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Alba sits atop many Des Moines locals’ lists of go-to restaurants for feeding out-of-towners and showing off the city. It’s the kind of restaurant that wins awards, and shows up in New York Times articles.
But don’t count out the East Village fine dining locale as a spot for a quick weekday lunch. If a pair tries hard enough, they can enjoy a refined noon-hour meal for less than $20. (Side note: We didn’t try that hard.)
Just before noon on a ridiculously warm day, Alba’s dining area was bathed in natural light that streaked in through tall windows. Vintage doors float above diners, hanging from the industrial black ceiling. Colorful art dots the walls, including a large tree mural.
A well-edited lunch menu offers about a half-dozen entrees, plus sandwiches, burgers and four egg frittata options. “There are 10 things I can eat here,” announced my vegetarian dining partner. “No, 11.”
She chose the spicy vegetarian hash, which brought a heat level that didn’t overpower the flavors of the veggies. A slice of jalapeno cornbread served on the side passed the Southerner’s cornbread test — not the best she’s eaten in Des Moines, but near the top of the list.
My choice came down to two items: A root vegetable gratin in a honey soy broth or an open-faced prosciutto and red beet sandwich on ciabatta. I wavered, until a helpful server made the decision for me by offering details as specific as where the prosciutto was sourced from (La Quercia, of course, from Norwalk).
This brought a colorful array of veggies — bright red beets, charred green halved Brussels sprouts, root veggies — delicately resting atop a thick, hefty slice of crisp ciabatta bread. The fresh dish is a perfection of textures, and surprisingly substantial considering the small amount of delicious prosciutto mixed within the knife-and-fork dish.
The cup of butternut squash and green apple soup was flavorful, though I barely detected any of the granny smith apple. Also, a bit too much cracked black pepper made the first few spoonfuls overwhelming.
Twenty two bucks is a bit steep for a quick-hitter Tuesday lunch, but this is a cut above a skywalk salad or burgers and fries, so indulge. Portion sizes, as is always the case at Alba, are perfect. We both nearly cleared our plates, but left without needing a power nap back at our desks.
OUR RECEIPT
Open-faced prosciutto ham and red beet sandwich … $7.75
Spicy vegetarian hash with cornbread … $9.75
Total, with tax and tip: $22.55
Alba
Find it: 524 E. Sixth St.
Hours: Lunch: 11 a.m.- 2 p.m. Tuesday through Friday. Dinner: 5 p.m.-close (depends) Monday through Saturday.
Info: 244-0261, www.albadsm.com
