This is quite a shift from the Agra Culture that used to sit on Cleveland Avenue near Ford Parkway in Highland Park. Altera is a restaurant for grown-ups, in a neighborhood that seems ripe for a sit-down, casual yet upscale spot.
Photo by Jason DeRusha
If you’ve been to Layline in Excelsior, much of the menu will feel familiar. That’s because Altera is from Aaron Switz and InnerBloom Hospitality, the team behind Layline, Josefina and Macanda in Wayzata, and Yumi Sushi (Excelsior, Saint Paul, and Edina.) The menu is large: Starters range from the delicate seafood oysters, hamachi crudo with yuzu and black sesame ($14), and steelhead carpaccio with bright acid and tarragon ($15), to refined bar food like a cheese bread with ricotta, provolone and mozzarella ($14), and pok pok chicken wings ($18).
Photo by Jason DeRusha
There are more salads and vegetable dishes than Layline—I loved the caesar ($14) with bagna càuda croutons. The hint of anchovy and garlic in the crouton was a cool touch.
Photo by Jason DeRusha
I dug the spicy sea bass served with perfectly crisp pub style chips, which my terrific server described as a spicy fish and chips, without the batter. She was right, and it was very tasty. Fabulous cocktails as well, designed by InnerBloom’s beverage director Brian Kunz. I loved the Black Sazerac made with squid ink absinthe and Johnnie Walker Black; the martini with a marble stone watch looks great, too.
Photo by Jason DeRusha
The vibes here are elegant—really cool wallpaper with jaguars on it, and I suspect the huge bar is going to be a draw for a neighborhood that tends to lean hyper-casual in restaurants. You have the Highland Grill (the OG Blue Plate restaurant) and the new Centro, as well as Cecil’s Deli and Myriel up Cleveland Avenue. But as this neighborhood grows (eventually) with the addition of the new housing in the Highland Bridge development on the former Ford site, I have to believe the neighborhood will want more options.
Altera opens Friday, Dec. 13—dinner only at first, but the plan is to launch weekend brunch soon. Reservations can be made online.
Photo by Jason DeRusha
Altera Restaurant, 721 Cleveland Ave S, St. Paul, alterarestaurant.com
