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Mail & Guardian
22-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Mail & Guardian
Come home to Mama's
Buon appetito!: Chef Ashton Frodsham and his team took weeks to work out the menu at Pink Mama's, which uses seasonal ingredients. Photo: Taff Studios I recently watched a heartwarming film on Netflix called Nonnas. It follows the story of Joe Scaravella who, after his beloved grandmother dies, finds a way to reconnect with her memory through food. He stumbles through recreating some of her recipes, half remembered and half improvised, and in the process, stirs up more than just pasta. He stirs up a dream. Instead of using his inheritance to settle his debts, Joe chooses to honour his grandmother differently — by opening a traditional Italian restaurant. But here's the twist — he staffs his kitchen with grandmothers, or nonnas, from different parts of Italy, many of whom were his grandmother's friends. These are women who bring more than just recipes to the kitchen; they bring heart, stories and memory, folded gently into each lasagne layer and stirred into every pot of marinara sauce. As I watched this, I couldn't help but think, 'What if we had something like this in South Africa? What if food could be more than an Instagrammable plate, more than a fleeting trend — what if it could be a bridge between generations, a celebration of memory and culture?' A few days later, the universe responded. I found myself walking up to a pink house in Rosebank — yes, an actual house painted the softest, dreamiest shade of pink. It felt like stepping into a postcard. This was Pink Mama's, a new Italian restaurant that has been creating ripples across Johannesburg's food scene. I had to see it for myself. Now, Joburg's restaurant culture is many things: vibrant, fast-paced, ever-changing. But, often, it can also feel manufactured. Places open with more attention paid to photo backdrops than flavour profiles. We're served dishes that look like heaven but taste like disappointment. Pink Mama's was different. I spoke to Ashton Frodsham, the general manager and creative mind behind the menu. 'People are really loving our restaurant,' he told me. 'It's a quaint old home, so it does have that homely feel to it. 'We hand-selected all the furniture, as well as the cutlery and glassware. It really does feel homely.' A taste of Italy: Pink Mama's, which is located in a house that's painted pink in the Johannesburg suburb of Rosebank, offers authentic Italian cuisine, reminiscent of that offered in the film Nonnas. Photo: Taff Studios He wasn't exaggerating. The moment you step feels like someone's memory brought to life. The tiled floors, vintage portraits, vibrant colour profiles — it felt like Nonna's house, but with Joburg flair. As I sat in the middle of the restaurant, soaking it all in, a moment happened that felt like a scene pulled right from Nonnas. An elderly white man, cardigan casually draped over his shoulder, his accent thick with Italian warmth, approached my table. 'Can my wife and I join you?' he asked, before turning and calling out to her across the room, without waiting for my response. She gently declined and called him back with the kind of familiarity that only years of marriage can build. He smiled, apologised and returned to his table. And there it was — an accidental moment of community, of curiosity, of cultural overlap. A moment that made me wonder, if I were in a small village in Italy, wouldn't this have been completely normal? That interaction, brief and whimsical, stayed with me. Then came the food. I ordered their 50-layer lasagne. Yes, clichéd — but also a necessary test. If an Italian restaurant can't get the lasagne right, then what are we even doing? They nailed it. Each layer was soft but structured, the pasta cooked to perfection. The marinara, a sauce that often risks being too acidic, was mellow, sweet and tangy in the most balanced way. The meat was seasoned with care, generous but not overwhelming. It melted in my mouth, and with each bite, I found myself smiling. The portion? Enormous. And yet, I couldn't stop. I took the leftovers home, but even on the drive back, all I could think about was getting home to finish it. And when I did, I was not disappointed. Frodsham told me the menu took four weeks to develop and months to refine with the staff. 'Most of the dishes are meals I've cooked for my own family and friends. Food is central to who we are. When we travel, we go looking for meals that will inspire our next home-cooked dish,' he said. He also mentioned something that impressed me — the menu changes with the seasons. If an ingredient isn't in season, that dish disappears, making room for fresher, more inspired offerings. It's a level of respect for both the diner and the ingredients that's rare in our food scene. I ended my meal with a virgin mojito — refreshing and simple. As I left, I couldn't help but feel excited. About Pink Mama's, about what's possible in our city, and about the ways food can bring us home — even if that home is someone else's, on another continent. Pink Mama's gave me a taste of Italy in Johannesburg. But more than that, it gave me a glimpse into what's possible when restaurants are built on memory, meaning and love. Just like Nonnas. And maybe one day we'll have our own version of it here, staffed by gogos, cooking recipes passed down through generations. Food with a heartbeat.
