Enoteca Maria

I love the concept of having different Nonnas (grandmothers) from different parts of the world cooking their specialty. Our nonna was from Naples not only was she totally adorable, the food was amazing. Their menu was different and extensive. Enoteca Maria has food from the Nonna but also a regular Italian food menu. They had rabbit, beef tripe and half of a goats head on the menu. I kept asking my date if he wanted to be adventerous and he said «NO»! Oh well! I had the baked clams and the pasta ribbon with seafood. My date had the Fungi in Crosta which is Baked mushroom caps stuffed with roasted red peppers and zucchini, wrapped in a pastry shell and fish special. We were too stuffed for dessert which I really wanted to try.
You come to Enoteca for the experience. It is defintely different. The waitstaff was was extremely friendly. The owner thanked us for coming to his place. It was a real treat. Something to remember is that its CASH only.

I had very high expectations of this place unfortunately it was not my best. Maybe it’s my mistake because I’m authentic Italian and that’s exactly what I was expecting unfortunately it was not to my liking

This place was a blast and the food was delicious. Affordable wine list with a few decent picks. I would definitely go back, although the price point was a bit eye. The trip out to Staten Island though was great as well.
Recommend

Great concept – the «nonne» (Italian for grandmothers) cook. Good Italian food, terrific wine selection – it should, «enoteca» means wine bar. Each day’s menu is different. I like the industrial chic look, this is an Italian place that doesn’t do that rustic countryside of Italy thing. It’s in NYC, it should look like it. Demerit: cash only. I hate that. And music can get loud later at night.

This is a wonderful place to eat and the food is always fresh and delicious. Small site so be sure to make reservations. It is fantastic at every sitting Worth the trip from anywhere

I met 3 friends here on a Friday night with 6:30 reservations. One friend was running a little late and our waiter repeatedly reminded us that it was a 2 hour seating limit. We wanted to order drinks and appetizers, but our waiter insisted on taking entrée orders at the same time. Food was amazing. The on call Nonna was adorable. At 8:20 our table was cleared and our bill was paid. Two of my friends were enjoying the last of their glasses of wine when the waiter came over and said he really needed to get our table ready for the next reservation. Bottom line — a great meal but a rush, rush service. We didn’t even use up our 2 hours. One friend reported this to owner as we were leaving, so hopefully things will change.

Very good. Would get there early. Peaches and wine is a wife’s fave.

We are def limited on the island for great restaurants thank god for this one. Enoteca is authentic Italian cuisine with a super great wait staff. If that’s what your craving this is the restaurant you must come to. We started with a bunch of different Italian fair like
Meatballs — you can def tell the food is made with love. Theses babies were fried then simmered in sauce for a couple hours. They practically fell apart. When you broke them open you saw they weren’t mixed with bread crumbs they were mixed with real bread awesomeness and super yummy! The sauce is really good.
Next we ordered stuffed eggplant with chop meat, peas and rice. Again really delicious. At this point my belly was some what full but we had 2 more courses oh no! Lol
I think our fault is we didn’t order different entrees. We stayed with all tomato sauce. Next we ordered raviolis with the same sauce !! Oye! The raviolis are homemade and Al dente really just the way I like it!
Next we ordered braccioli with a side of potatoes and peppers this was really good. It had great complex flavors something I would def order again.
For dessert our waitress was super cool. She gave us tiramisu and coffee gelato to taste. Both were amazing. I really loved the dessert.
The staff in it self would want me to come back and the food seals the deal. This restaurant is def reasonably priced and so you know it is CASH ONLY! It is somewhat difficult to park so give yourself some time and def make a reservation the restaurant is small.

Pros: GREAT waitstaff– our waitress was nice, helpful and even gave us some free cookies for dessert and refilled my wine for free!
Food was delicious. We had the margherita pizza as an appetizer. And the lasagna was amazing.
Cons: VERY tight seating area. People at tables next to you might as well be at your table.
Old world Italian dishes — may not be the broadest selection if you aren’t a fan of lamb brains, testicles, etc.

Hidden ITALIAN American gem in NYC. Friendly service, home cooked food by a nonna. Nice service. Beautiful free ferry ride from the city.
Perfect date night.

