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By Tiffany Garner
Staff Writer
Nonna’s Family Restaurant
in Belleville has more than just Italian food
they have cake.
Free cake that is - on Friday
September 17 the restaurant is celebrating its
third birthday and all customers receive a complimentary
slice of cake. In addition the restaurant will
also have $3 menu items such as spaghetti and
Broaster chicken and children eat free the entire
day with the purchase of an adult meal.
Other than the birthday celebration
people go to Nonna’s because of their reputation
according to owner Chris Mayer.
 “We
are very consistent with our food,” he said.
“That’s what people like. We make
sure that if someone comes in one day that it’s
made the same way the next day.”
All the food is homemade including
the soups and sauces.
“The restaurant is named
after my wife’s grandmother,” Chris
said. “Nonna means grandmother in Italian.
It’s fitting to be named after her because
we use her recipes for our Italian dishes. She
cooked real Sicilian meals.
Chris and his wife, Silvana,
who are the first generation born in America,
are happy to have a restaurant and hear many compliments
about Nonna’s recipes.
 Some
of Nonna’s menu items include a chicken
prosciutto made with a grilled chicken breast
topped with proscuitto ham, mushrooms, white wine
lemon butter sauce and provel cheese; a pasta
carbonara made with linguine noodles in a garlic
cream sauce with bacon and fresh mushrooms; a
Broaster chicken which is marinated overnight
then coated with a special seasoning and pressure
fried in Canola oil and a Chicago sandwich made
with grilled salsiccia and sliced beef piled on
a hoagie and topped with provel cheese. Not to
mention many other American favorites such as
hamburgers, French fries, club sandwiches and
steaks.
“We really wanted to
make this restaurant a place where families can
come and enjoy a nice home-cooked meal together,”
Chris said. “I believe in using all fresh
products and making the meals as soon as they
are ordered not before in batches.”
Nonna’s runs weekly lunch
and dinner specials that are constantly changing
but Chris said that there are usually at least
two options available plus soup. Lunch specials
usually range between $5.95 - $7.95 and dinner
specials costs $7.95 - $13.95 according to Chris.
Besides lunch and dinner Nonna’s
serves breakfast on the weekends.
“It’s a real old-fashioned
kind of breakfast with eggs, bacon, skillets and
platters,” Chris said.
Chris said that one of the
most popular dishes the restaurant serves for
dinner is the pasta con broccoli.
Manager Trish Mister said that
she enjoys working at the restaurant and really
likes the baked ravioli.
Nonna’s provides dine-in,
carryout and catering. “We cater all over
the place,” Chris said. “If people
want to use us for catering we set up a tasting
for them complimentary so they can choose what
they want for their event.”
Nonna’s is located at
4508 West Main Street in Belleville. The hours
are Monday – Friday 11 a.m. – 9 p.m.
Saturday 8 a.m. – 9 p.m. and Sunday 8 a.m.
– 7 p.m. To request a catering menu of for
carryout orders call (618) 222-9900 or visit www.nonascatering.com.
J. Hayden photos
E-mail:tgarner@yourjournal.com |
