Santa Monica’s Former Restaurant Hinterland Now Sells Tokyo-Style Neapolitan Pizza

Santa Monica’s Hinterland is officially gone, and in its place is the new Pblc Trde (as in “public trade”). Step past the difficult name and into a world of wood-fired pizza and pasta, done with a Tokyo bent.

Pblc Trde comes by way of the same ownership group from Hinterland, Select Hospitality & Design. They also briefly operated the shuttered Verlaine in West Hollywood, and are partners in Costa Mesa restaurant 2145 as well. Now they’ve taken their chef Eddie Salcedo from that Orange County restaurant and inserted him onto Main Street in Santa Monica to make classic pies like margherita, plus new options like a carne asada pizza with Oaxacan cheese and chimicurri. Pastas include a lasagnette and lamb pappardelle, while starts span from a pork belly katsu to a kale salad.

Not only does the katsu and heavy use of miso throughout the menu give Pblc Trde a slight Tokyo sensibility, but the pizzas themselves are modeled after the modern Neapolitan pizza style found in Japan. The blistered pies aren’t as wet their true Naples counterparts, and the dough is often more delicate (and sometimes saltier) as well). The opening menu is below.

Meanwhile all of Santa Monica continues to churn with choppy restaurant waves. Nyesha Arrington’s last night of service at Native was on Sunday, and Punta Cabras remains quietly down for the count as well. And then there’s Dave Beran, who is opening up an opulent French paradise not far from Pblc Trde on Main Street.

Pblc Trde opened earlier this year, and keeps dinner hours only from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. nightly.

Pblc Trde. 2917 Main St., Santa Monica, CA.

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