Fernando “Fefo” Aciar, the owner of West Village’s OCAFE and a ceramics line called fefostudio, is a man of two, maybe three, trades: a former chef, still a practicing artisan and also a restaurateur. That entrepreneurial spirit led him to his latest endeavor: a restaurant and wine bar called Ostudio at Night. It’s an intimate spot right in the corner of Bushwick and BedStuy, by the Myrtle Avenue station, that features a rotating residency of chefs that has changed every month since Aciar opened the restaurant back in May, following myriad pandemic-related delays.
The place is part of a trend of local bars that double as coworking spaces by day. During the afternoon, Aciar hawks the space to artists, architects, graphic designers and others but in the evening, the brightly-lit coworking space transforms into a restaurant that Aciar calls a “vehicle to share what [the members and resident chefs] do backstage.”
Beyond the shuffling number of guest chefs, Aciar’s latest restaurant offers a curated selection of wine and a house dinner menu from a permanent chef named Omri Silberstein, previously from June Wine Bar in Cobble Hill.
Resident chefs who have set up shop since May have included Jay Wolman, most recently a chef at Lalou in Prospect Heights, Jesse Merchant Zuñiga and Javier Zuñiga, the owners of a local ice cream brand called Bad Habit.
At Ostudio, Wolman brought french cooking in the aperitivo style and, according to Aciar, he thinks his restaurant offers a “functional canvas” for chefs to break free of their culinary comfort zones and explore new or celebrated recipes in a restaurant setting.
“One of the reasons I took this job was to see different styles and techniques,” Silberstein told me. “Cooking should be collaborative, working with different people with their own style and ideas is something that I really value.”
The food is only part of the story at Ostudio – the room is brought to life with terracotta, blue and coral colors, under dim lights and surrounded by walls of wine bottles and ceramics that Aciar also sells. He told me that he has a passion for hosting.
“Ostudio was born with the intention to be a cultural community space where all [of the members and resident chefs’] passions can live under one roof,” he tells me, visibly excited. “There is still so much to do, it’s really exciting.”
Upcoming chefs include Alan Delgado, who will be there from October 3rd – 14th, followed by Pri Aguilar, from October 17th – 29th. The full list of upcoming chefs can be viewed here. Ostudio at Night is located at 366 Stockton St from 5pm to 10:30pm Monday through Friday. You can follow Ostudio at Night on Instagram to keep up with their hours and ever-changing list of resident chefs.
Top image taken by Giada Paoloni.
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