After months of back and forth with their insurance company, chef Cristian Pontiggia announced this week that he and his partners will not reopen Sassella or The Deli at Sasella.
Pontiggia, currently a semifinalist for Best Chef Southwest by the James Beard Foundation, sent an email to patrons early Thursday morning that reads, in part: “It is with a heavy heart that we are announcing the closure of Sassella and The Deli at Sassella due to an unexpected and catastrophic water event in the restaurant.”
The email goes on to explain how the restaurant was forced to close on Dec. 13 of last year “due to structural damage” brought on by leaky water pipes beneath the restaurant that finally burst. Pontiggia spoke to SFR on Thursday, and explained he was told the damage could require digging six feet under the kitchen to resolve. In his email to patrons, Pontiggia explained how “efforts to achieve a favorable response” from their insurance provider have not achieved “a resolution that allows us to stay open.”
Dave Cathey
Signs like this one have been posted at Sassella since December of last year.
Pontiggia also wrote, “As much as we would love to reopen, the challenges of doing so are enormous and lengthy, and out of respect for our employees who have worked so hard for us over the years, we have made the impossibly difficult decision to let them move on with their lives.”
Sassella opened at 225 Johnson Street in the summer of 2019. The Deli opened in December of 2020. Chef Francisco Olea, winner of the Best Chef Southwest Award from the JBFA in 2022, was also a partner in the restaurant.
“It has been a great ride. We are proud of what we accomplished in five years despite the challenges of Covid,” Pontiggia wrote in Thursday’s email. “Sassella was the recipient of numerous awards and achieved recognition as not only one of Santa Fe's top restaurants for fine dining, but also one of the top destinations in the USA.”
The restaurant was named for the northern Italian town near where Pontiggia was born and raised. In addition to the current Beard nod, he’s worked at two Michelin Star awarded restaurants in Europe and is recognized by the Italian government as a Master Chef thanks to his culinary degree that certifies him as a Doctor of Oenogastronomy.
Pontiggia tells SFR he's remains thrilled about garnering a semifinalist nomination from the JBFA. Finalists will be announced April 2. He reiterated that "still, it feels great" to get the nomination, calling it recognition for his hard work.
In January Pontiggia, told SFR the nomination was about more than food: “It's about the collaborations you do—like, for me, I'm a big fan of working with the Cooking With Kids program...and I have some projects in my pocket I can't talk about yet."
The Cooking With Kids nonprofit aims to educate kids about healthier choices, as well as how to go about preparing them while connecting them with knowledgeable food pros, such as chefs like Pontiggia.
The chef tells SFR he will sign paperwork for a new unnamed food hall concept next week. Pontiggia described it as a side project due next year, but right now he has three outstanding offers he's weighing in Santa Fe.
"I'm not sure which one I'm gonna take," he tells SFR. "I've got a lot to think about. I'm very thankful to have these options."
