APT

love dining with friends? sick of local restaurants and their huge carbon footprints because it’s cheaper for them to buy organic flour that was grown here, flown to italy for milling and flown back to be baked into loaves? like bartering for goods and services? if you answered «yes» to any of these, then APT is what you need.

«apt» is the ingenious moniker for private chef erik w’s operation, as it started out of his own apartment and is now based in apartments, lofts, private parties and other locations where private chef services are desired. motivated by the foodie’s passion for cooking and entertaining, he started apt in mid 2008 through a tight network of friends and associations. his inspirations, from my experience, are european-​based around various seafoods, pastas, mediterranean grains, and are highlighted by spanish and italian terroirs. his knowledge of the dining experience transcends the food and encompasses many varietals to appropriately compliment each course. experimental recipes of familiar dishes keep you on the comfortable side of trying something new while exciting your tastebuds. the second time i dined with apt, here’s what i had: arugula salad with mushrooms and heirloom tomatoes with a red wine shallot glaze, topped with parmesan and black pepper. the main course was chard-​wrapped salmon on a bed of almond cous cous. and dessert, my favorite, was handmade dark ginger chocolate toasted on a rustic white bread with fruit and yogurt on top. he’s constantly innovating, as well, which is impressive. some chefs find a specialty and run with it, few are good at many things. last week he pulls out a cornbread concoction that blew me away, but he hand-​churned a lime maple butter to melt on top. i couldn’t get enough.
i’ve utilized the service three times now and have yet to be disappointed. the best part of dining with friends in this atmosphere, and utilizing erik’s services, is his passion for the food. this translates into him occasionally offering his skills for trades in art. the man speaks my language.