If you’re looking for skyline views and a vibe, 71Above certainly delivers. Perched on the 71st floor above downtown Los Angeles, the sprawling restaurant feels almost like a labyrinth as staff guide diners through multiple dining areas to their tables.

Just don’t expect things to move quickly. It took a while to receive water, let alone cocktails and the chance to order. Thankfully, once drinks arrived, the evening started looking up, or perhaps down, given the view. The El Segundo ($20) resembles an innocent green juice, making the smoky mezcal and cigar-like finish feel especially unexpected. Meanwhile, the Downtown ($20), made with toasted hazelnut bourbon and cognac, may look approachable but quickly proves otherwise. Both cocktails are deceptively strong in the best way.

Once the order is finally in, the pacing improves significantly. An amuse bouche of roasted carrot tart arrives first, brightened nicely by a slice of kumquat on top.

To tide us over, we added oysters ($21). In hindsight, I should have asked what variety they were serving. Our server mentioned they were sourced from Mexico, and the results were inconsistent. The smaller oyster was crisp and clean, especially with the chili salt, while the larger one tasted noticeably fishy.

Their prix fixe menu ($107 per person) orders dishes from light to hearty under each category. To start my friend and I shared the yellowfin tuna tartare which arrives hidden under a half of avocado. Normally, I like a taro chip or crostini with my tartare, but the dish hardly needed them. Pine nuts mixed into the tartare added plenty of texture alongside the fresh tuna. Sumac, mint, and a faint jalapeño heat kept everything bright and refreshing.

The short rib triangoli pasta was flavourful overall, though slightly sweeter than expected. I just wished each piece contained more beef filling, even if it meant serving fewer of them. Personally, I feel like the dish may work better in a simpler pasta format altogether.

Suspecting the balsamic jus with the grilled centre-cut ribeye would lean tart, I wisely asked for it on the side. My instincts were correct. It’s ideal for diners who enjoy acidity, but I preferred using it sparingly. The steak itself was nicely seared and properly cooked to medium rare, though surprisingly lean for a ribeye. Oddly enough, the standout component ended up being the braised beef croquette, which was rich, meaty, and echoed the same flavour profile found in the pasta.

At one point, staff dropped off bread we hadn’t ordered and frankly didn’t need. It wasn’t until the bill arrived that we noticed the additional $8 charge. Not a major expense, but something diners should be warned about upfront.

There’s a strong selection of desserts. My first instinct was the strawberries and cream, which takes a fairly classic approach with chiffon cake, mixed berries, and plenty of whipped cream. The sesame crumble adds a subtle graham-like nuttiness and welcome texture.

Surprisingly, the chocolate semifreddo ended up being the better dessert despite me not usually gravitating toward chocolate. The semifreddo itself was airy and lightly sweetened, while the green tea ganache, brownie brittle, and fragrant bergamot cream added depth without making things overly heavy.

Despite positioning itself as fine dining, the service feels stretched thin. Staff were friendly throughout, but it was clear servers were juggling too many tables. Empty cocktail glasses went unnoticed, and we had to flag someone down to order wine for the ribeye moments before the mains arrived. To their credit, the wine appeared quickly afterward, but the pacing felt reactive rather than polished. Perhaps the tucked-away back dining section contributes to the issue, as it simply didn’t feel as staffed as the main room.

Ultimately, the food and service are perfectly fine, but neither is what makes 71Above memorable. You come here for the view, and on that front, it delivers.

Take a walk through TD Centre’s concourse level and you’ll encounter Mark McEwan’s domination of the floor: the second McEwan grocery store and eatery occupies an entire corner, walk in a bit further and his long time restaurant Bymark (a creative conjunction of “by” and “Mark”) takes up the rest of the corner. It’s a restaurant known for its decadent foie gras burger with a hefty price to match. Like most of McEwan’s ventures, it’s a fine dining establishment where bill totals easily reach $100+ a person. Hence, during Summerlicious, their special $48 dinner menu always draws a crowd.

What looks like mechanically processed tuna certainly tasted that way - instead of dicing the fish by hand, the tartare arrives pulverized so you end up spreading (rather than scooping) the mixture on the crispy wonton chips. I could have looked past the fish’s mushy texture if it was seasoned better; too bad the miso-ginger vinaigrette was so light that most of the flavours were from the fish’s natural oils and the chip. Thankfully, the crisp shaved fennel salad on the side helped to wake up the dish, if only smaller pieces were combined into the tartare itself, maybe the starter would have tasted better.

While the Summerlicious website describes the cod as being from "Fogo Island", Bymark’s actual menu revises it to "Atlantic". Honestly, I don’t care that much about the origin and I’m glad the restaurant was honest about the fish’s source – having read Olmsted’s Fake Food Real Food, it’s a shame how often establishments try to pass off non-authentic ingredients to diners, I applaude Bymark for being truthful.

Arriving as a sizeable piece, the baked cod was moist and flakey. Normally, the delicate texture would be fine, but since the accompanying polenta was also silky and smooth, it'd be nice if the fish was seared with the skin-on to create a crispy layer for contrast. Unlike the starter, the main incorporated plenty of flavour from the salty olive tapenade, rapini, and unexpected kick of chili oil. All in all, it's a satisfying dish.

Too bad the same couldn’t be said with the strawberry shortcake … I’m getting so tired of deconstructed desserts! The strawberry shortcake came with the usual elements: soft vanilla shortcake, delicious macerated strawberries, and whipped cream. Additional crisp meringue pieces were a nice touch, providing an extra texture and sweetness to the cake. Dutifully, I combined all the ingredients to make my own cake, only to find the Chantilly creamy overly salty. Perhaps it was the pastry chef wanting to play up the earthiness of the basil purée, but it didn’t work for me. Strawberry shortcake doesn't work as a sweet and salty dessert.

Meanwhile the s’more’s tart was elegant and delicious. Not normally a fan of rich chocolate desserts, I was even drawn in to take a bite of the smooth dark chocolate ganache and ever so slightly salty graham cracker crust.

Having previously visited Bymark for Winterlicious and a regular dinner, this was by far the worst experience. Indeed, I understand what's served during Summerlicious may be a modified menu with less expensive ingredients, but looking back on the Winterlicious experience from about six years ago, it was executed much better and was of closer quality to a regular dinner service. This time, nothing wowed us and the dishes were passable at best.

Luckily, their service didn’t falter; they were just as friendly and attentive as ever. For example, when our waitress noticed my friend rooting through her beef cheek pasta to find the actual meat - another downfall of Summerlicious is some dishes are cooked in larger batches so plates aren’t always split evenly - she offered to get the kitchen to bring out more beef cheek for her to add to the pasta. What a thoughtful gesture that made the experience better. Maybe next time she can take my dessert and make it into a real cake… feasible right?

Is Summerlicious worth it (based on my meal selection)?
Summerlicious - $48
Regular menu - $72.50 - tuna tartare* ($19), cod ($40) and shortcake ($13.50)
Savings - $24.50 or 34%
* Based on the steak tartare and cheesecake

• Anything under 5 - I really disliked and will never go back
• 6 - decent restaurant but I likely won't return
• 7 - decent restaurant and I will likely return
• 8 - great restaurant that I'd be happy to recommend
• 9 - fantastic restaurant that I would love to visit regularly and highly recommend
• 10 - absolute perfection!

• America
• Aria