Metro
21-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Metro
‘Heartwarming' new comedy storms up Netflix chart with staggering 20m views
To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video A heartwarming comedy with a star-studded cast has soared to the top of the Netflix charts, claiming more than 20million views in the last few days. Nonnas was released on the streaming platform on May 9, starring Vince Vaughn as New Yorker Joe Scaravella who, grieving his mother's death, decides to open an Italian restaurant based on family recipes. He plugs all his money into building the eatery in Staten Island, hiring local grandmothers as the chefs. The feel-good flick is based on the true story of Enoteca Maria owner Joe Scarvella, with Susan Sarandon, Lorraine Bracco, Talia Shire, Linda Cardellini, Joe Manganiello and Drea de Matteo among the cast. Nonnas clearly made an impression on fans and has shot up to claim the top spot with a whopping 20million views in the last week, with 38million hours watched. Wake up to find news on your TV shows in your inbox every morning with Metro's TV Newsletter. Sign up to our newsletter and then select your show in the link we'll send you so we can get TV news tailored to you. It beat out stiff competition from chilling true crime film A Deadly American Marriage, Havoc, Untold: The Liver King and Inside Man: Most Wanted – the 2019 sequel to Denzel Washington's hit action flick. Instant Family, Home, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, It Takes Two and High Plains Drifter also make up the top 10 list. The new release also impressed critics, scoring a critics Rotten Tomatoes score of 81%, compared to a slightly less audience ranking of 74%. Sharing her thoughts on the platform, Jackie M praised: 'This was just a heart warming film. Every scene was just wonderful. It had comedy to it and that made it perfect.' 'Such a well written story will bring back feelings of nostalgia,' Chris M agreed. 'Award winning cast makes you feel like you are part of the story. 'So great to watch a movie that's funny, touching, and emotional. What a wonderful movie.' Tom Q commented: 'I watched this on a whim and was totally sucked in. In this nasty crazy world we currently live in, a get in you in all the feels movie is just what the doctor ordered. 'Great cast, moving story, now if they could just figure out how to add smell to a television this movie would have us all on our way to Staten Island. Spend 2 hours with the Nonnas you won't regret it.' More Trending 'A refreshing movie that I believe will be a classic. So well done and uplifting in every way and just touched my heartstrings,' Elizabeth M said. 'A must-see that I continue to think about and thoroughly enjoyed.' As Rhyan D added: 'A movie that feels like a warm hug. Great story about how food can be the language of love in a family!' The official synopsis reads: 'After the loss of his mother, a man risks everything to honor her by opening an Italian restaurant with a group of local grandmothers as the chefs.' Nonnas is available to stream on Netflix now. Got a story? If you've got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the entertainment team by emailing us celebtips@ calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our Submit Stuff page – we'd love to hear from you. MORE: Disney Plus quietly adds 'masterpiece' compared to one of Netflix's best shows MORE: Netflix fans are binge-watching 'unbelievable' thriller soaring up the chart MORE: ITV to finally air 'ridiculous' series that was pulled from screens 2 years ago
Yahoo
18-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
In "Nonnas," recipes are love letters
