While September 11th is typically looked at as a depressing day for a majority of Americans, for my family, it commemorates the birthday of my oldest sibling, Jordan. Since it was a school night, we were looking for a restaurant that was both hip and located convientantly from our home. Built on the ground floor of the decadent new condo skyscraper in Century City, Hinoki & The Bird offers a wide variety of small platters to cater to a large audience.
Arriving at the restaurant, I noticed there was a very large bar scene, and this affected our ability to communicate with each other from across the table. To add to that notion, just to our left, there was a party which must have had at least sixty guests, most of whom had no idea how to use their inside voices. Since I knew I was in for treat that evening, I decided to starve myself for the hours preceding the meal so I could save up an appetite.
I was particularly craving meat that evening, so I suggested we order their fried chicken to split amongst the four of us. The chicken was moist, and it came with a side of garlic aoli for dipping sauce, but I felt the chicken was flavorful enough to enjoy without the sauce.
For the second appetizer, we nibbled at their hamachi which was topped with melon and avocado. While I am typically not a fan of avocado, I felt the strong flavors from the hamachi and melon would cover the taste of the avocado, but oh was I wrong. Attemtpting not to display my dislike for the dish, I swallowed as fast as I could.
Trying to forget the previous dish, I ordered their chili crab toast which was the greatest dish i had all night. The plate consisted of four pieces of bread which were then topped with crab meat, and finally, coriander was spread acrross the top of the crab. The dish was so simple, yet so perfect, and the fresh crab meat made all the difference.
I am not a huge fan of restaurants which thrive on small plate dishes, but to be honest, I enjoyed getting sample of three totally kinds of dishes. I enjoy the system they put in place because, while the appetizer are shared amongst the people table, entrées are individual.
As mentioned earlier, I was in the mood for meat, and I wasn't going to stop just yet. I ordered their "Drunken Duck Breast" which was cooked to perfection and drizzled with a red wine sauce to add to the flavor. I was a little dissapointed with the amount of food in the dish because I devoured within seconds, and I didn't have an opportunity to savor the dish.
Overall, I thought it was a quality meal, but I don't have plans any time soon to rush back to Hinoki & The Bird. I know there is nothing the restaurant can do about th enoise level, but I have to say it affected the quality of the overall meal. 7.75/10
