Cinalli's Italian Pop-Up Brings Handmade Pasta, Family Recipes to Pensacola

Jenna Jarman opened Cinalli's at Central Station Commissary, 180 E. Burgess Road, Suite D in Pensacola on March 20, bringing handmade pasta and family recipes to the city through a to-go pop-up rooted in her late grandmother Gambardello's kitchen traditions.

The concept has been decades in the making. Jarman first stepped into Gambardello's kitchen at age 5, and by around age 10 she was learning to form pasta by hand the old-fashioned way. Over a decade ago she began collecting those recipes with the intention of publishing a family cookbook, but her family ultimately steered her toward something bigger: a business that could feed more people, which they believe was what Gambardello loved most.

"That's the reason I do it, is for her," Jarman said.

Even after mastering the techniques, Jarman holds that her handmade pastas will never quite compare to Gambardello's. Her mother provided the final push to open under Gambardello's name and in her honor, and what emerged is Cinalli's: painstakingly labor-intensive, scratch-prepared pasta dishes packaged as takeout meals for families to bring home.

Cinalli's is currently open Fridays from noon to 6 p.m. out of Central Station Commissary. Jarman plans to expand to additional days within that same noon-to-6 window once she builds her clientele base. A food truck is the longer-term goal, but the commissary gave her the right place to launch.

Jarman has described handmade pasta as an asset to the Pensacola area and frames the work as her love language: making nourishing meals for others. For updates on hours and menu, follow Cinalli's on social media.