There is no love like that of a grandmother. For many, that love is often shared by something we all need to live: food
To this day, I can still remember the taste of my Grandma Eula’s chili, even though she has been gone more than 20 years. And in one New York restaurant, Enoteca Maria, they are determined to capture that feeling of home and love by employing the best chefs they could find – grandmothers.
Located in Staten Island, N.Y., restaurant Enoteca Maria’s goal was that everyone would want that thing only a grandmother can give: a heartfelt meal full of lessons on their culture and life.
The restaurant’s owner, Joe Scaravella, started the project in part to honor his own Italian heritage and his nonna, mother and sister who have all since passed.
“Many times, these women are empty nesters, their husbands have passed away. Their children have moved out,” Scaravella told Today. “So, they’re really looking for an outlet and they have it here. And you know, if they’re not hugging me, they’re hugging their customers.”
When Scaravella opened the restaurant, he decided to name it in his mother Maria’s honor.
It was grief-driven and I had no business plan. I had no experience. I never even worked in a restaurant, no idea what I was doing. And so it just kind of unfolded,” Scaravella said.
“We are not chefs. We are just grandmothers (who are) sharing our culture,” Maral Tseylikman said. Maral has worked at the restaurant for more than 7 years.
The restaurant uses a revolving group of grandmothers – or nonnas (the Italian word for grandmothers) – to work as chefs each week. The idea is that they will showcase the meals they have been making for their own families for decades.
The restaurant has a dedicated Italian menu, but a rotating one based on which grandmothers are cooking that evening. Then it will include a variety of food from that nonna’s culture.
Three of Enoteca Maria’s grandmotherly staff: Maral Tseylikman from Azerbaijan, May “Dolly” Joseph from Sri Lanka and Maria Gialanella from Italy. Photo by Today
“I’m making lasagna. I’m making meatball. I’m making rabbit. I’m making so much fish, everything,” Maria Gialanella told Today.
Additional chefs include grandmothers Tseylikman from Azerbaijan, Gialanella from Italy, and May “Dolly” Joseph from Sri Lanka. Each one of these ladies has been serving dishes from its kitchen for at least seven years, with Gialanella boasting a decade of service.
For the group, they said, the job is more than just cooking for others, it’s about bringing happiness to others and gaining friendship.
“Meeting people from different countries … there are so many people who come here from different countries. They hear about this place, and they come,” Joseph said.
Habiba Hachemi from Algeria seen in one of two kitchens of Enoteca Maria. Photo by Getty
And while customers from all over the world visit Enoteca Maria, the kitchen is also full of employees who have come from all across the world as well: Bangladesh, Algeria, Trinidad, Syria, Argentina, the Dominican Republic, Japan, Belarus, Poland, France and quite a few from Italy.
“Everybody, they’re kissing me. They wanna make a photograph with me,” Gialanella said. “Everybody say, ‘Oh, I love you, I’ll come again. I wanna see you again.’”
And yet, the nonnas all say they have made sure their own families have learned to cook and love making food for their families, as well.
“My son really like to cook,” Gialanella said.
My son, oh, fuhgeddaboudit.”
“My granddaughter, she was even about three years, and she crack eggs like professional,” Tseylikman said, laughing.
Watch the amazing nonnas prepare food with love, below.