Everyone has a nostalgia-soaked dish from childhood they wish they could recreate. But for one reason or another — a discontinued ingredient, a lack of skill, no written recipe, or a recipe riddled with 'grandmother measurements' (a pinch of this, an eyeball of that) — it remains just out of reach. You might land on something intoxicatingly close, but still frustratingly lacking. Grandmothers, after all, are notorious for secret ingredients, something to make their cannelloni stand out from all the other nonnas on the block. Trying to erase the space between the version we remember and the version we make often becomes one way to honor their love after they're gone. That tension, that ache, underpins the opening of 'Nonnas,' the new Netflix film from director Stephen Chbosky and writer Liz Maccie. Inspired by the real-life story of Joe Scaravella — who opened Staten Island's Enoteca Maria in honor of his late mother, with a rotating cast of real grandmothers as chefs — the film reframes food not as metaphor, but memory. We begin in Brooklyn, 40 years ago. A young boy, Joe, rushes to grab a number at an Italian bakery as the camera glides through a 'Chef's Table'-style symphony of sweets: a cannoli being filled, a tiramisu being dusted, cases of pignoli, red-and-green Neapolitan cookies, steaming zeppole. At home, Sunday dinner is underway. Joe's mother and grandmother are hand-cutting fresh fettuccine, simmering Sunday gravy with torn basil. (When Joe asks how much to use, she shrugs and says, 'You feel in your heart. You put in your heart.') The table is soon heaving with plates of meatballs, crystal bowls of grated Parm, trays of lasagna with crisped edges. There's wine, children, arguments over whether it's called sauce or gravy and a yellow-and-white gingham Mr. Coffee percolator — just like the one that sat in my grandmother's kitchen. It's all sunlit, noisy, and full of life. A moment that feels like it could stretch on forever. As Joe's grandmother says, 'No one grows old at the table.' But of course, it doesn't last. We shift forward 40 years. Joe (played by Vince Vaughn), now older, sits at his mother's wake. The table is full again — spinach-and-ricotta stuffed shells, scungilli with 18 cloves of garlic, cassatas — but this time, it's sympathy food. His mother is gone, and her sauce is, too. In his grief, Joe tries to make it himself, alone in his dark kitchen. The attempt falls short. It's beautiful. It's sad. And that's just the first nine minutes of the film. Because here's the thing, in 'Nonnas,' food isn't a revelation. It's a reality. From the very first scene — hands deep in dough, conversation unfolding not in words but in glances and gestures — the film operates on the quiet assumption that food has always been a bridge between people. A vessel for memory. A balm for grief. This isn't one of those stories where, three-quarters of the way through, someone realizes that Mom's blackberry pie was the key to healing all along. There's no culinary epiphany waiting in the wings. The women in 'Nonnas' already know what food can do. They live it. They've lived it. The drama isn't in discovering food's power—it's in reckoning with its limits. What happens when cooking together doesn't solve the hurt? When feeding someone can't undo what's been lost? The film doesn't pretend that food can heal everything. But it suggests, with remarkable tenderness, that it might be enough to soften the sharpest parts. It's a love letter to food as a love letter. And like all the best love letters, it's rooted in attention. Not in grand declarations, but in presence. In watching closely and letting the details speak. 'If you saw Liz's script, the first three pages were like a phone book,' Chbosky told me via a Zoom call following the film's premiere. 'It was thick, full of detail about food. She was so specific in the way she described it. We had a wonderful DP, Florian Ballhaus, who did a great job and we even got a little extra resources to shoot some extra food, which made a big difference.' But honestly, Chbosky said, it was all about showing that kid's face in the first scene: Young Joe watching his mom and nonna in the kitchen. 'But honestly, it's all about showing that kid's face — just looking,' he continued. 'We all have that sense memory of the mystery of the kitchen, how something's happening that we don't understand. So we focus on Theo's (actor Theodore Helm's) face, looking at the pasta being rolled and cut, the mysteries being answered. You just have to show that face and the food, and the audience does the rest. Food is such a primal experience; if I asked anyone what they remember most from childhood, I guarantee food is part of those memories. You don't have to do much more, just show it because it's something we all share.' For Chbosky, whose past films include 'The Perks of Being a Wallflower' and 'Wonder,' the heart of the film is less about spectacle and more about specificity. 