Abernethy's — Restaurant in Los Angeles

Here's what I sampled: • blue corn cookies and coconut dulce de leche cookies -these cookies had a great texture. A more masa-like taste than a dessert or cookie, similar to a tamale. I was craving some milk after eating this. I drank all of my water.

• Déjà vu mocktail was prickly pear shrub, ginger beer, lime, and bitters blend. It was heavier on the bitters end. I'm not sure I'd order this again.

I am posting pictures of the Dark Winds cocktail- which is rum, rum fire, allspice dram, creme be banana, horchata, and pineapple. I did not drink this but my friend did. They do recommend it.

• Duck ham was smoked duck breast, duck skin chicharron, water cress and sorrel with radish and an orange and honey vinaigrette. small dish and big on taste and yum factor. I'd love to make an entire deli sandwich out of this duck ham. I should find their duck ham supplier.

• Tuna salad was a corn tostada served with pico de gallo, bell peppers, sesame seed and avocado (mushed up like guacamole). This tuna salad was served reminiscent of a ceviche, where you load up your own tostada.

• The corn husk steamed cod was a satisfying entree. Served with pickled corn puree, nopal pico de gallo, cilantro and lemon. A sort of sweet punch, versus spiciness. I think nopales/cactus is an underused dish in a lot of Mexican food.

• Roasted sweet potatoes are served up like giant French fries. Which is much more satisfying than pathetic thin sweet potato fries at so many other restaurants. The salsa macha the potatoes were paired with was dark and delicious, with a spicy kick that wasn't overpowering. I like the garlic and peanut kick of this particular salsa. According to our server, menus are rotated every 6 months and curated by a featured chef. Right now the feature chef is Pyet Despain, serving foods that are indigenous and native to the Americas. Bison, salmon, cod, quail, duck, etc. and no steak, chicken, or eggs. That's a good way cut out expensive eggs from a menu! A tip from our server was that everything on the dinner menu is in order of size, top-to-bottom and small-to-large. So the cod and bison meals are entrees that can be shared, although I feel like everything could be shared.

Good service here, too! Our server was attentive and mindful of time constraints. Our reservation was at 6:15PM, and we were on our way out of there by 7:35PM. Plenty of time to walk across the courtyard to the Mark Taper Forum for a performance of Fake It Until You Make It at 8:00PM.

The heaters in the outdoor seating tent are on full blast above each table, making the space warm and inviting. In fact, the table got hot to the touch and I started sweating at some point. I couldn't believe other patrons were wearing coats and scarves.

Bottom line: what a cool restaurant! It is inside of the Music Center on Grand. If you're attending a play, opera, or musical at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, Mark Taper Forum, or the Ahmanson, then you should make a reservation for...

I get going here; it's literally on the L.A. Music Center Plaza, conveniently located next to the Mark Taper Forum, Ahmanson and Dorothy Chandler Pavilion theaters. Still, think about eating elsewhere first. It may be fine for drinks and maybe appetizers, but NOT for entrees and especially desserts. We ordered the fajitas. We knew something was wrong just when they delivered the tortillas first: the flour tortillas were warmed and placed on a plate -- with no cover or towels to keep them warm. I stole a napkin from a nearby table to keep them warm, since even though the restaurant was sparsely occupied, we had difficulty getting help. We ordered a margarita and coffee for drinks; the margaritas was good, but the coffee was instant, not brewed. The fajitas finally came: they were medallions of beef, instead of strips. At least with strips of beef, it can hide the tough meat a little better. What should be crisply cooked onions and bell peppers were wilted and mushy. The side of Mexican rice was bland, and the beans were pureed, with no texture. It reminded me of the hospital food I had post-surgery. At least it was all on the traditional iron griddle, but it was weird having the griddle warm while the food was not. No seasonings at the table; no salt, no pepper, and no hot sauce, much less additional chile peppers. I guess the assumption is it's seasoned perfectly (it won't be). All that might be tolerable, and my guest was a little more forgiving than I was, until it came to dessert. We ordered the apple crisp, but it had NO CRISP: It was sliced apples with a tiny bit of cinnamon sugar on top of it. That's it. The service was fine, but if only the food was better. Again, stick to appetizers and drinks when you come here, and you might be fine with that. Hoping you have better luck...

New restaurant at the newly remodeled Downtown Music Center. Current chef Shirley Chung features Chinese American cuisine. 4.5 stars overall, great staff, good drinks, and tasty food. Came here on opening night with my fiance and had a wonderful time.

Ms Chi Chicken Pot Stickers - probably my favorite dish of the night. The pomogranate sweet and sour sauce was bomb and really balanced out the savoryness of the pot stickers. The Fresno chili's added a nice kick to put it over the top. 5 out of 5 stars.

Bowl of Hugs - as described, a very earthy, homey dish that warms you up from within. The pork ribs were fall off the bone tender and the broth was phenomenal .4.5 out of 5 stars.

S² Cecio e Pepe - our least favorite dish of the night, it wasn't bad but really didn't stand out in any way. It tasted very similar to an Alfredo pasta, and could have used some more of the Sichuan peppercorn. There was also no tofu that I could detect in the dish. 3 out of 5 stars.

Lacquer Roasted 1/2 Chicken - really crispy skin, moist chicken breast, and tender bean sprouts. Tiger sauce was a nice balance of savory and spice. The chicken itself was good, but salted somewhat unevenly. 4 out of 5 stars.

Mama said: "Always finish your rice - what a wonderful delight to end the evening! Not too sweet, with just the right amount of condensed milk. The toasted almonds and pineapple added great texture to the dish, but what really made the dish shine was the coconut like snow. I just wish there was more of it!! 4.5 out of 5 stars.

Overall a great time, definitely wish I got the lamb belly, but there's always next time! Check it out if you're in the area or there for a show!! The restaurant changes chefs and menus...