We’re not alone in saying that David Myers’ Sona long held the top spot in our list of favorite L.A. restaurants. In fact, the Michelin inspectors who awarded it one star would be the first to agree (if they were still speaking to us). Elegant and electrifying, the chef merged his French training with a passion for Japanese kaiseki, flexing his tweezer fingers over internationally-fused tasting menus based on exotic micro-greens and fruits, chai foams and grains of paradise sabayon, subcontinental spices, and Gallic mainstays with Asian accents.
The restaurant shuttered in the spring of 2010 as local fine-dining wheezed, but Myers promised to bring Sona back the next year in a Hollywood space. That is yet to happen. Instead, the chef concentrated on Comme Ca, Pizza Ortica, and the opening of Sola in Tokyo, while gastropubs proliferated to L.A.’s stressed seams. Tomorrow, some turf portends to be taken back, as Myers opens Hinoki & The Bird with former Sona chef de cuisine Kuniko Yagi heading the kitchen.
Housed in a sky-scraping condo complex in Century City, Hinoki & The Bird is layered in woods both light and dark; a snug, atmospheric roadhouse tavern with an al fresco patio, pew-style booths, an open kitchen fronted by a stack of shelves, and blasts of color from sparse, striking flower arrangements.
The menu, as seen below, may not be a full-trumpeted return to white tablecloths and high-priced tasting menus, but it does mark the return of Myers’ globally-inspired cuisine to the Boston-born chef’s adopted hometown.
Backed by a strong cocktail program from Milk & Honey’s Sam Ross, dishes include classic Myers-style combinations of the familiar and alluring, like scallops with grapefruit and lime leaf and calamari with ajwain-tomato jam, in addition to au currant twists like chili crab toast with coriander and spicy cucumber, house-cured pickles, green curry lobster rolls, and duck leg carbonara. The menu also includes vegetable plates and simply grilled selections like sambal skate wing, miso-marinated steak, and Maine lobster.
Overall, an enticing prospect of Asian-influenced dining with a less formal bent from one of our favorite fine-dining chefs. Check out Hinoki & The Bird’s full dinner and cocktail menus below and take a look at the space in our slide show, prior to the restaurant’s opening tomorrow evening at 5:30 P.M.
Hinoki & The Bird, 10 West Century Dr. Century City; 310-552-1200.
MENU
raw bar
1/2 dozen oysters, pear mignonette 18
marinated tuna, lemongrass salad 16
scallops, grapefruit, lime leaf 16
beef tartare, pickled jalapeno, parmigiano 15
fun bites
salt & pepper marinated calamari, ajwain-tomato jam 13
crispy marinated chicken, lemon aoli 14
chili crab toast, spicy cucumber, coriander 15
fried oysters, black garlic aoli 12
cured and smoked ham, garlic toast 11
spice scented nuts 6
assorted housemade pickles 6
pumpkin toast, miso jam, goat cheese 11
simply grilled
scottish salmon 24
maine lobster 38
sambal skate wing 21
drunken duck breast 24
bbq pork 21
apple marinated shortrib 24
wagyu strip loin 38
ginger chicken 24
miso marinated skirt steak 24
Dinner
inspiration
clam chowder, celery leaf 11
lobster roll, green curry, thai basil 24
kale, crispy and raw, curried almonds, pecorino, red wine vinaigrette 12
escarole and watercress, roasted carrots, yoghurt 12
spinach, miso cured goat cheese, sunflower seed vinaigrette 12
cured duck leg carbonara 16/24
hinoki scented black cod, sweet potato, pistachio 24
braised lamb, tiny potatoes, cumin seed 25
caramel braised kurobuta pork belly, radish, mustard greens 28
coconut-curried mussels, sausage, cauliflower 19
vegetables & grains
pee wee potatoes 9
organic grilled rice, white or brown 5
roasted yam, chili, pepper 9
steamed mustard greens, soy 9
grilled winter mushrooms, sea salt, lime 12
haricot vert, sesame 9
braised shitake mushroom 11
All Cocktails 14
cups
gordon’s cup gin, muddled lime, cucumber, szechuan pepper, salt
tangerine caipirissima white rum, lime, tangerine & brown sugar
bird cup our take on a pimms cup, muddled citrus, cucumber, mint & ginger
swizzles
hinoki swizzle amontillado sherry, st germaine, fresh green apple, & champagne
dark ‘n stormy bermudan rum, fresh ginger & lime
griffith park swizzle bourbon, mint, lime, bitters & absinthe
seasonal fix gin, rum, vodka or tequila, served with fresh lemon over
muddled seasonal fruit
negroni & the like
classic negroni gin, sweet vermouth & campari, rocks, orange twist
white negroni amère sauvage (bitter gentian), bianco vermouth, rocks, grapefruit twist
harajuku hakushu single malt whiskey, gran classico, byrrh quinquina & chocolate bitters
kingston negroni smith + cross jamaican rum, gran classico, sweet vermouth, rocks, orange twist
quaffers
tommy’s #2 tequila and/or mezcal, lime, orange & agave
jungle bird black strap rum, pineapple, lime & campari
nakatomi plaza choya plum wine, yamazaki, fresh pressed green apple