The next time you dine at Optimist Hall, you’ll find a new option. ESO Artisanal Pasta, led by husband-and-wife team Chefs AJ Sankofa and Kristina Gambarian will open Friday, Aug. 8. From imported cheeses and meats to handmade pastas, this dining spot packs a punch.
“Optimist Hall is just 15 minutes from my childhood home, and when this opportunity presented itself, I knew it was meant to be,” Sankofa told CLTtoday.
The build-out took patience — Sankofa and Gambarian signed the lease at Optimist Hall in 2023, then went through several months of construction to build the perfect kitchen to create made-to-order dishes.
Now that the stall is ready for service, they want you to bring your appetite. All of the cheeses, meats, and flour are imported from Italy, allowing the team to craft dishes with carefully sourced ingredients. They’ll also feature local favorites like focaccia, created by Wheatberry Bakeshop, and gluten-free pastas, courtesy of The Accidental Baker.
“We tried 15 different focaccias across Charlotte and this is the best — hands down,” said Gambarian.
Editor Maria, here, with a list of everything I sampled.
- Various meats and cheeses, including a 36-month-aged Parmigiano, pecorino, speck (a smoked Italian ham), capa, and taralli, Italian snack crackers
- Paccheri pomodoro — made with 12 onions, five pounds of tomato, fresh basil, garlic confit, and olive oil
- Cacio e pepe — made with pecorino, 100 cracks of black pepper, and a little butter
- Lumache al ragù — a savory staple with beef shoulder, prosciutto, and pancetta
Bonus: Quench your thirst with Italian beers, wine, sodas, and Aperol spritzes. Plus, the chef’s counter will open for reservation-only tasting menus in the next six to eight months + expect sweets, or “dolci,” like tiramisu and seasonal panna cotta, coming soon.
