Located Rockwall’s historic downtown district, Ava is another in the burgeoning cadre of restaurants boasting local and “sustainable” sourcing of foodstuffs. And here, founding chefs Randall Copeland and Nathan Tate really walk the talk with earnest briskness, sometimes sourcing fruits and vegetables from their own gardens.

Other sourced farms and purveyors are listed on their website while Copeland and Tate strive to prepare virtually everything from scratch. You name it—breads, charcuterie, smoked meats, cinnamon buns, ice cream—it’s all done up in house. And that house is clean and airy with an open kitchen, high ceilings, exposed brick, and contemporary, suspended lighting elements. As would be expected, the menu shifts with the seasonal vagaries of Mother Nature.

You’ll discover such things such as wood-fired Texas quail served with spaetzle, sweetbreads grilled with a delicate drizzle of chimichurri, mirin-soy glazed duck breast with a pickled shiitake salad. Restaurant Ava also hosts a five-course wine-paired chef’s tasting menu served at the chef’s bar overlooking the open kitchen. But Ava can miss almost as often as it bull’s-eyes, especially with the service, which can be imperceptive and rough around the edges.