A CULINARY HOTSPOT

The 50th and France (www.50thandfrance .com) commercial district used to be all about shopping. Now it's a dining crossroads.

Newcomers include serene Rice Paper (3948 W. 50th St., Edina, www.ricepaperrestaurant.com), a Linden Hills transplant with a full-flavored array of Vietnamese-inspired lunch and dinner dishes. The Barrio folks have rounded out their tacos-and-tequila format into a more full-fledged Mexican restaurant with Cocina del Barrio (5036 France Av. S., Edina, www.barriotequila.com). The former Tejas is now pizza- and mozzarella-centric Mozza Mia (3910 W. 50th St., Edina, www.mozzamia.com), and here's my suggestion: Make a reservation, and don't miss the ricotta. Or the gelato.

Sushi and Asian fusion? Hit up Raku (3939 W. 50th St., Edina, www.rakumn.com). Quick-service Italian? A branch of D'Amico & Sons (3948 W. 50th St., Edina, www.damicoandsons.com), with its pasta-pizza-sandwiches-salad format, is in the neighborhood (tip: Kids ages 10 and under eat free after 2 p.m. Sundays). Table-service Italian? Arezzo Ristorante (5057 France Av. S., Mpls., www.arezzoristorante.com) is the ticket.

The food is sort-of French, sort of steaks-and-seafood at comfy Salut Bar Americain (5032 France Av. S., Edina, www.salutbaramericain. com), and cozy Beaujo's (4950 France Av. S., Edina, www.beaujos.com) does the wine-bar thing really well, with simple, well-prepared fare and an ever-changing list of 30 or so wines sold by the half-glass, glass, flight and bottle.

The holiday lutefisk season has sadly passed at Pearson's Edina Restaurant (3808 W. 50th St., Mpls., www.pearsonsedinarestaurant.com), aka Home Cooking Central, but Swedish meatballs remain the kitchen's best seller. Short-order breakfast-lunch-dinner standards with a twist (walleye-shrimp Benedicts, bison burgers, pierogies) are on the menu at Edina Grill (5028 France Av. S., Edina, www.edinagrill.com).

Dessert is not a problem. Designer cupcakes (eggnog, anyone?) are all the rage at Sweet Retreat (5013 France Av. S., Mpls., www.thesweetretreatmn.com). It's never too cold for a double scoop of house-made Espresso Love (coffee ice cream with brownies and walnuts) at Edina Creamery (5055 France Av. S., Mpls., www.edinacreamery.com). And although Breadsmith (3939 W. 50th St., Edina, www.breadsmith.com) is known for its baguettes and boules, I have two words for you: chocolate babka.

RICK NELSON