Wine

Travel medicine lecture set Dr. Thomas Bent, head of the Laguna Beach Community Clinic, will speak from 1 to 2 p.m. Monday at the Susi Q, 380 Third St., on the topic of Travel Medicine. Items to be discussed include routine immunizations, special immunizations, malaria prophylaxis, altitude sickness prevention, a brief summary of bacterial and parasitic stomach infections, and how to stay healthy on cruise ships. This lecture is free. To register, call (949) 497-2441.

Dining Out When it comes to inspirational success stories, it would be difficult to top the tale of Laguna's Alex Costa. The enterprising restaurateur launched his initial Gina's Pizza and Pastaria in Boat Canyon in partnership with mother Gina circa 1983. The place was doubled when an adjoining dry cleaners folded. Then in 1997, after learning Boat Canyon would be demolished for total reconstruction, he opened a second unit on Oak Street. Ironically, following closure of another cleaning establishment next door, the Oak Street unit was expanded last year.

Tom De Paolo is the author of four cookbooks, all written after his 75th birthday. That?s because he didn?t learn to cook until he was 78. We interviewed him at his beachfront home on a lovely cove in South Laguna where he has lived for 30 years. Gracious and charming, he seems surprisingly youthful for his 81 years. He regaled us with stories of his large Italian family in Roseland, N.J. As a small boy visiting his grandmother, he remembers there was always a house full of people.

Send DATEBOOK items to the Laguna Beach Coastline Pilot, P.O. Box 248, Laguna Beach, CA 92652; fax to 494-8979; call 494-4321 or e-mail coastlinepilot@ latimes.com. Submissions must be received two weeks before publication. TODAY 'ELEMENTS' The Laguna Beach High School Dance Company will perform its latest composition entitled "Elements," a modern dance show featuring interpretations to earth, wind, water and fire. The show will begin at 7:30 p.m. and will be performed at the Artists' Theatre at 625 Park Ave. Tickets will cost $15 for reserved seats, $10 for general admission and $8 for students.

Glori Fickling A Laguna Beach landmark dating back to the late 1800s, Hotel Laguna has hosted such illustrious turn-of-the-century luminaries as motion picture stars Mary Pickford, Douglas Fairbanks, Humphrey Bogart and Errol Flynn. While the restaurant, which boasts an unparalleled view of the blue Pacific, has undergone innumerable incarnations over the decades, none in the past has been more upscale than the present incarnation, Claes. Named for principal, Claes Anderson, who acquired the property in 1986, the sophisticated dining room is noted for its specialty seafood preparations and prime steaks.

DINING OUT An enticing highlight of the summer season is the series of musical evenings at [seven-degrees] recently prefaced with a delightful dining experience, a complimentary wine-tasting and cocktails. The eventful happening at this highly sophisticated Laguna Beach art treasure provided an opening night glimpse of what is in store at the July and August events to come. An attractive assemblage of cocktail-clad guests gathered on the spacious alfresco terrace nestled below the canyon's verdant hillside.