New York restaurant’s menu changes every night but one secret ingredient always makes it feel like home

In Staten Island, a quiet corner of New York hides one of the most unique dining experiences in the country. At Enoteca Maria, the kitchen isn’t run by professionally trained chefs but by grandmothers, each representing a different country, culture, and culinary heritage, according to the Great Big Story. Jody Scaravella, the restaurant's founder, opened Enoteca Maria in 2007 as a personal response to grief after losing his mother and grandmother. Hoping to recreate the warmth of his family’s kitchen, Scaravella originally invited Italian housewives to cook the meals they made growing up, as per HuffPost.

But he quickly saw something bigger in the idea. He told Great Big Story, "Every culture was coming to the restaurant to celebrate these Italian grandmothers. So I thought to myself, how nice would it be if we celebrated everybody’s culture?" That idea evolved into "Nonnas of the World," a rotating roster of grandmothers who now cook at the restaurant three nights a week. There are more than 30 nonnas, ages 50 to 91, from countries including Japan, Peru, Argentina, Egypt, Russia and Sri Lanka, as per PEOPLE. Each night features one Italian nonna and one from another heritage, offering guests a dual taste of tradition.

Scaravella explained, “Most of these ladies, their husbands have passed away, and the children have grown up and moved out. They’re packed with culture, and they need an outlet. And that’s what we do: we provide that outlet.” One of the nonnas, Sahar Amien, 59, originally from Alexandria, Egypt, said, “Food in so many cultures is like a love letter. Here, I feel like I made something new, and they appreciate it. I am so happy when I come here. It’s a different day in my life, like they give me power,” as reported by USA Today. The sentiment is echoed by others, including May "Dolly" Joseph, 71, from Sri Lanka. She said, “They say, 'Oh, it was so good.' It makes me feel really happy, out of this world.”

For Scaravella, watching the grandmothers thrive in the kitchen and seeing how deeply customers connect to the experience has been restorative. "It was great therapy for me. The people who come in, many of them have lost their grandparents, and somehow, some way, it’s relatable. Once you get that connection going, and if the food is good, it works out," he said. That connection is real for customers like Soleil Sabalja, a high school teacher from Manhattan. She said, "I just cried with nonna because she reminds me of my grandma. Just nonna coming over and holding my hand, what restaurant are you ever going to go to where the chef is going to hold your hand and hug you and tell you her personal story? It's only a place that a grandma would run."

Another diner, Sarah Frierson, described being greeted by 88-year-old Maria Gialanella, one of the Italian nonnas who often circulates the dining room. She said, "I don’t live close to my grandparents, so the feeling of Maria greeting us as we came in just made me feel like, 'Oh my gosh, she’s like my own grandmother.'" The restaurant invites patrons to slow down, savor meals made by hand, and hear the stories behind them. Scaravella said, "It brings us all together. My idea is to celebrate the diversity instead of using that diversity to divide us."