The Simple Life costars arrived together Sunday night at Dan Tana's, a West Hollywood restaurant that just happened to be rife with paparazzi.

    Hilton drove the duo to the restaurant in her Range Rover -- despite the fact that she was arrested for drunk driving in early September -- and the celebrity socialites entered the restaurant side by side, according to E-online Tuesday.

    An hour and a half later, they exited, Richie with doggy bag in hand, and sat adjacent to each other on a bench while waiting for the valet to bring the car around.

    "We are back!" they said before driving off.

    "They looked like best friends to me," a fellow diner said. "It seemed as if they had never gotten into a fight. They were laughing really loud and seemed more than happy to be together. There wasn't a slow moment in their conversation -- they chatted non-stop. They left hand-in-hand, smiling."

    When asked if they're best friends again, Hilton's publicist, Elliot Mintz, said: "I wouldn't characterize it that way because I don't know if it was a business or personal discussion. Let's just watch it unfold."

    Hilton and Richie have known each other since childhood. Last April, however, Hilton issued a famous statement acknowledging their feud, "Nicole knows what she did, and that's all I'm ever going to say about it." Neither has ever revealed the exact cause of their falling-out. Enditem

    (Agencies)