When guests crack open the screen door of Charlotte’s Young-Morrison House and step into Spaghett, Chef Kendall Moore hopes that it feels like coming home. “Stepping in here, it’s almost like a family gathering. When we consider our menu, we’re always thinking, ‘what would you eat at the best Sunday evening meal at Grandma’s house?’”

While Spaghett’s ambiance embraces the intimacy of a homestyle gathering, the techniques that Moore and Executive Bar Director Amanda Britton employ are anything but routine. Pasta is kneaded, rolled, and hand-cut in-house; cocktails are meticulously designed; and a rotating, seasonal menu encourages guests to return and try what’s new. “We’ve even started doing a four course tasting menu,” Britton says. “Our guests come in and trust us to make their experience amazing. They’re excited to take their hands off the wheel and enjoy whatever is put in front of them, just like they would at Nona’s house.”

Chef Kendall Moore’s emphasis on sourcing locally balances two worlds. “Our goal as a restaurant is to be a Carolinian restaurant, and incorporate ingredients from our neighbors through an Italian lens, almost like a Trojan horse of Italian food,” Moore says. photograph by Karma Taun Production

Britton and Moore opened the Fourth Ward restaurant in July 2025 after planning the concept for nine months. Along with an emphasis on local, seasonal ingredients, the duo wanted to create an environment that embraced guests with warmth, no matter the season. During the wintertime, olive-toned walls are illuminated by low lit lamps. In summer, sunshine floats through floor-to-ceiling windows as diners commune over plates of fresh corn gnocchi and zucchini insalata.

Behind the bar, Britton takes inspiration from time-tested kitchen traditions. In January, she introduced the Spaghett Martini to the drink lineup. “It’s a Gibson martini, so our team in the kitchen pickles pearl onions for me, which feels like a touch from time gone by,” Britton says. “I infuse our vermouth with traditional pickling spices that I get from Savory Spice Shop just down the street, and we use Sutler’s gin from Winston-Salem.”

Whether it’s chicken from Joyce Farms or gin from The Hackney Distillery, local produce, proteins, and spirits served at Spaghett are sourced across North Carolina. photograph by Karma Taun Production

As Britton shakes and stirs drinks out-front, Moore’s excitement propels each month’s menu as the ingredients shift with the seasons. Spaghett’s February menu will include Joyce Farms’ Poulet Rouge , which will be transformed into a Southern-inspired saltimbocca. “It’s a combination that is both inherently Southern and inherently Italian, which is what we try to accomplish here” Moore says. In the traditional version of the dish, chicken cutlets are blanketed with crisp prosciutto and finished with a white wine sauce. Spaghett’s interpretation incorporates local country ham and is glazed with espresso redeye gravy.

On a bustling Saturday night, Moore tosses pasta in the kitchen and receives compliments from a group celebrating their friend’s birthday. From the bar, Britton spots a couple toasting to their wedding anniversary. While Britton and Moore find joy in surprising their guests with current creations, what they love most is seeing how their guests surprise them. “We were so focused on our neighborhood here when we started,” Moore says. “Now, we see guests coming from all over the state to celebrate big life moments with us. We are honored by that trust.”

Spaghett
224 W 10th Street
Charlotte, NC 28202
(980) 202-1088
restaurantspaghett.com