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Posted on October 1, 2009 - by admin - (Comment * FaceBook It * Send to Friend)

Italy Spreads Enoteca’s International Appeal

The October 2009 issue of Io published in Milan, Italy features a recipe by Enoteca Maria’s very own Nina Picariolo and food styling and photography by Alma Benussi, also a cook at the restaurant.

Posted on September 24, 2009 - by admin - (Comment * FaceBook It * Send to Friend)

Restaurant Looking for Nonnas Who Cook

by Tevah Platt
STATEN ISLAND ADVANCE

St. George — Enoteca Maria is looking for a few good nonnas.
  
Since the St. George restaurant opened in 2007, it has capitalized on the behind-the-scenes talents of the Italian housewife.

A rotating staff of cooks—“ladies,” owner Joe Scaravella calls them—prepares dishes representing eight unique regions of Italy and anonymous, centuries-old recipes preserved along matrilineal lines.
   
The Enoteca is looking to cement its niche by hiring six new “grandmothers.”

“Everyone is looking for their grandmother’s cooking,” says the goateed, round-spectacled Scaravella, known for chatting with customers on the subject of wine. He refers to the mission in what he acknowledges is improper Italian: “guarde per nonna,” literally, “looking for grandma.”

Anna Maria (Nina) Picariolo of the Bronx, by way of Salerno, one of the eatery’s eight cooks who take turns as chef-of-the-day, joined the staff when she read about the restaurant’s opening in the Italian newspaper, Oggi. She starts her work day inventing a menu drawn from her region’s culinary traditions and the ingredients in the Enoteca refrigerator. Ms. Picariolo, who speaks Italian, said through a translator last week that Enoteca makes her happy because the menu never repeats. It’s wholly different from cooking at home, she said: “A casa – me no like.”
 
Each cook has a chance to showcase her skills and bask in patrons’ adoration.

“Adelena (Masana, of Naples) dotes on her husband and sons and I’m sure they complain, ‘Why didn’t you make this? This one has too much salt….” These women are easily taken for granted,” said Scaravella of one of his most prized chefs.

The proprietor is seeking cooks who would work about two days a month.

They needn’t be grandmothers, but they must bring their heritage to the table, Scaravella said.

The restaurant’s youngest cook by far is Alma Benussi, 26 and a dark-eyed beauty, who lives in Milan and visits the restaurant to cook for pleasure. Her cooking inspired Scaravella to write in his Facebook update: “If you close your eyes, you’ll swear that your grandma is cooking in the kitchen, and if you open them, you’ll see what she looked like 50 years earlier.”

The Enoteca opens around 3 and serves roughly 50 to 100 guests a night. The menu changes daily, but the frutta di mare salad and capozzelli (stuffed sheep’s head) are regular menu items.

The restaurant and its lineup of cooks will be featured on an upcoming episode of WABC-TV’s Rachael Ray Show on October 9.

“The ladies come in here and they get applause,” said Scaravella. “It’s about time they get credit for what they do.”
    
Tevah Platt covers the North and East shores of Staten Island. She can be reached at platt@siadvance.com.

Posted on June 25, 2009 - by admin - 1 comment

Fox & Friends Have Breakfast with Grandma

Fresh off the heels of the New York Daily News article about Enoteca Maria, producer Eric Krasting contacted Joe about doing a live broadcast from the restaurant with all the grandmas for the Fox & Friends morning cable show.

At 7:30am the Fox crew arrived. Upon seeing the special menu the nonnas had prepared for the broadcast, the producers had a sampling of the food taxied over to the studio for the show’s hosts, Gretchen Carlson, Steve Doocy, and Brian Kilmeade. The grandmothers dedicated a recipe to each of the three.

The show cut in live three times for a look at the grandmas preparing food and to interview Enoteca owner, Joe Scaravella. Visit the Fox & Friends website to see part of the broadcast!

The Fox & Friends Breakfast Menu.

Posted on June 21, 2009 - by admin - (Comment * FaceBook It * Send to Friend)

Home cooking with grandmas in the kitchen

By Christina Boyle
Daily News Staff Writer

A Staten Island restaurant with no head chef and no set menu is replacing “Bon Appetit” with “Mamma Mia!” The 35-seat Enoteca Maria takes home cooking to a whole new level by bringing in genuine Italian grandmothers to cook for customers. Each night, one of eight nonnas ties on an apron, checks out the ingredients in the refrigerator and rustles up a down-to-earth meal.

The women are from different regions of the pasta-loving nation who have no problem cooking restaurant-style after years of feeding big families. Tired of their husbands nitpicking over their specialties, they jumped at the chance to slave over a hot stove for grateful diners at the St. George eatery.

Read the whole story in the Daily News!

