Atera Now Serving $150 Tasting Menu From Chef Matthew Lightner

77 Worth Street, Tribeca
Phone: 212-226-1444; website
Status: Soft Open
A little over a year ago, a tiny restaurant called Compose opened in Tribeca with an iPad wine list, "dialogue-based cocktails," and a 10-course $120 tasting menu. It lost its chef in June, and a month later, the owners announced that they were closing the restaurant, with plans to reopen sometime in the fall with a new name and a new chef.

And tonight, that new restaurant opens. It's called Atera, and the chef is Matthew Lightner, formerly of Castagna in Portland. Lightner is something of a critical darling and one of the big players in the foraging scene (see the Times feature here). At Atera, he'll be cooking what he describes as "an almost herbal-based cuisine," using many local greens and some that are going to be supplied by a wild herbs specialist from Camden, ME. Like Compose, Atera will offer only a tasting menu — this one's $150, and wine pairings are $90.

Although nobody's picking up the phone, the restaurant is taking reservations on OpenTable for tonight and tomorrow.
Further Reading: NYT, Grub Street, NYP, Tribeca Citizen.