The mercury is dropping now that autumn is approaching. In California, however, the weather is almost always warm. The shimmering atmosphere of the southern West Coast is on display in “King of California,” a September release starring Michael Douglas as a mentally dysfunctional father who becomes fixated on finding a buried treasure.

California is a culinary treasure trove: Restaurateurs have lots more space to establish eateries, and fresh produce is plentiful, given the ample farmland out West. The state’s huge and diverse immigrant communities — especially in cities such as Los Angeles and San Francisco — have made California a dreamland for food. Dinner and a Movie takes a look at three local eateries that replicate the scope of California’s restaurant scene.

DINNER

A tiny haven situated in the middle of bustling Koreatown, Kunjip is almost always packed. The hectic 24-hour eatery is immensely popular with Korean diners: Servers dote on the tables full of elderly patrons who need not look at the menu. Because of the size of the restaurant, tables aren’t outfitted with their own barbecue grills, as is traditional. Instead, servers bring a portable, gas-powered grill to the side of the table and cook. And if your table is already bursting with food, the servers will cook your food in the kitchen. Kunjip’s selections for Korean barbecue feature high quality meat, with thicker cuts as compared to those at other local Korean restaurants. Thickness is worth seeking out in Korean barbecue: The bigger the slice, the less likely it will dry out during high-heat cooking. The je yook gui (pork strips marinated in spicy sauce) and yetnaisik bul go ki (slices of prime rib in soy sauce) are especially juicy and tender, which is key when you create finger food by rolling slices in leaves of fresh lettuce. The last thing anyone wants is to struggle chewing off a bite of steaming, deftly seasoned barbecue. (9 W. 32nd St., between Fifth Avenue and Broadway, 212-216-9487)

Tucked in a quiet corner of Morningside Heights sits Noche Mexicana. For locals who hail from Mexico, Noche Mexicana is reminiscent of home. The restaurant turns out standards such as tacos, burritos, and flautas; as well as a red-and-green mole, sweet and spicy, served over chicken, and cesina asada con nopales (salted beef with cactus). Easily the best deal at Noche Mexicana is the$10.50″special platter,” heaped with flautas, nachos topped with chorizo sausage, guacamole, tacos, and a fried chicken cutlet. Top that off with two banana batidos, which are sprinkled with nutmeg, and you’ve got a tasty dinner for two. (852 Amsterdam Ave., between 101st and 102nd streets, 212-662-6900)

Gobo, a vegetarian restaurant with locations in the West Village and on the Upper East Side, has an extensive, inventive menu, which features food that has not been drowned in oil or other kinds of fat, a common complaint from those who frequent vegetarian eateries. The menu is split into sections including “quick bites,” “small plates,” and “large plates.” Sharing several small dishes among a table is the best way to go. A slow-cooked Malaysian curry features pickled papaya over coconut rice, and seitan skewers with mustard sauce pleasantly emulate grilled satay. A deceivingly simple avocado tartare with wasabi and lime sauce gives tuna tartare a run for the money. (401 Sixth Ave., between Waverly and 8th Street, 212-255-3242; and 1426 Third Ave., between 80th and 81st streets, 212-288-5099)

MOVIE

An uncharacteristically hirsute Michael Douglas stars in Mike Cahill’s “King of California” (2007) as an unstable father who returns to live with his teenage daughter in Southern California at the end of a two-year stay at a mental institution. Mr. Douglas’s character, Charlie, has always lived life by his own whims, and soon becomes convinced that there is gold, left behind by Spanish missionaries, buried underneath a local Costco. Meanwhile, his daughter, Miranda, struggles to care for her father in her burgeoning suburban community, while allowing him to follow his dreams. She ends up having to quit school to rent a bulldozer for excavation, and struggles to forgive him for the pain he’s caused her. But, as Steve Dollar wrote in the September 14 edition of The New York Sun, Miranda’s trauma is realistically wrought. “It’s a literary conceit, but the actors don’t fail it,” Mr. Dollar wrote. (Friday, 7:10 and 9:40 p.m., AMC Theaters Empire 25, 234 W. 42nd St., between Seventh and Eighth avenues, 212-398-2597)

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