Aphotic does not provide its diners with the "happy fine dining seafood restaurant experience” one might get at Le Bernardin or oceanside at Le Petit Nice in Marseilles — at least according to Peter Hemsley, the chef behind the Michelin-starred, all-seafood restaurant in San Francisco.
The name of the restaurant, which means “without light” in Ancient Greek, makes reference to the sublayer of the ocean where light stops penetrating. “This name was chosen both for its literal take – describing the dark ocean where many of our fish come from — and also from the philosophical perspective that acts as a motivator for us,” Hemsley said. “To seek out the unknown in our oceans through dialogue, relationships, and through culinary ingenuity."
