The phrase "Just like grandma used to make" is much more than a clever advertising scheme, it's literally what's happening at Staten Island's Enoteca Maria, where the kitchen's staffed by a fleet of "nonnas" from around the world. Jody Scaravella has opened his kitchens to grandmothers cooking the cuisines of their native countries--not just Italian grandmothers, but he has since expanded to include dozens of women from places like Argentina, Algeria, Syria, the Dominican Republic, Poland, Liberia, and Nigeria.
It started with an ad in an Italian newspaper seeking "Italian housewives to cook regional dishes," but over time, his roster has grown by references and word of mouth. "I talked to everybody when somebody gets in, we talk about the concept, I always ask them if you know somebody who wants to cook," he said. "The concept has just mushroomed."
While the nonnas are the big draw, the restaurant also employs one male "nonno," Giuseppe Freya from Calabria, who makes all the pasta. "He makes the raviolis, he makes the ricotta gnocchi, he makes tagliatelle, he makes the pasta sheets for our lasagna," Scaravella explained. "He's fantastic."
Here is how some media have covered this wonderful story: