Business Notes MARKETING

California Restaurateur Jerome Rowitch had a problem: How could he attract the residents of Marina del Rey, Malibu, Santa Monica and other affluent Los Angeles suburbs to his Sculpture Gardens restaurant in a decidedly unfashionable section of nearby Venice? His solution: invite diners to name their own price. Rowitch mailed 3,000 promotional flyers to households with incomes of at least $50,000, promising customers that they could enjoy such delicacies as rabbit in Cabernet sauce, New Zealand cockles in white wine or black spaghettini in roasted red pepper -- and pay whatever they thought the food was worth.

The gimmick was instantly successful and surprisingly profitable. More than 100 diners showed up with the flyers over a three-week period. They were given menus without prices, but wound up paying an average of $33 for their meals, about $7.50 more than the usual cost. "We were betting on people's good taste and their sense of fair play," says Rowitch. He is going to mail another 6,000 flyers in the coming weeks.

Only customers who bring the flyers can set their price. Those who arrive empty-handed get a standard menu, with prices listed. Rowitch clearly is not ready to serve free spaghettini to the down-and-out from Beverly Hills or any other part of Los Angeles.