Floral and herbal. Spicy and aromatic. Usually these are wine words, but at Palo Alto's new Tamarine restaurant, they fit the food as well as what pours from the fine Riedel wine glasses.

Contemporary Vietnamese, with elements of Chinese, French and Thai, describes the cuisine. Some will find it dumbed-down. But others will flock to Tamarine's easily accessible menu. A longtime fan of the proprietors' more traditional, less expensive Vietnamese restaurants in the South Bay, I am very happy to have this elegant option.

The family of Tamarine proprietors Anne Le and Tam Thanh Huynh runs three popular Vung Tau restaurants, in San Jose, Milpitas and Newark. Huynh also has her own restaurant, Tam, in Milpitas.

At Tamarine, Le runs the front and the business side while Huynh, Le's aunt, is the executive chef.

Start with wild tea leaf tuna ($8). Four raw leaves are topped with ahi sashimi and a little mango, tangy with chile oil, lime juice, shards of ginger, peanuts and roasted coconut. In the classic version, tea leaves are toasted, releasing smokiness. At Tamarine, distinct fish, fruit and nut flavors dance in your mouth, with the hot and sour of the spices, but you finish with that clean tea leaf. This is a standard-setting appetizer.

Rocket shrimp ($8) take the imperial roll to a wonderful plane where the ingredients are kept whole instead of chopped up. Leaves of basil, leek and mint are tucked under fried wonton skin with a whole juicy shrimp. A zap of citrus in the mint dipping sauce highlights the flavors.

Ha Long Bay soup ($10) also should not be missed. The pale green soup is Huynh's infusion of chicken and asparagus consomme with lime, coriander and lemongrass, mellowed with coconut milk. Floating like water lilies are crab wontons, packed with just-off-the-boat crabmeat. Again, enjoy the flavors as discrete ingredients and as a whole.

Chile lime sauce aubergine ($7) may sound a little haute for eggplant. And what comes to the table looks like a platter of fish. But with smoky undertones, these two grilled Chinese eggplants, skinned but for their top knots, are fabulous. A sprinkling of fried leeks adds crunchiness.

Entrees all are called ``small plates,'' in keeping with the restaurant's mix-and-match style. They top out in price at the deservedly signature Tamarine prawns ($22). Five juicy butterflied and grilled jumbo prawns rest on a bed of crispy rice noodles. Sweet-sour tamarind sauce laces through the prawns and into the noodles, softening them into an irresistible pool.

Our only disappointment was the onion caramelized chicken ($15). Though tender pieces of chicken breast swam in the advertised sauce of onion, chile, lemongrass and garlic, the dish was more liquid than caramelized. A small bowl of pickled carrots, Chinese chives and bean sprouts added kick, but in another direction. This dish didn't come together.

Next time I'd try the salt and pepper calamari ($15), or the tri-squash scallop curry ($17), or the wok-tossed black Angus (``shaking'') beef on watercress ($19). And that's just entrees. Soups, salads, starters and vegetable side dishes run a similarly exciting course.

Rice gets its own department on the menu. Though you can go with plain jasmine ($1 a serving), five other tantalizing combinations come wrapped in banana leaves ($2 a serving). Your server will suggest a rice to complement your meal. With the chicken, we had the sweeter ``festive'' rice, featuring turmeric, lemongrass, ginger and cinnamon, which worked nicely. So did the Hainan rice of ginger, chicken stock and garlic with prawns. But once we got down to the scrumptious tamarind sauce, flavored rice became irrelevant.

On the other hand, many of the infused rice dishes bear trying all by themselves.

Desserts (all $7) may include chocolate cake with Port sauce, mascarpone cheesecake and ginger-chocolate crème caramel. For a lighter ending, the house-made lychee sorbet is sweet but refreshing, topped with slices of lychee nuts.

This nearer-to-101, below-Cowper Street stretch of Palo Alto's University Avenue has defeated restaurant after restaurant. Perry's American grill was the most recent victim.

But Tamarine's pitch is smart. Peninsulans mostly have had to go south for Vietnamese food. Now they can stay closer to home, and enjoy excellent service and fine wine.

Tamarine, which opened in mid-October, already has better service than most established restaurants. General Manager William Redberg, who comes from Zibibbo, brought a number of servers and a polished attitude.

He also is diversifying the wine list. There are good choices among riesling, pinot gris and white Rhone varieties, not to mention sparkling wines. An early favorite is the smooth and citrusy California Central Coast Dry Alsatian-style Gewurztraminer ($26 a bottle, $6.50 a glass). Food-friendly cabernets include the fruity '00 Napa Valley Veraison ($60). It's an interesting wine list to play around with, with half-bottles and lots of by-the-glass choices.

An estimable San Rafael design firm, Engstrom, has removed traces of Perry's without wholesale gutting. In the bar, for example, high stools line a long communal table under white-paper lampshades. It's a nice venue for lunch.

Tamarine

546 University Ave., near Cowper, Palo Alto. (650) 325-8500

*** 1/2

The Dish: Upscale Vietnamese cuisine aims for a mainstream audience.

Price range: Appetizers $6-$12, entrees $14-$22. Corkage $15.

Details: Full bar with tropical cocktails. Patio dining.

Pluses: Huge range of appetizers and small plates. Diverse wine list. Good service.

Minuses: Some dishes lack spark.

Hours: Lunch 11:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m. Monday-Friday. Dinner 5:30-9 p.m. Sunday-Thursday, 5:30-10 p.m. Friday-Saturday.

Restaurant reviews are conducted anonymously. The Mercury News pays for all meals.