With over a dozen buzzy restaurants and bars all tucked into the same three-story location, Soho's Kingly Court isn't necessarily the first address you'll think of when striving to avoid London's crowds, or so I guess when I reach its tunnel-like entrance on an expectedly busy Tuesday night. Luckily, though, that won't be something to worry about when you secure a reservation at the recently opened ALTA. All it takes for you to forget where you are in the city is to move beyond the Northern Spanish eatery's heavy wooden door, which you'll find at the very back of the location's ground floor.
The latest opening by the team behind the deeply atmospheric Japanese-infused foodie hotspot and listening bar, MOI, MAD Restaurants' ALTA keeps the bar high for London restaurants where great taste in food and design intertwine. Still, it does so while ensuring the atmosphere feels, simultaneously, approachable, cocooning, and quietly refined.
Waiting for a friend on an earthy-orange, upholstered banquette in a chocolatey shade of wood, I can't help but notice how the seat feels just right — not too firm, not too soft — much like one that's been broken into in your own home. Industrial-style pendant lanterns in golden fabric and chrome put every table in the limelight without ever being obtrusive. Instead, with their soft glow and shadows, they grant every group of diners the illusion of enjoying their meal in relative privacy, sipping aromatic pine Martinis and gossiping to alternative music late into the evening.
ALTA — Where Space Becomes "the Main Storyteller"
My kitchen-counter seat at ALTA, which offers a taste of its evocative atmosphere.
From my seat, I get an unobstructed view of ALTA's stainless steel kitchen, where head chef Rob Roy Cameron's brigade relies on seasonal British produce to craft moreish, charcoal-y sharing plates inspired by the seafood and cured meats-heavy, flavorful Basque cuisine, all of which are cooked over an open fire.
The fire itself, immediately visible at the far back of the dining room as you enter, with a wall of elegantly stored wine bottles to its left, infuses the space with a raw, comforting je ne sais quoi. Sculpted from plaster, brushed wood, and natural stone, the interiors have an edgy, brutalist vibe, striking "the perfect balance of contrast and calm, without any decorative fuss," MAD Restaurants' founder Artem Login says.
Here, "textures do some but all the talking: every surface feels honest and touchable, nothing too shiny or pretending to be what it's not". He thinks that is exactly what ALTA stands for: "refined but down to earth, minimal yet rich in character and warmth." Because when decor is pared back, "every step and seat within the restaurant must carry intention".
Unlocking Northern Spain's "Convivial Spirit" Through Design
The upstairs dining room at ALTA, and two of our smaller plates: the Wild Farm flour sour dough with salted butter and house pickles, and the melt-in-your-mouth fried potato with mojo verde.
When my friend finally joins me, we are encouraged to kick the evening off with a couple of bites and take things slowly, just like you'd do in the much balmier Spain. We go for the Wild Farm sourdough with salted butter and a mighty portion of house pickles — simply delicious plates that hint at the high-low essence that characterizes ALTA's rustic, vibrant gastronomic flair.
As we nibble on our starters while looking around, I realize that what sets ALTA apart from most of the eateries placed all around it is its abundance of space. Seating more than 100 diners across two floors for a total surface of 500 square meters, the restaurant is somewhat of a maze. While rough stone, cool metal, and dark woods run throughout it, each area of the eatery, namely The Kitchen Room, The Wine Room, and the Dining Room, "offers its own distinct experience," Login assures.
I wonder what he sees as the three key design standouts of ALTA, and what sensations or emotions the MAD Restaurants founder thinks these unleash. "The stone bar and kitchen islands serve as grounding elements, bringing warmth and a strong sense of place into the scheme while subtly guiding the movement of guests through the space," Login explains.
"The wine and vermouth taps evoke the relaxed charm of a wine bar, a playful nod to the approachable nature of wine and the convivial spirit that comes with it. While at the center of it all, the wood-fired grill acts as the restaurant's heartbeat, radiating energy and life."
Art as "a Burst of Color" and Life
Spirited artworks by Thai expressionist artist Thaiwijit Puengkasemsomboon adorn the space.
One of the things you'll notice while dining at ALTA is that, besides the dozens of shades beautifully assembled into its packed-with-flavor, comforting plates, the only other colorful accent comes from the handful of spirited paintings that hang in the restaurant.
The artwork nearest to us is a monochromatic picture of a young man with straight black hair, his thumb and pinky finger extended into a Shaka sign, which in Hawaiian culture stands, fittingly, for love, good feelings, and local pride. Rendered on what looks like a portion of a wall, it has got the same coarse texture of ALTA as a whole, as do the other cheeky figurative pieces popping all across.
"I discovered Thaiwijit Puengkasemsomboon's work through a friend and it instantly resonated," Login recounts. "His raw, fragmented canvases, eccentric faces, and daring bursts of color inject just the right amount of edge into the space."
Where Characterful Decor Meets Characterful Food
In line with London's current fashion, the meal is made of a series of small, as well as a couple of larger, dishes that we place in the middle of the table and share as our Vermouth drinks are replaced by citrussy, Spanish orange wine and conversation flows into the night. We begin with some courgette and pumpkin seed romesco — a nutty, slightly piquant dip-like red pepper sauce, made sharp by garlic and olive oil — which we pair with melt-in-your-mouth, smoky squid with lardo and vizcaina sauce and a buttery side of mushrooms fideos.
Next come the mains: to stay true to the Basque Country's fish heritage, we pick the meaty, though delicately tender, turbot tranche as our dinner event (and don't regret it). We pair it with the hyper-creamy leeks and walnut, using our re-fried Charlotte potatoes and mojo verde to mop up all the delicious juice that comes with either one of them. Because when food is that good, being wasteful isn't just misbehavior — it's sacrilege.
Before we know it, we are pleasantly full. Still, "what is the point in going to a Basque eatery if you end up leaving without trying a slice of Basque cheesecake?" my friend exclaims as we ponder whether or not we have any 'dessert' space. And so we give in to one final delicacy. As she deals with the strawberry escabeche-topped bake, my sweet tooth is satisfied by the palate-cleansing almond and honey flan; the only option suitable for the gluten free crowd, which, however, I recommend to everyone.
"Beauty Comes Through Texture and Time"
"The idea was to let the material speak for itself rather than covering it up, creating a quiet tension between refinement and rawness." — Artem Login, founder of MAD Restaurants
The great thing about ALTA is that, rather than scaring diners off through an exclusive, yet stiff ambiance, it creates the right conditions for people to forget about time — something I experience at my own expense when I almost miss the final direct train back. It is a feature that makes it easy for guests to notice more and more details of the restaurant as their meal progresses, starting from the dramatic cracks that literally break the flow of its walls.
"We wanted the space to feel alive, imperfect, and expressive, a reminder that beauty comes through texture and time," Login says of the idea behind this stylistic choice, adding that the goal "was to let the material speak for itself, creating a quiet tension between refinement and rawness which, through epic lighting, leans into the grotesque."
I hadn't necessarily seen the more eerie side of it myself, but the MAD Restaurants founder insists that's precisely why they want guests to keep coming back. "No two visits feel the same," he says. "Whether through our micro-seasonal menu or the unique experiences awaiting in each room, at ALTA, there's always more to explore."
Did you hear? Restaurant merchandise is totally in, and we have ranked up our favorite eateries' style edits so you don't have to waste time searching the coolest, food-inspired streetwear, accessories, and collectible design buys.
