The Chefs Behind Customshop and Ariete Join Forces in Charlotte

Longtime friends Andres Kaifer and Michael Beltran will open Roe & Olivia’s, a contemporary American restaurant named for their daughters.

By Eric Barton
7:49 a.m. ET, Aug. 19, 2026

AUTHOR BIO: Eric Barton is editor of The Adventurist and a freelance journalist who has reviewed restaurants for more than two decades. Email him here.

After chefs Michael Beltran and Andres Kaifer met in 2015, they became close enough that Kaifer held his wedding at Beltran’s restaurant. Eventually, their first daughters were born just hours apart on the same day. A decade into the friendship, the chefs are now putting the girls’ names above the door.

Kaifer, the chef-owner of Customshop in Charlotte, and Beltran, the Miami chef behind Ariete and Chug’s Diner, plan to open Roe & Olivia’s in Charlotte’s Lower South End later this year. The 3,644-square-foot restaurant will occupy the former Giovanna’s space on Dewitt Lane, with approximately 120 seats split between the dining area and patio.

Chicken poussin at Ariete

The partnership gives Charlotte a restaurant shaped by two chefs with distinct styles but considerable common ground. Both grew up in Miami in families with Cuban and Spanish roots, and Roe & Olivia’s will serve contemporary American food influenced by that heritage and North Carolina’s growing seasons. Early dishes they’re working on include empanada gallega and lamb neck rotolo, although the complete menu will be announced closer to opening.

There’s a personal reason I’m interested in this one: Kaifer and Beltran are responsible for restaurants that count among my favorites in their respective cities. Customshop has become one of my regular recommendations in Charlotte, while Ariete and Chug’s sit on the short list of Miami restaurants I return to whenever possible.

Kaifer

“Opening a restaurant with someone I consider a brother is a dream,” Kaifer said. “Michael and I have co-consulted on quite a few restaurants over the years, and we realized we should unite and build something for our families. I’ve always loved working alongside Michael, and partnering in this way is the ultimate collaboration.”

Beltran

Emmy Lou's Wine Bar Restaurant Charlotte Chef Adriana Cavazos

Pan con tomate at Emmy Lou's

Kaifer took ownership of the nearly two-decade-old Customshop in 2022, introducing menus that combine Latin and Italian influences with ingredients from Carolina farms and purveyors. The restaurant earned a recommendation in the Michelin Guide’s inaugural American South edition. He and business partner Alex Bridges also operate Emmy Lou’s, a wine bar in Charlotte’s Dilworth neighborhood that recently landed on our list of Charlotte’s best restaurants.

Beltran opened Ariete in Coconut Grove in 2016, filtering his Cuban-American upbringing through the techniques of fine dining. The restaurant has maintained a Michelin star since Florida’s guide debuted in 2022. His Ariete Hospitality Group also operates the Cuban-American Chug’s Diner, Brasserie Laurel, The Taurus, and others.

At Roe & Olivia’s, the chefs want enough flexibility for a solo cocktail, a weekday business dinner, or a table working through dinner and several bottles of wine. The ambitions are substantial, even if the origin story is domestic: two Miami families, two daughters born on the same day, and a friendship finally getting its own restaurant.