'The more specific you can be, oddly, the more universal the story becomes,' he said. And in 'Nonnas,' that specificity came straight from screenwriter Liz Maccie — who also happens to be his wife. Maccie describes herself as coming from a 'very loud, crazy Italian-American family' where food was central to everything, from Sunday dinners to funerals. 'For me, it's my aunt,' Maccie told me. 'She was really like my nonna. She was twenty years older than my mom and basically helped raise me. Her lasagna took three days to make. Literally. You'd hear these specific Tupperware containers coming out of the closet and think, 'Oh my God, it's lasagna.' The sauce, the noodles—it was a whole process. She put so much love and attention into it. And then it would take ten minutes to eat. It's a whole thing. Now, I make it once a year for my family on Christmas Eve. It's my kids' favorite.' That kind of memory — stamped with sound and scent, containers and care—carries with it a quiet truth: love was part of the recipe, yes, but so was labor. Nonnas doesn't shy away from that. The film reveres these women not for their perfection or their myth, but for their work. It lingers on their hands, their rituals, their fatigue. And in doing so, it offers something rare in mainstream movies: a cinematic thank-you to the women who fed us, who nurtured us, who gave so much of themselves to everyone else. It's nostalgia, yes, but it's also recognition. A celebration of love that was cooked, stirred and served warm. Over and over and over again. 'And it'll be their forever memory,' Chbosky added of the couple's children. 'Mom's Christmas Eve lasagna.' Maccie's obsession with detail didn't stop at the food. The dialogue about food is just as textured — funny, familiar and deeply specific. There's one line, for instance, where Vince Vaughn's Joe asks Lorraine Bracco's character, Roberta, about his grandmother's Sunday sauce. 'That's like asking to see a woman's mundate!' she snaps. The line feels lived-in because it is. 'That's how my family talked,' Maccie said, laughing. She gestured at Chbosky's Zoom square. 'He married into it. So he can attest to this. These people talk. With their hands. Loudly. If you didn't grow up in it, it probably seems totally cuckoo. And it is a little cuckoo. But when you're inside it, they just say the craziest, funniest things—especially in serious moments.' She paused, then added, 'We just laughed so much with each other. That's really what I drew from.' That sense of inherited joy — of language and legacy passed down through kitchens and car rides and Sunday sauce — brought 'Nonnas' to life. And working on the film deepened the bond between its married creators in ways neither of them expected. Maccie said collaborating on such a personal story reminded them what matters most: 'family,' she said. 'Not just the people you're related to, but also your friends, your neighbors, your community. Working on this movie together really strengthened those bonds. It's just beautiful.' Chbosky nodded. 'I can relate to that. And for me, I knew Liz wrote the movie as a love letter to her mom, her aunt and her family. And I directed it as my love letter to her. I don't know how many husbands get the chance to film their wife's family diary, but I did. And it made me appreciate Liz even more. There's just no way around it. It was really special.' "Nonnas" is now streaming on Netflix.
Yahoo
16-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
New On Netflix May 2025, Plus What's Coming Next
Netflix is showering you with terrific titles all May long, so get ready to check out the best movies and shows streaming now. You can count on Netflix to lead the way with incredible and innovative new content like Netflix Original movies Nonnas and Fear Street: Prom Queen, in addition to Netflix Original series The Four Seasons and Sirens, and so much more. Suppose you're trying to filter through all your options and decide what to watch on Netflix this month. In that case, you can also check out many other wonderful new Netflix Originals that you'll love, like movies A Deadly American Marriage, The Quilters, and Last Bullet, and shows Love, Death & Robots: Volume 4, Forever, and