If your experience with Scandinavian cuisine only extends, say, to the Ikea cafeteria, we're almost envious of the eye- and palate-opening meals you've got ahead.
Swedish chef Christer Larsson's first West Coast restaurant is now open on Melrose, offering modern takes on the bright, clean and seasonal dishes traditional to the Norden, and while Ikea meatballs have their time and place, Alta Nordic Kitchen should prove a much more thoughtful—and thorough—introduction to the storied cuisine.
“I’m drawing inspiration from my years spent in European kitchens as well as my own travels," says Larsson, "and family history to give a fresh interpretation to dishes that have been around for decades.”
Photograph: Courtesy Alta Nordic Kitchen
Sitting at 7274 Melrose Avenue, Alta is the effort of Larsson and his son, Ian, and an ode to their heritage. Expect the seasonal flavors of Scandinavian cuisine—fresh seafood, yogurts, herbaceous and simple sauces—prepared using modern techniques and California produce.
There's still a focus on the Nordic traditions of smoking and salting—look for the "toast" section of the menu, which features house-cured salmon with crème fraîche atop brioche, and preserved matjes herring with egg salad on Danish rye bread—and the earthy, textured breads made in house. Currently, the dishes look crisp, with a focus on seafood and local produce, though you'll find a few heartier entrées coming out of that wood-burning oven. As the weather cools, ALTA will introduce more wild game to the menu, as you'd find in Scandinavia throughout winter.
Alta marks Larsson's first West Coast restaurant, though he's no stranger to L.A.'s kitchens: the chef worked as a sous at the Los Angeles Century Plaza Hotel in the 1980s before he headed east and helped open Aquavit, one of the country's first renowned, Nordic fine-dining establishments. He eventually launched his own restaurants, Christer's in New York and ALTA in Connecticut, before returning to L.A., where he's been consulting and cooking for the last decade. Now, he's teamed up with Ian to marry California produce and pan-Scandinavian cuisine—pandinavian for short, perhaps?—with roughly 40 years of experience cooking it.
Photograph: Courtesy Alta Nordic Kitchen
Alta Nordic Kitchen is now open at 7274 Melrose Avenue, serving dinner from 5:30 to 10:30pm, Tuesday to Sunday. A weekend brunch, served Saturdays and Sundays from 11am to 3pm, will begin shortly after Labor Day.
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