Room for song, talk and comfort food

The Chris Isaak multimedia machine is in full force these days, with “Mr. Lucky,� his first new studio album in seven years, just released last month and his entertaining talk show on BIO, “The Chris Isaak Hour,� airing new episodes on Thursday nights.

“My first show [on Showtime] was like ‘I Love Lucy,’ but without the tremendous talent,� said Isaak. “The new one is like ‘The Tonight Show’ if the world were run by musicians.�

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Down to the ‘Bone

One of my favorite restaurants is the Boneyard Bistro in Sherman Oaks. Aaron Robins is the chef, and he cooks things that I understand, like hamburgers, ribs, corn bread, collard greens too -- there’s nothing in there that you won’t like. It’s delicious comfort food, and it doesn’t cost an arm and a leg. He’s also got an outdoor area, and I like it out there. I get the full rack of ribs. There’s no entertainment, but it’s right on Ventura, so cars are driving around, and that’s good for people-watching.

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Old-school haunts

And down the street from Boneyard is another great place, the Sportsmen’s Lodge, which is the last of a dying breed -- a hotel where you can actually park your own car.

I’ve got a ’64 Chevy Nova, and I don’t want any valet parking it. They’re used to parking Mercedes and stuff, so they give me dirty looks whenever I pull up.

The Lodge has great breakfasts too, and you’ll see more stars than there are in the heavens, as they say.

I get Joe’s Special -- scrambled eggs and meat and biscuits.

You don’t have to eat for days.

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Dog day afternoon

Maxwell Dog is near there too. It’s a pet store, and there’s always 10 or 12 dogs hanging around and they always end up giving them a treat, and that’s as funny a thing to watch as anything you’ll see. People don’t look at pet stores as entertainment, but if you don’t walk out of there with a smile on your face, there’s something wrong in your life.

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You wear it well

I have a great clothes place for you -- Jaime Custom Tailor on Lankershim. You’ll think you’re in the wrong neighborhood because there are all these funky antique stores and used-car lots, but it’s awesome. Jaime Castaneda makes all my stage suits. I’m in show business, so I get to dress up. It’s hard to have a decent relationship, but you can have a black sequined suit. He measures and fits you, and one week later, when you put on that suit, you’re officially in show business. All you need is an act.

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Night life

I don’t really go to nightclubs much because I spend so much time playing in them, but I do like Casa Vega on Ventura, some of the best Mexican food in town, but it also has music. It’s really dark, but you can just tell everybody is good-lookin’. Not that they’d have anything to do with me. I also like the Joint -- Waddy Wachtel always brings in the best players in town to jam.

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A cut above

The secret to looking like you stay in shape is getting a good haircut, and I go to a place called Kinara Spa on Robertson. Koji Toyoda there is an old buddy of mine. If you get one good haircut a year, go to Koji, because he does it right.

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