Cook Teresa Scalici at Enoteca Maria restaurant in Staten Island. Photo by James Kaivon/Daily News

Posted on June 15, 2009 - by admin - 1 comment

The Real Italian Housewives

By Amy Cao
OFF MANHATTAN

To surprise New Yorkers who have tasted it all, sometimes it takes a leap of faith—and a trip to Staten Island—to experience a meal that warms the belly and the soul. At Enoteca Maria, six women chefs (five of whom are also full time grandmas) from different regions of Italy take turns firing up the stove. What’s for dinner? Depends on who’s cooking and which ingredients nonna finds in the fridge. Goodbye, Predictability. Hello, Iron Chef: Italian Grandma.

Read the rest of the review at Off Manhattan.

Posted on May 13, 2009 - by admin - (Comment * FaceBook It * Send to Friend)

Celebrating the Wine Snob

A restaurant’s best friend is an educated customer.
By Pamela Silvestri
STATEN ISLAND ADVANCE

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — Today I’d like to salute Staten Islanders who enjoy their wine and want the best possible experience with it. By the way, if you fit into this category of customer, people in the food business think you’re a high maintenance type of diner. A bartender I once worked with called this class of customer a “wine snob,” a term that actually I think is rather flattering. After all, what wine snobs do is make a waiter work for his money.

If you’ve done tours in the front-of-the-house as a server or bartender, you can spot a wine snob a mile away. He’s the one who asks about selections by the glass and isn’t satisfied until the brand is disclosed. He might go so far as to peek behind the bar to make sure wine isn’t coming from a box, a magnum or — visible shudder — a tap system. And if a neighboring patron stinks of perfume — how can one taste what’s in the glass when there’s a mouthful of White Diamonds wafting into the glass at the same time? — he asks for a seat change or just quietly leaves the restaurant.

Of course, there is that silly behavior that gives oenophiles a bum rap. A patron whiffs the screw cap or plastic cork — the latter stoppers hail from pulverized cork mixed with plastic and glue — and perhaps makes a face. What could one possibly tell from sniffing materials that don’t necessarily absorb aroma? Oh, this drama of such wine-os makes for great war stories. And when a patron furiously swirls house bubbly such as Prosecco in a glass and declares it as “just OK” — swirling in this capacity shakes out the bubbles, goofy! — or complains about the wine selections but forgets to look around at the venue — uh, places that specialize in greasy burgers don’t necessarily have to carry wines above swill grade — rest assured that this pretentious dance will be the topic of later booze-fueled staff discussions.

Rest assured, the wine snob is a waiter’s best friend. He’s the one who increases check averages, perhaps orders more than a single bottle in one sitting and who will reward the staff handsomely when they do their homework. (Free tip: Customers appreciate waiters who steer them correctly).

It would be wonderful to see more restaurants do what Enoteca Maria in St. George does so well: Catering to some astute palates and pushing wine snobbery to the limits. Co-owner Jody Scaravella presents every wine on the list by the glass and by the bottle. The restaurant opens fresh bottles for customers who order vino by the glass. Good quality wine goblets are presented to guests whether they buy by the bottle or glass.

Note other restaurants such as Angelina’s in Tottenville reward guests with the better stemware only when customers order full bottles. I know a couple who brings their own stemware to restaurants that don’t supply decent glasses of their own.

It’s not so bad to be fussy about wine. And I think most restaurants should be putting much more thought into their selections by the glass. It’s 2009, after all, and I do think most Staten Islanders are fairly educated on the subject. At Jean’s Fine Wines in West Brighton, for instance, regular Friday night wine samplings bring out educated palates. The typical customer can describe wines with words like “buttery,” “barnyard,” “acidic” and the like.

At Basilio’s Inn in South Beach, owner Maurice Asperti, fusses over his wine selections. And it shows: His wine list features affordable decent bottles that he’s taken the time to test drive himself.

Several things could improve wine service on Staten Island, in my opinion. First, servers need to be educated on house pours. Wines shouldn’t be introduced as, “What’ll it be? Red or white?” Surely there’s a brand name associated with the wine. Wine discussions should happen at the restaurant pre-meal meeting. Second, customers can be more demanding on the subject and become, well, a wine snob of sorts. Start asking for the better stemware. Request that wine by the glass is served from a freshly opened bottle, especially if it’s early in the day and clear the bottle has been cracked the night before. Staten Islanders really need to fuss more over the standard pour.

Pamela Silvestri is the Advance food critic and Food editor. Her restaurant articles appear each Thursday in AWE, the Advance’s weekly entertainment section.

INFO BOX: Wine Etiquette Keep hands off the bowl of the glass. Wines can heat up from the action. Plus it leaves unsightly smudges on the glass. Don’t wear heavy perfume or cologne. It tinkers with fellow diners/winos taste buds. Ask questions. If you’re indulging on a bottle, say, that is more than three years old it’s not unreasonable to ask how the wine has been stored. Drink wines at the right temperature. Nonvintage bubbly, many Spanish and Italian whites, fino sherry, Manzanilla should be served well-chilled. Full-bodied whites (Chardonnay, Pinot Gris, some reds like Pinot Noir and Beaujolais) benefit from being cool, around 58 degrees. Medium to full-bodied reds and ports are ideal at room temperature.

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(Reprinted with permission from the Staten Island Advance)