Brenda Vaccaro – ALLIANCE OF WOMEN FILM JOURNALISTS

NONNAS – Review by Susan Granger

May 28, 2025May 28, 2025 Susan Granger Brenda Vaccaro, Drea de Matteo, Enoteca Maria, Jody Scaravella, Joe Manganiello, Karen Giordano, Linda Cardellini, Liz Maccie, Lorraine Bracco, netflix, Nonnas, Stephen Chbosky, susan sarandon, Talia Shire, vince vaughn

Feel-good films are few and far-between these days, so discovering Nonnas was an unexpected delight. Nonnas was inspired by the true story of Jody Scaravella who, after the death of his mother, opened a restaurant called Enoteca Maria. Always captivated by watching his Italian mother and grandmother (‘nonna’) in the kitchen, the words of comfort that touched inconsolable Joey (Vince Vaughn) the most were: “You need to feed your grief. It’s your only way through.” .A middle-aged M.T.A. mechanic living in Brooklyn, Joey knew nothing about opening and running a restaurant when he impulsively bought the run-down Staten Island property in 2007 and recruited four elderly ‘nonnas’ to cook authentic, traditional Italian dishes.

Reviews

NONNAS – Review by Lynn Venhaus

May 9, 2025May 11, 2025 Lynn Venhaus Brenda Vaccaro, Drea de Matteo, Enoteca Maria, grandmothers as the cooks, Jody Scaravella, Joe Manganiello, Karen Giordano, Linda Cardellini, Liz Maccie, Lorraine Bracco, netflix, Nonnas, Stephen Chbosky, susan sarandon, Talia Shire, vince vaughn

Lasagna Della Nonna, Polla Alla Cacciatora, Polpetta, Burrata and Capuzzelle are on the menu at Enoteca Maria. On screen, in the charming Nonnas, you can imagine smelling the basil and garlic, and tasting a flavorful meal that will feed your soul, made from time-honored family recipes. To honor his mother and grandmother, Jody Scaravella wanted to share the pleasures of Italian American cuisine at a restaurant where breaking bread would create a sense of home. The comedy Nonnas is based on his bumpy true story of opening a convivial trattoria on Staten Island in 2007, with a lively group of local grandmothers as the cooks.