Dinner before a play can be nerve-racking: Will the food come in time? The bill? Will you have time to get from the restaurant to the theater? After all this, can you sit and enjoy the play? Yup, if you dine where you see the play. And you can at the Temple of Music and Art's restaurant, staged (and prepared) by Gallery of Food. This is a tempting spread laid out in the small dining space off the Temple's courtyard. The room has exposed brick walls, floor-to-ceiling windows, tiny twinkling lights on the ceiling and a soft-spoken staff that is fast, efficient and informed. It's served buffet style, but don't let that fool you — this is upscale buffet with dishes that don't spend time lounging under heat lamps. A multicourse meal is $22. The fare changes for every production, often reflecting the era or the region in which the play takes place. The last production, "Touch the Names," was based on letters and poems left at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. And the offerings at the restaurant were hearty, American fare: leg of lamb cooked a juicy medium and topped with a sauce of red wine, quiet garlic and a whiff of rosemary. Don't like lamb? You could have had the tender pecan-crusted chicken breast with a zesty mustard crème fraîche. Those were just the main courses — there was also a tasty tartlet with warm goat cheese oozing out of the middle and sweet tomatoes barely kissed with garlic; sweet potato chowder bulging with fresh corn; and tender carrots brushed with honey and with a whisper of lavender. It was a veritable feast. The same is true for the current menu, offered through ATC's run of "The Pajama Game," which continues through Dec. 22. This is a more demure offering — delicate crêpes wrapped around chard and topped with a rich béchamel sauce, and a mushroom soup with a too-thin cream base but loaded with lots of earthy mushrooms were among the appetizers. Cornish game hens and pork loin are the entrees offered. And whether you go to the play or not, that hen is worth a stop at the restaurant. It's moist and tender, and stuffed with fruits and nuts. A crunch here, a soft texture there. Delectable. Pork loin can be dry and dull, but this was smoked over pecan, giving it a nuanced flavor, and topped with a not-too-sweet plum glaze. Dull this was not. Also on the buffet table: buttery new potatoes and snappy asparagus; a cold lentil dish mixed with sage and olives; an apple chutney that just begged to be paired with the pork; and a salad peppery with watercress and topped with a vinaigrette with a sweet hint of pear. Desserts are extra, but well worth the price. Especially the currently offered banana spice bread pudding ($5). The banana flavor was too subtle, but the sweet bread pudding, chock-full of raisins and topped with a caramel sauce spiked with rum, was enough to send you off to see the ATC musical with a song on your lips. Check, please