Blood of Zeus: Season 3. May's new releases are sure to become some of the most popular movies and shows on Netflix, so make sure to watch them before they're gone. All month long, people have been eagerly waiting to see what new titles would be coming to Netflix. From old classics to brand new films having their premieres, Netflix is full of top-notch movies, documentaries, and comedy specials this May, but there were two that in particular stuck out above the rest. Here are the best new movies on Netflix this month. If you're hungry for a heart-warming and hilarious movie based on a true story, then this Netflix Original comedy is definitely the title for you. Nonnas tells the tale of Joe Scaravella (Vince Vaughn), who puts his livelihood on the line to start up an Italian restaurant called Enoteca Maria in Staten Island in honor of his late mother. By hiring local grandmothers as chefs, Joe makes sure his food has the taste of an authentic home-cooked meal, all while adding warmth and fulfillment to his own life in the process. See Vaughn, Susan Sarandon, Lorraine Bracco, Talia Shire, Brenda Vaccaro, Linda Cardellini, Joe Manganiello, and more in Nonnas on Netflix when it premieres in early May. Celebrate prom season a little unconventionally in May with this latest installment of Netflix's Fear Street film series. Fear Street: Prom Queen is a slasher that revolves around Shadyside High's 1988 prom festivities. But the running for Prom Queen soon becomes literally cutthroat when an outsider makes herself a nominee alongside the school's vicious It Girls, and shortly thereafter, other candidates begin to mysteriously disappear, never to be seen again. Get in on all the thrilling action and drama by catching Fear Street: Prom Queen as soon as it drops this month, only on Netflix. This May, the shows on Netflix are more exciting than ever before, but two of those titles stand out above the rest. Here are some of the best new shows that Netflix is bringing your way this month. Adapted from the 1981 film of the same name, The Four Seasons is a Netflix Original comedy miniseries that follows three couples and longtime friends over the course of four different vacations. Over spring, summer, fall, and winter, we'll watch the friends as they navigate major life changes, shifting dynamics, and different relationships, culminating in a star-studded and emotionally rich show that's worth keeping an eye out for this month. Adapted from show creator Molly Smith Metzler's 2011 play Elemeno Pea, Sirens is a dark comedy miniseries that follows Devon DeWitt's (Meghann Fahy) attempts to stage an intervention for her younger sister Simone (Milly Alcock), who has an unhealthy obsession and relationship with her enigmatic new boss, Michaela Kell (Julianne Moore). But when Devon gets to the Kell family's luxe beach estate, she soon finds that the formidable Michaela and her cultish life are not to be trifled with. Immerse yourself in this engrossing new series as soon as it drops later in May, only on Netflix. New on Netflix this month – and what's coming next All the best movies on Netflix right now The top 10 movies on Netflix that are most popular right now Wondering what else you'll be able to watch on Netflix this month? Here's the full list of new movies and shows coming out on Netflix streaming in May 2025: Losmen Bu Broto: The Series (ID) *NETFLIX SERIES Lost in Starlight (KR) *NETFLIX FILM Mad Unicorn (TH) *NETFLIX SERIES Rhythm + Flow: Poland (PL) *NETFLIX SERIES Airport Airport '77 Airport 1975 Ali American Gangster American Graffiti Angi: Fake Life, True Crime (ES) *NETFLIX DOCUMENTARY Burn After Reading Constantine Crazy, Stupid, Love. Dawn of the Dead Eat Pray Love Hanna Home Mid90s Ocean's Eleven Ocean's Thirteen Ocean's Twelve Past Lives Sisters Starship Troopers The Biggest Fan (MX) *NETFLIX FILM The Four Seasons *NETFLIX SERIES The Equalizer 2 The Jerk The Lego Movie The Mule The Paper Tigers The Sugarland Express The Twilight Saga: New Moon The Twilight Saga: Eclipse The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn: Part 1 The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn: Part 2 Trainwreck Trolls Twilight Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit Peninsula Train to Busan Unseen: Season 2 (ZA) *NETFLIX