There is something very special about Grandma’s cooking. It may not be the fanciest or the most experimental, but it’s as though you can taste the love in every bite.
Maybe it’s just that the secret ingredient is nostalgia, but nostalgia is a very powerful thing.
And one restaurateur is took his love of his own grandmother’s cooking and used it to inspire a unique dining experience in NYC.
Jody Scaravella grew up in a tight-knit Italian family in Brooklyn and it was his Nonna Domenica that took charge of the family’s meals.
“Nonna” is the Italian word for “Grandmother.”
Enoteca Maria, his restaurant in Staten Island, is Scaravella’s way of keeping the spirit of her food alive.
It began as a purely Italian nonnas, cooking classic Italian family dishes, but it didn’t take long for him to realize that it wasn’t just nostalgic Italians visiting the restaurant.
Despite coming from a variety of cultures, all of his customers were there to enjoy the comfort of a grandmother’s cooking.
Remembering how much his own nonna was integral to his appreciation of Italian food and culture, Scaravella decided to expand his menu with a project called “Nonnas of the World.”
He began finding grandmothers throughout the New York area to staff his kitchen.
Every night the menu changes, as two nonnas take over the kitchen. One is always Italian and the other from a different culture. They work together and learn from each other, creating cultural classics and new blended dishes.
Restaurant kitchens are notorious for being grueling work, and Scaravella ensures his nonnas aren’t taken advantage of.
The regular crew of Italian nonnas rotates shifts to avoid overwork and most of the others only work one or two days per month.
The restaurant has a roster of 30-40 grandmothers cooking food from all around the world.
They even teach one-on-one cooking classes, which are so popular that there’s a huge waiting list, with bookings being made months in advance.
Continuing the cultures and traditions of nonnas worldwide has become Scaravella’s passion.
He’s created an online, virtual cookbook also called “Nonnas of the World,” which fittingly features Nonna Domenica on the cover.
The cookbook brings together food and stories from around the world.
People to submit a short bio about their nonna alongside one of her best recipes. Many are written in the nonna’s native language.
I’m definitely going to take a closer look at a few of those recipes.
h/t: The Metro
