A Food & Wine Adventure!

Author:
Steph Rager

You've heard whispers and maybe even have your own copy of our July article in Food & Wine. We were so excited and not just everyday casual excited. More like jump up and down in the street with your entire staff excited.

Friend and badass F&W writer Chelsea Morse approached us at the beginning of the year with the idea of telling our story. We moved right into brainstorming - story concept and photo shoots and all things Food & Wine! For the shoot itself, we pulled together some of our all time favorite OG Apron Squad members, all at one counter, shoulder to shoulder, bumping and cooking and laughing our heads off. This was a Hedley & Bennett dinner party dream team, with photographers Rick Poon and Courtney Perkins shooting as the cherry on top. Working with someone as creative and driven as Chelsea, has been spectacular every step of the way and ultimately, we knew the end result would be as well.

When Chelsea's article landed in print this summer, it was an awesome chance for us to look back at how far the apron dream has really come. It summed up everything from the very beginning when it was just a dream in the kitchen of Providence, all the way to today. We're three years in and are prouder than ever of everything The Apron Squad has come to actually mean. Our Apron Squad members are spread across 400+ cities worldwide and every day we turn around to see another one opening the restaurant that they've been scheming about for years. Just look at the crew that joined us for the Food & Wine shoot: Bruce Kalman who's wowing people right and left as owner and chef at Union Restaurant in Pasadena ... Ludo Lefebvre, the mastermind behind Petit Trois and Trois Mec and partner in the restaurant team that's opening a new award winning restaurant in LA every 6 months ... Michael Cimarusti, chef and owner of Michelin starred restaurant Providence which continues to hold the top slot in Jonathon Gold's list of Los Angeles' must try restaurants ... Jenna Elfman, who sports an ever growing span of credits ... and Modern Family star Jesse Tyler Ferguson. These aren't accomplishments to scoff at.

But just don't let us keep blabbing about it. Check out the article yourself, go get your own copy, try the recipes, enjoy a sneak peak below of the shoot itself, and be as excited about Food & Wine as we are!

“My entire life is very colorful,” Bennett says. “And I get everybody to join in.” 


Ellen and her boyfriend Casey in their home in Echo Park. Casey designed the house itself and they've worked as copilots to decorate and make it a space that

Jenna Elfman and Jesse Tyler Ferguson practically held their own comedy show at the Food & Wine shoot. Their jokes kept the entire crew doubled over laughing from the minute we got started. 

When we say OG.. we mean it. This crew has been on the Apron Squad since the very beginning.

All of the recipes were old family recipes!

 

Co-pilots here Ludo and Chef, at this point, Michael can't be called anything but chef... once someone is your chef in the kitchen, always and forever a chef for me :)

Photographer Rick Poon working his magic.

“At the end of the day, I’m a very simple person,” she says. “Bright food—and aprons—make me happy.”