Game Birds

Now that fall is here, game birds are showing up in intriguing ways.

Melisse: A carved roast partridge is served on braised red cabbage surrounded by chanterelles, chestnuts and a foie gras emulsion. Grouse comes on corn cake with glazed root vegetables in a game sauce finished with foie gras butter. And whole pheasant is served in various ways; last year’s included a ragout of wild mushrooms, bacon and foie gras on braised Savoy cabbage. (Partridge, $35; grouse on crispy creamy corn cake, $50; pheasant, $32 per person.) Melisse, 1104 Wilshire Blvd., Santa Monica, (310) 395-0881.

Jar: This hopping spot was created by Campanile’s Mark Peel and veteran chef Suzanne Tracht. For an appetizer, try Sonoma quail marinated in honey, shallots and garlic, fried and served with pickled cauliflower, pan juices and buttermilk dipping sauce. (Honey fried quail, $13.) Jar, 8225 Beverly Blvd., L.A., (323) 655-6566.

Saddle Peak Lodge: Behind Malibu, it serves a crostini “sandwich” topped with aoli, arugula and roast squab, then finished off with a quail egg. Another appetizer here is quail stuffed with wild mushrooms and foie gras on a potato nest, all dressed with a tangy pomegranate sauce. (Squab salad sandwich, $15; roasted stuffed quail on a potato nest, $14.) Saddle Peak Lodge, 419 Cold Canyon Road, Calabasas, (818) 222-3888.

Jozu: Sonoma quail is marinated in chile, ginger and hoisin and oyster sauces and deep-fried and covered in a tangerine glaze flavored with kaffir lime leaf, white wine and Grand Marnier. An appetizer portion is served on a cucumber salad. (Tangerine-glazed Sonoma quail, $12.) Jozu, 8360 Melrose Ave., West Hollywood, 655-5600. Aubergine: The prix-fixe menus include such courses as game bird terrines and a squab served with braised Chinese long beans, pomegranates and cipolline onions in pomegranate sauce. Meat of a Guinea fowl goes into a crepinette (a slightly flattened sausage) with wild rice and pine nuts, while the breast is roasted and served with candied yams. (Five-course menu, $85; nine-course menu, $110.) Aubergine, 508 29th St., Newport Beach, (949) 723-4150.