Altura Bistro opened in 2019 and serves New American cuisine in a less casual atmosphere.  Located in a strip shopping center outside of the downtown area they were still very much practicing Covid separation of guests.  Along one side of the room was bench seating for 2-top tables and opposite were booths.  A couple tables were in the middle of the room.  The tables were bare wood and set with black cloth napkins.  Windows to the outside were partially shaded but the sun streamed in for a good part of the evening, defeating the low light chandeliers.   The other room had the bar and a few stools facing the bar and a couple small tables along the wall.  It was not clear if these tables were for walk-ins.  Music was in the background.  Service was so-so, with timing issues, not clearing or wiping between courses and less than good advice on ordering.

Facility

 

Food

 

After ordering the server brought bread and butter.  The bread was warm and doughy and the butter had a nice mild flavor.

 

Roasted oysters on the half-shell were toppped with calabrian chili-prawn butter, parmesan gratin and gremolata.  They were medium sized oysters with lots of crispy topping.  They had a bit of a metallic taste and did not cook to a set texture.  There was lots of flavor and texture here but would rate only an okay.

 

Red King Crab, 16 oz., was grilled in the shell and brushed with creole-preserved butter.  It was 2 legs that had been cracked and brushed with seasoning then grilled.  It was a lot of crab but it was dry and not succulent.  The seasonings didn’t meld to me and it seemed like a waste of good crab.

 

Wagyu Ribeye was 13 oz and ms9+ grade with perigord truffle butter, hasselback potato and grilled asparagus.  This was supposed to be the finest of the Australian cuts in which case it would not need the addition of a butter seasoning.  However, it did.  It was cooked nicely but the meat was tough and did not have a deep beef flavor.  The asparagus were not peeled but mostly successful, with grilling enhancing their flavor.  The potato was not as crunchy as I would expect a hasselback to be, but it went well with the steak butter, which did have a mild truffle flavor.

 

Banana Cake was layered with semi-sweet chocolate mousse, topped with whipped cream and on salted caramel alongside Alaskan raspberry ice cream.  It was good but had a mild flavor profile.  The cake was dense and the mousse sweet.  It all worked together pretty well but could not redeem the earlier courses.