SERIES Conan O'Brien: The Kennedy Center Mark Twain Prize for American Humor *NETFLIX COMEDY SPECIAL Britain and The Blitz (GB) *NETFLIX DOCUMENTARY Mighty Monsterwheelies: Season 2 *NETFLIX FAMILY The Devil's Plan: Season 2 (KR) *NETFLIX SERIES Untold: Shooting Guards *NETFLIX SPORTS FILM Full Speed: Season 2 *NETFLIX SPORTS SERIES Last Bullet (FR) *NETFLIX FILM Blood of Zeus: Season 3 *NETFLIX ANIME Forever *NETFLIX SERIES Heart Eyes Karol G: Tomorrow was Beautiful (CO) *NETFLIX DOCUMENTARY A Deadly American Marriage (GB) *NETFLIX DOCUMENTARY Bad Influence (ES) *NETFLIX FILM Nonnas *NETFLIX FILM The Royals (IN) *NETFLIX SERIES ABBA: Against the Odds Tastefully Yours (KR) *NETFLIX SERIES All American: Season 7 Bad Thoughts *NETFLIX SERIES Untold: The Liver King (GB) *NETFLIX SPORTS FILM American Manhunt: Osama bin Laden *NETFLIX DOCUMENTARY Fred and Rose West: A British Horror Story (GB) *NETFLIX DOCUMENTARY Married at First Sight: Season 17 Smile Snakes and Ladders (MX) *NETFLIX SERIES Bet *NETFLIX SERIES Love, Death & Robots: Volume 4 *NETFLIX SERIES Franklin (LB) *NETFLIX SERIES Pernille: Season 5 (NO) *NETFLIX SERIES Secrets We Keep (DK) *NETFLIX SERIES Thank You, Next: Season 2 (TR) *NETFLIX SERIES Vini Jr. (BR) *NETFLIX DOCUMENTARY Dear Hongrang (KR) *NETFLIX SERIES Football Parents (NL) *NETFLIX SERIES Rotten Legacy (ES) *NETFLIX SERIES The Quilters *NETFLIX DOCUMENTARY Sarah Silverman: Postmortem *NETFLIX COMEDY SPECIAL Untold: The Fall of Favre *NETFLIX SPORTS FILM Newly Rich, Newly Poor (CO) *NETFLIX SERIES Real Men (IT) *NETFLIX SERIES Sneaky Links: Dating After Dark *NETFLIX SERIES The UnXplained with William Shatner: Season 6 Sirens *NETFLIX SERIES Tyler Perry's She The People *NETFLIX SERIES Air Force Elite: Thunderbirds *NETFLIX DOCUMENTARY Big Mouth: Season 8 *NETFLIX SERIES Fear Street: Prom Queen *NETFLIX FILM Forget You Not *NETFLIX SERIES Off Track 2 (SE) *NETFLIX FILM Our Unwritten Seoul (KR) *NETFLIX SERIES The Wild Robot CoComelon: Season 13 *NETFLIX FAMILY Cold Case: The Tylenol Murders *NETFLIX DOCUMENTARY Mike Birbiglia: The Good Life *NETFLIX COMEDY SPECIAL F1: The Academy (GB) *NETFLIX SPORTS SERIES Dept. Q (GB) *NETFLIX SERIES A Widow's Game (ES) *NETFLIX FILM The Heart Knows (AR) *NETFLIX FILM Netflix Tudum 2025: The Live Event *NETFLIX LIVE EVENT Still wondering what Netflix content is on the horizon? Here are two buzz-worthy titles to look forward to watching on Netflix in June: Early June welcomes the highly anticipated return of this much-talked-about Netflix Original comedy-drama series. Ginny & Georgia: Season 3 picks back up with our titular mother-daughter duo, with scrappy 30-year-old mother Georgia Miller (Brianne Howey) now locked up for murder, and her 15-year-old daughter Ginny (Antonia Gentry) trying to navigate high school and family life in the fallout. This season brings new relationships, challenges, and heartaches for both Georgia and Ginny as they navigate their own familial bond as it becomes more complex than ever before. After a second season that left fans hungry for more content and answers, their wish will soon be granted as global phenomenon Squid Game returns for a third and final season in late June. The Netflix Original dystopian survival thriller series out of South Korea sees the show's protagonist Seong Gi-hun's (Lee Jung-jae) winding and strife-filled story through to the end as he directly faces off against his ultimate enemy, the Front Man (Lee Byung-hun), and tries to end his deadly games once and for all. See it all go down in Squid Game: Season 3 as soon as it drops next month, only on Netflix. Netflix's new releases are just a portion of the new movies and shows you can watch this month if you've got more than one streaming service subscription. We update our guides to the new releases on the most popular streaming platforms every month, so you can stay on top of the freshest titles to watch. Here are full lists, schedules, and reviews for everything streaming: New on Amazon Prime this month New on Hulu this month New on Disney+ this month New on HBO Max this month New on Starz this month New on BritBox this month New on Acorn TV this month New on Tubi this month New on Paramount+ this month New on Peacock this month
Time Out
