The latest restaurant concept from Fernando Martinez, an upscale Spanish restaurant called Artesano Tapas Vino Y Mas, will open this evening in Westport Village, on Herr Ln., in the spot that briefly was AP Crafters. The new restaurant will serve dinner only Monday through Saturday, until the staff gets shaken down and gets their balance. In a few weeks the new restaurant will also serve lunch, and later look for a prix-fixe Sunday sangria brunch, with a choice of several flavors of the popular wine and juice mixture, as well as Sunday dinner service.
Mark Ford, the longtime chef at St. Charles Exchange, will be Artesano’s chef. Shelley Yoder, who has worked at Corbett’s and Louvino, will be sous chef. Martinez’s wife Cristina and Rick Moir, manager of Cena, another Martinez property, are developing a cocktail program. A system for serving cocktails on draft is also in the works.