We went to Enoteca Maria last night for dinner and we had such a lovely experience! The place itself is adorable and a short walk from the ferry. We came after a Staten Island Yankees game and even though we came later than our reservation, they were gracious and accommodating.
The food was also delicious — to start, we had fantastic artichokes 2 ways (stuffed and roasted). For mains, we got ravioli, gnocchi, braciole, and rabbit stew, and we all loved our entrees.
The wine list is also really special — there was clearly a lot of thought put into it and all the wines we ordered were superb.
We were too stuffed to order dessert (and we were the last ones there so we wanted to let everyone go home) but we’ll definitely go back again. Worth a trip to Staten Island, especially if you’ve never been before.

An all around perfect restaurant. We have eaten there dozens of times and never had a bad dish. The staff is always friendly and the owner Jody provides a wonderful experience. The food is creative and is a refreshing alternative to the typical Italian menus. Converse with the owner for a special treat. A great place to celebrate a special occasion or just celebrate life. I highly recommend going here and promise you will return. Ciao.

Enoteca Maria, you have secured a place on my list for top Italian spots I’ve ever been to!
I’m already trying to plan when my next dinner out here will be (despite the obnoxiously bad roads on Staten Island). The only question remains is who or whom will be dining with me. hmm???
The evening started off with a trio of grilled/​pickled veggies with crunchy fresh bread (and of course some olive oil for dipping). Nice way to warm up the tummy.
For our spuntino dishes, one of our choices (stuffed artichokes) was 86 so that was a bit of a downer. Instead we went with a recommendation from our server which was the Melanzane Ripiene (stuffed eggplant boats). After having a stuffed eggplant boat experience done Louisiana style, I should have already known that this Italian version was going to rock my socks off. Stuffed with ricotta, mozzarella, rice, ground beef, peas and then baked and topped with sauce. So hearty and yet lighter that what I was expecting it to be.
Stufato di Trippa (lamb tripe) was our second choice from their extensive list of spuntini. Beef tripe is a food that I am all too familiar with, especially in Asian style prepared dishes. So, to have a lamb tripe done as an Italian stew was a mouth-​watering experience. This dish had the subtle gamy flavor of the lamb with the texture of tripe that I love, mixed with a light tomato broth. If you like tripe, this is a dish worth trying!
The Pappardelle Bolognese was fantastic. The pasta was cooked perfectly and the meaty ragu was hearty and super flavorful. And for our last dish, we went with the Branzino al Cartoccio. Served whole and wrapped in foil, so all the flavors of the sauce baked into the fish while it cooked. Didn’t need any additional seasoning and the sauce was so light, lemony and perfect!
Dessert: Pan di Spagna all’Anisette — sponge cake with anisette mascarpone and ricotta cream. Although the anisette is almost unrecognizable in this dessert, I still enjoyed the flavors in the fluffy cake and sweet creamy layers.
Make reservations to avoid a long wait. It seems people know to do so, and there weren’t a lot of walk-​ins or people waiting for a table. And even when the place was packed, we never felt rushed by our server. She always kept an eye on our table to check if we were done with our dish so the next one could be served or needed refills on drinks.
A (slightly) spontaneous plan for dinner with my cousin, lead to a 3 hour meal with amazing Italian dishes, dessert, some excellent wine, and 5 star service.
Big thank you to Nonna Christina! All the food you cooked up for us was beyond all my expectations!
(Dinner 4÷3÷2015)

Nonna, you know the way to a lady’s heart. After waiting years to visit this spot, I finally arrived with a few friends in tow and a rumbling stomach. It did not disappoint!
The pasta is handmade, the booze is reasonably priced, the bread is great, etc. I’m not Italian, but I can imagine this is what a homemade Italian meal tastes like! My favorite was the meatball, you MUST get it. It was absolutely divine.
My only complaints? It can get a little slow and portions are on the smaller side. But otherwise, worth the ferry ride for a culinary adventure.

This was so worth the trip from Manhattan. The mood is one of l’abbondanza with pleasant helpful servers and enormous breadth and depth to the menu. Their rabbit stew was superb. The offal on the menu may or may not please you but it is not obligatory. It is possible to order standard dishes but I always go for the more unusual. How often does one get to try pig’s feet, lamb testicles
, heart, etc. You get the picture. And take the server’s wine recommendation. She knows!

