Chef Kostow Gets Elemental
39.1865° N, -106.8173° W
There’s a fire that never goes out at The Charter Oak. From the moment you walk in, that fire touches, in one way or another, nearly everything that leaves the kitchen. Chef Christopher Kostow’s intention is to create an experience that invites guests to return season after season and to find something authentic each time.
Kostow stays true to what is elemental. With fire and the hearth at the core of The Charter Oak’s universe, it defines the very feeling he hopes is remembered with each visit.
Starting Over, On Purpose
When Kostow and his team began imagining The Charter Oak, they intentionally wanted to start fresh, putting forth only what was essential, so as not to distract from the essence, vision, and experience Kostow wanted to express with everything else, stripped away.
“What we wanted to do was start over,” Kostow explains, “and only put forth those things that were essential to the dining experience.”
Behind the scenes, Kostow and his team use ‘elemental’ as the filter for their internal systems, a way to track, day by day, what the farm is producing and when. As the seasons shift, so does the menu, and while they will always have their staple offerings, the team remains fluid with what the land is giving, when, and how bountiful. The hope is to hone in on the true essence and expression of the season, simple enough that those ingredients and their flavors speak for themselves.
“Every time you come, it should be a snapshot in time,” Kostow says.
Dressing Up Purity
Reverence for ingredients, on its own, isn’t enough. It also has to be fun, memorable, and shareworthy. Alongside his more contemplative dishes, he doesn’t shy away from the joy in a well-crafted burger with a beautiful wine pairing or wings and cold beer. His hope is guests feel as if they are invited to a California-style supper club with an element of surprise and delight.
“It keeps things fun for us, it keeps things fun for the guests,” Kostow says, “and I think it broadens our storytelling.”
Two Decades of Shared Values
Chris Kostow and Will Harlan have grown their personal projects alongside one another in the Napa Valley for nearly twenty years, watching their ideas take shape, grow, and evolve. From wine dinners to shared dining experiences, their friendship was built on the same foundation: a reverence for land and for story.
