It’s amazing how some places get viral on the internet, right? Here in New York, this is very common. Several places become very famous for their popularization on the internet: be it for the privileged location, the cute decoration, the unusual theme or a different dish. With the advent of quick videos on Facebook, everyone has discovered more and more places. This year, Enoteca Maria was one of the places that were news because of these videos. This is a restaurant here in the city that hires grandmas for cooking.
When these videos got viral, it seems like it’s something new, right? But the truth is that Enoteca Maria has been in the business for about 10 years. And what makes the place special? His proposal: the chefs are not famous. They are grandmothers. And who does not like grandma’s food? I have so many memories of Sunday lunches at my grandmother’s house … A lot of food, the homemade bread, the polenta … It is for fiddling with these memories of the people that Enoteca Maria succeeds. In the beginning, all the nonnas – as the chefs are called affectionately called – were Italian. The owner recruited them through advertisements in Italian newspapers. Then the idea expanded: each day a nonna of different nationalities commands the kitchen, with the specialties of her country of origin.
Curious about the place and attracted by the differentiated proposal, we went to check the restaurant closely last Saturday. The restaurant is super simple. We were lucky, since we did not make a reservation and the place was completely booked. The owner, Jody Scaravella, offered us two seats at the counter, and we sat right there. Scaravella is the one who takes care of the reservations, the old fashioned way – he manages everything in a notebook. With a device attached to the ear, he answers the calls and it manages the schedules of the restaurant.
O espaço do restaurante não tem firulas. De fato, não há muitas mesas disponíveis e dá para ver a nonna trabalhando na cozinha. No dia que estivemos lá, era uma ucraniana que estava cozinhando e o menu inclui as especialidades do dia. Dentre as opções, escolhemos o ravióli de batata, com bacon e cebola salpicada. Do menu tradicional, escolhemos uma entrada de cogumelo (U$17) e uma lasanha com molho branco (U$23). Pão com antepasto é cortesia da casa. Nós dividimos tudo – porém, só a lasanha já teria sido suficiente para nós dois. O prato era muito bem servido. E, claro, tudo delicioso, com aquele sabor caseiro. A gente amou, saímos super satisfeitos. E a sensação era de que estávamos em casa. Fomos super bem atendidos! No site do restaurante, dá para conferir o menu completo e também o calendário de nonnas.
The space of the restaurant is not fancy. In fact, there are not many tables available and you get to see the nonna working in the kitchen. The day we were there, it was a Ukrainian lady who was cooking and the menu included some specials of the day. Among the options, we chose the potato ravioli, with bacon and onion sprinkled. From the traditional menu, we chose a mushroom appetizer ($ 17) and a lasagna Bianca ($ 23). Bread and antipasto were courtesy of the house. We shared everything – but the lasagna would have been enough for both of us. The dish was very well served. And of course, all delicious, with that homemade flavor. We loved it, we left super satisfied. And the feeling was that we were at home. The service was amazing. On the website, you can check the complete menu and also the nonnas’ calendar.
Enoteca Maria is located in Staten Island. It is not the closest restaurant to have lunch or dinner in New York, but it is an option to stretch the ride after taking the Staten Island Ferry – the free boat that attracts many tourists because of the Statue of Liberty view (post with video here on the blog).
The restaurant is open from Wednesday to Sunday, from 3 pm – with the nonna of the day. It also opens for lunch from noon to 3 pm, from Wednesday to Friday.
Address: 27 Hyatt Street – 5 minutes walking from Staten Island ferry station. Call to make a reservation! (718) 447-2777.
Laura Peruchi is a Brazilian blogger, author, and entrepreneur. She has lived in Manhattan with her husband since 2014. Since then, she has shared on her blog varied content about the Big Apple. From travel tips, including unusual things to do, shopping tips, etiquette, restaurants, and a lot more, her blog has become a reference in Portuguese (also available in English) for anyone planning a trip to New York City.
