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Where All The Chefs Are Grandmas

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Dec 09, 2019
Where All The Chefs Are Grandmas

Jody Scaravella is a second-generation New York Italian.  He grew up eating his grandmother's Italian cooking, in Brooklyn, on a block with 15 other kids, all Italian.

When Jody lost his grandma, his mom, and his sister within a few years, he opened a restaurant in their honor, as a way of dealing with the grief. But the restaurant, Enoteca Maria, had a twist: the chefs were all Italian grandmas, or nonnas. After a few years, Jody started inviting grandmas from all over the world to cook at his restaurant.

Today at Enoteca Maria, the grandmas are the stars of the kitchen, and the place provides its own kind of therapy for everyone.

In this week's show, we visit Enoteca Maria's annual holiday party, one of the few days when all the nonnas come together. (That's Jody above, and the scene at the party below.) Dan is beseiged on all sides by grandmas trying to feed him, and we find out whether the restaurant has done for Jody what he hoped it would.

Interstitial music in this episode by Black Label Music:

  • "Call" by Nona Invie
  • "Saturn Returns" by Ken Brahmstedt
  • "Mouse Song Light" by Ken Brahmstedt
  • "Still In Love With You" by Steve Sullivan
  • "Brand New Day" by Jack Ventimiglia

Photo courtesy of Enoteca Maria.

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