat tournedos mounted on fat crisp-fried tomato slices and topped with two fat steamed asparagus spears.

You may remember frikadeller ( veal patties served with red cabbage, cucumber salad with lingonberries), and the biff lindstrom (chopped steak mixed with onions and capers topped with a fried egg). In the past, these were served on the late supper menu after 10 p.m. daily. Currently, the late supper menu is available only on Friday and Saturday, and well worth a try. I’m glad they’re still around. I remember watching the captain prepare biff lindstrom at the table many a late night supper ago. Open-face Danish sandwiches were also a favorite.

Scandia, you might recall, was sold by master restaurateur Kenneth Hansen to a fellow Dane, magazine publisher Robert E. Petersen and his wife, Margie, back in 1978, two years before Hansen’s death. Hansen and his sister-in-law had opened Scandia in 1946. Today the Petersens seem determined to restore Scandia’s past glory. We hope they succeed.

Meanwhile, go have a drink at Scandia. Sit at that gorgeous bar and enjoy the well-made, classic drinks. The meatballs at the bar, or anything else, for that matter, can be ordered to go for your holiday parties too. The pumpernickel toast is still served when you arrive, and the coffee and desserts are still great, despite the disappearance of the beautiful dessert cart.

Get the office crowd to have the holiday celebration in the beautiful terrace room fashioned after the Tivoli Gardens in Copenhagen. Or get your gourmet society to lunch or sup on a menu directed by the able chef and try to hold it in the charming wine cellar below. The darkened bar area is superb for your romantic rendezvous, as is the room with the wingback chairs for an intimate tete a tete or business talk. Take the family to the Sunday brunch or other special holiday buffets. They’ll love it. You’ll love the fixed price: $14.75.

Scandia, 9040 Sunset Blvd. (213) 272-9521. Open for lunch lunch 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.; dinner from 6 p.m. to 11 p.m. weekdays and midnight on Friday and Saturday. Closed Monday. Also open for Saturday lunch and Sunday brunch. Major credit cards accepted. Reservations suggested. valet parking on premises. Dinner entrees from $12 to $23. Late supper menu from $8 to $14. Full bar. Banquet catering; food to go.