My boyfriend and I came here last night. With the beautiful weather we took a ride on the Staten Island Ferry to watch the sunset. We were going to take it right back, but we quickly realized how hungry we were and set out to see what was in the area.
We stumbled upon this gem thanks to Unilocal.It had some of the best reviews in the area, and well, it’s only a 5 minute walk from the ferry and we were that perfect mix of lazy and starving to not want to venture out further. :)
We didn’t have a reservation, so it took a little while to get a table. However, it was well worth the wait. All the positive reviews on here didn’t even prepare us for how awesome our experience will be.
There’s a nonna (grandmother) running the menu. I believe they rotate between about 8 so the menu changes. We had Nonna Adelina from Napoli. We ordered the Polpette (homemade meatballs in tomato sauce) to start, and for the mains Linguine con Cime di Rapa e Funghi (Linguine, sautéed broccoli rabe, mushrooms and shrimp in a garlic and oil sauce) and the Pappardelle con Salsiccia e Castagne (pappardelle mixed with roasted sausage, chestnuts and roasted butternut squash).
Everything was delicious. The minute I bit into that first meatball I knew everything here was fresh and made with love. It felt like you were home in the best way possible. The décor is great — a wonderful mix of history over a modern (yet semi rustic?) look. The staff was amazing and even gave us a little treat at the end because the wait for a table was significantly longer than they anticipated (thanks to some extremely lingering guests). Excellent customer service! I suggest if you go to make a reservation, bring cash, and of course a empty belly. :)
We live about 2 trains and a ferry ride away in Queens but will most definitely be coming back here again. Loved it!

We went to Enoteca Maria yesterday after the Five Borough Bike tour and it was excellent. The owner and staff were very attentive despite being busy and the food was excellent and authentic. we had the braised pig’s feet to start and then the rigatoni with pork ragu and the linguini. All were delicious, and the way the owner spoke about the bottle of Barbera we ordered you can tell he takes pride in his wine list.
I don’t make it over to Staten Island too often, but I’d recommend this place to anyone.

Enoteca Maria is a true delight! Went there yesterday upon a recommendation from a colleague as a great place to get a meal after the 5 Boro Bike Tour and I have to say that this was the highlight of my day!
The food was fresh, delicious, and you can taste that everything was made to order. The atmosphere of the restaurant is cozy and inviting and the staff and owner were attentive and informative. I highly recommend the meatballs and will definitely be back soon!

Hey Staten Island! Your nonna can cook my dinner anytime.
Four people who had never been to Staten Island before embarked on a great adventure. From the moment we arrived at the ferry, realized it was not only free, but that you could buy beers in paper bags for the commute, we were all sold. Instantly riffing on commune-​like duplexes where we could exist with yards, buy dogs, become super Staten, etc. Though all of this was also a lovely five star experience, I have to shout it out loud to Enoteca Maria, the hope diamond in the crown jewels of the island.
Their thing is that different Italian Grandmas in the hood take turns coming in and choosing specials and cooking the menu basics. From clams, to meat pastries to pastas to wine choices to desserts and back again, the entire experience was a hit. Their Grandma gimmick is good, and their their food is better. Each dish was so homemade it hurt, and their wines were all reasonably priced .
Have you been to Staten Island yet? Go. Everyone is so god damn nice and you’re going to get drunk and have a great time. There’s magic beyond Manhattan and bites beyond Brooklyn, pal. Go to. Go to!

This place was fantastic when I came for dinner for a date night. But I would suggest to make a RSVP! Place gets packed and it’s not big at all and it could even get pretty warm in there too with the nonnas cooking that fresh sauce.
Everyday there is a new grandma making her own specials for the night so you can check online on there website to see what there serving for that day to see if you enjoy the menu. Its pretty cool because you will see things that you normally don’t on a menu and could be looking forward to eating that your own family use to make or just miss from nonna.
Location is very close to the ferry maybe a nice 10 minute walk. There is street parking also and its right next door to the St George theatre which is a plus! Great show and great food — can’t beat it !
If you want some homemade filling Italian food this is your place to go. Its small and crowded but its all worth it after you have your nice glass of wine and first taste of the fresh melting meat sauce falling off your tender perfect cooked pasta. Its a great addition to the upcoming St. George area.