Hinoki & The Bird's Asian Lobster Roll | Century City

We are pleased to announce that David Myers has returned to form.

At the brand-new Hinoki & the Bird in Century City, the chef and co-owner of West Hollywood's beloved but shuttered Sona has rekindled his fascination with Asian-inspired cooking.

Hinoki's Modern Californian menu is directly influenced by the travels of Myers and his executive chef, Kuniko Yagi, along Asia's historic Silk Road. The result is vibrant food that pays homage to tradition without feeling derivative.

Plump fried oysters ($12) are boosted with pungent black-garlic aioli. The chile crab toast ($15) captures the spice and salinity of the Singaporean classic in a few bites of toasted bread.

The lobster roll ($14), its meat tinted with green curry and cradled in a jet-black roll colored by charcoal powder, is easily the most visually stunning version in town–never mind one of the most delicious.

Myers' obsession with the namesake hinoki, a type of Japanese cedar, appears not only in the handsome wooden furniture but also in the dish of roasted black cod ($24), which arrives with a wafer-thin sheet of hinoki set alight, scenting the plate.

Like many of the dishes at Hinoki & the Bird, it's equal parts performance art and kitchen ingenuity.

Hinoki & the Bird, 10 West Century Dr., Century City; 310-552-1200 or hinokiandthebird.com