Bloomfield Gelato Shop Known For Its ‘Jersey Attitude’ Is Closing

BLOOMFIELD, NJ — A gelato and sorbet shop in Bloomfield that has become known for its unflinchingly “Jersey” attitude and creative flavors will be closing its doors this week, and true to form, its co-owner isn’t holding back about the reasons why they’re calling it quits.

According to APEM Creamery and Sorbetteria’s website, it will be permanently closing its location on Aug. 13. Learn more about its origin story here.

Since launching their shop at 870 Broad Street, partners Alex Saneski and Jennifer Ko – both alumni of The International Culinary Center (formerly The French Culinary Institute) – have become known for their unique concoctions, hungrily dipping into the pop culture zeitgeist for inspiration, like a customer digging a spoon into one of their take-home pints.

Previous promotions have included a tribute to Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month that conjured flavors such as Vietnamese Iced Coffee and Mango Lassi, and a “Reading Rainbow” week that featured flavors inspired by banned books.

The shop has also embraced its stomping ground – New Jersey – by leaning into the state’s reputation for being unapologetically in-your-face. Last year, APEM Creamery and Sorbetteria returned from a winter break with a new menu, introducing flavors like “Left Lane is For Passing Only!” (lemon, vanilla bean, blueberries), “Blabbermouth” (a lemon meringue with crust inspired by Uncle Junior in “The Sopranos”) and “Cannoli Filling” (ricotta and stracciatella).

During growing season, the pair also harvest many ingredients for their creations in their home garden, including spearmint, lemon thyme, tomatoes, ghost peppers, Carolina reaper peppers and rhubarb, as well as locally sourced Jersey corn and blueberries.

• See Related: Bloomfield Gelato Shop Sells New Jersey Attitude With Each Scoop
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Despite a loyal online fan base – and the tenacity of its owners – APEM Creamery and Sorbetteria will be closing its doors due to a variety of reasons. And Saneski isn’t holding back about what they are.

On Monday, he posted a detailed explanation about the bittersweet business decision, blaming the shop’s location, difficulties finding quality employees, changing technology and a lack of media coverage for the upcoming shutdown. Read it in full here.

Some of Saneski’s thoughts included:

LOCATION - “Our curse was always finding a location, whether when we had our previous business in California or back here in Jersey … We were fully tapped out at the store and for us it was getting stressful with space. Also there were times the store was just dead (like the third week of August every year), and the only thing that could remedy that would be to be in a better location, a higher trafficked area.”

EMPLOYEES - “Most of our employees are leaving for college. And we have been interviewing full time employees since spring. While people have kitchen experience, they have the wrong kind. It was better to hire a high school kid with no training than someone with to de-educate. But then how can we expect to grow only hiring high school/college kids with limited hours whom would leave us in a year?”

MEDIA – “I’ve never met more moronic and boring a** people … Look, I don’t think we are the best s*** ever. I just do our thing with our mindset and know it’s unique. YES, unique enough for national recognition whether people like it or not. Call me an a******, just write about us. To be honest, if we got more media attention, we’d probably still be open.”

“Mixing all these things together was just a recipe for disaster,” Saneski wrote. “It is so hard to find a good location, annoying to find the right kind of help to propel us … the media has made me bitter, and I’m just not wired like most people. So to prevent myself from having a stroke, it is better to bow out.”

It won’t be easy, he noted:

“There are quite a bit of flavors I didn’t get to, believe it or not, but that’s how it goes. It has been hard to let go since this has been my life since 2007. Well, I’ve always had multiple things going on in life and my mind is always full of ideas, but gelato was my everyday thing. It has taken some time for my ego to let go and to this very moment it is still fighting me.”

Will there be an encore for APEM Creamery and Sorbetteria? Customers might not want to hold their breath.

“Some asked if we’d consider doing something again down the line,” Saneski said. “It is very unlikely that would happen.”

“Things should never last forever and an ending/death is a blessing in disguise because it shows you how much a thing really meant,” he added. “That is how life is supposed to go.”

Saneski noted that he and Ko aren’t leaving New Jersey – they just moved to a new house near Brookdale Park.

“As for what is in store for Jenny and myself … well, as I like to say, ‘We aren’t stupid people, thankfully,’” Saneski wrote. “We will find our way, because that’s all that matters.”

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