10-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Time Out
‘Nonnas': behind the filming locations for the Netflix comedy
Dropping just in time for Mother's Day in the US, Nonnas is bound to have you rushing into the kitchen as soon as the credits roll. Based on a true story, the Netflix comedy follows a group of Italian grandmothers – affectionately dubbed 'nonnas' – who become chefs in a New York hotspot. The restaurant it's based on, Enoteca Maria, is usually fully-booked and now the popularity of Nonnas will only make it harder to secure a reservation. Here's all you need to know about the heartwarming movie. What's the true story behind Nonnas? Nonnas is based on the true story of Joe Scaravella, a transportation worker who opened a restaurant in Staten Island, New York, in 2007 after missing the home-cooked Italian dishes made by his grandmother. After falling into depression following several family deaths, Scaravella used inheritance money to buy the property that would soon become known as Enoteca Maria, a local hotspot where Italian grandmothers could share their culinary traditions and signature recipes with the rest of the neighborhood. Since 2015, Enoteca Maria – named after Scaravella's mother – has hired grandmothers from all over the world -– Japan, Poland, Ukraine, Greece, China and many other countries – who all bring their recipes to life alongside the Italian staples. While the four nonnas featured in the movie share many similar traits to the real-life chefs who launched the restaurant, they aren't directly based on them. Instead there were three original nonnas, who are all featured in Scaravella's cookbook Nonna's House. The original women were Carmelina Pica, Adelina Orazzo and Teresa Scalici, but Scaravella told Time that much of what happens in the movie took place in the real kitchen, including arguments over family recipes and a moment when one nonna prays for customers to show up. Their prayers were answered and business has never slowed down, something that is unlikely to change now the story has made it to screens. Can you visit the real Nonnas restaurant? Yes! But be warned, Enoteca Maria is so popular that securing a table can be like winning the lottery, although we have it on good authority that it's worth the wait. Located in Staten Island, New York, the restaurant is open from Friday through to Sunday and you can even order some of the same dishes featured in the movie, including the capuzzelle (lamb's head) or Scaravella's grandmother's famous Sunday Gravy. Enoteca Maria's menu has now expanded beyond its regular Italian fare, with nightly takeovers of different cuisines from across the world, as nonnas bringing their country's dishes to the dining hotspot. Check out the restaurant's website for more info, although to book a table you'll need to make a reservation over the phone. Who is in the cast of Nonnas? Vince Vaughn plays Joe, a native New Yorker who opens a restaurant after the passing of his beloved grandmother, in a bid to stay connected to those he's lost through the power of food. Linda Cardellini (Green Book) plays Olivia, Joe's estranged childhood sweetheart. The pair reconnect as Olivia helps Joe with the legal side of running a restaurant. Magic Mike's Joe Manganiello portrays Joe's long-time best pal Bruno. Susan Sarandon, Lorraine Bracco (Goodfellas), Talia Shire (Rocky), and Brenda Vaccaro (Gypsy) play the titular nonnas-turned-chefs, who each has their own reason for finding solace in the kitchen and friendship. Where was Nonnas movie filmed? Despite being set in Staten Island, most of the movie was actually filmed in New Jersey back in 2023. Specific locations include the Paterson district of New Jersey, including the Paterson Great Falls National Park. Other New Jersey filming locations included Judicke's Bakery in the Bayonne area. With the real restaurant, Enoteca Maria, still being a popular hotspot, filming for the restaurant scenes had to take place elsewhere. The crew recreated the restaurant at Spiritos, an Italian restaurant in Elizabeth, New Jersey, which opened in 1932 but closed doors in 2020 due to the pandemic. Scenes showing restaurant owner Joe Scaravella's other job as a transport officer were filmed at Raritan Valley Bus Station in Edison, New Jersey. Is there a trailer for Nonnas?
