NonnaLisa’s offering homemade Italian food | News

PLATTSBURGH — With the support of family driving her, Lisa McDonald followed her dreams and opened the doors to her pretty very own Italian cafe, NonnaLisa’s, at the end of March.

Her sisters Jeanine Sawyer, Rachael Sawyer and Greta Sawyer have been functioning at the restaurant because the opening, and though McDonald is the head cook and proprietor, her sisters aid get ready foods and help operate the restaurant.

MOTHER’S INSPIRATION

McDonald, a previous nurse, explained their mom was the inspiration powering NonnaLisa’s.

“Each of us had our own expert backgrounds, then my mother not long ago died, so we kind of acquired back jointly and weren’t sure what to do with ourselves, so we determined to open this,” she mentioned.

Previous IRONS Area

NonnaLisa’s, positioned at 20 Plattsburgh Plaza, now occupies the room where Irons cafe used to be.

McDonald explained a several regional places to eat had commenced listed here just before they moved on to more substantial areas.

“My mother, truly, by means of the yrs, experienced taken me to this specific location three moments and needed me to open up an Italian restaurant,” she said.

“It’s odd that it experienced grow to be open up when it did…and everything just fell so properly into spot.”

Potential Options

Due to the fact acquiring the room, McDonald has place her have style into the cafe by portray the walls and adding an Italian flair to anything.

If organization proceeds to do nicely, she will continue to keep generating renovations.

“We’re hoping to increase into the other side…and use for our liquor license, so we can have some wine,” she reported.

“We’re likely to expand the dine-in, make it extra intimate, make it a lot more Italian, that’s the strategy. A incredibly compact, intimate Italian wine and liquor (bar)…that is the system at the instant.”

ITALIAN Offerings

NonnaLisa’s present menu has the regular Italian pasta dishes like baked ziti, lasagna, chicken parmesan, fettuccine alfredo and spaghetti and meatballs, but salads, sandwiches, Italian coffees and even handmade sweets like Italian ice, and cannolis with cannoli dip are offered way too.

“There’s a few sandwiches below that no one has heard of that are just to die for,” McDonald claimed, pointing to the potato & cheese sandwich, consisting of deep fried potatoes and American cheese melted on Italian Bread, in particular.

“Our cannoli dip: it is pure cheese, true cheese.”

MOTHER’S RECIPES

Consumers are also encouraged to inquire about the weekly specials, which have featured eggplant parmesan and fried pizza most a short while ago.

McDonald stated every single dish at NonnaLisa’s is an aged recipe she uncovered from her mom escalating up, and all of the food is prepared with new, regionally-purchased components.

“We grate our possess cheese, we grind our have meats, we filet our very own meats, with just a handful of straightforward components,” she said.

“This is old-college cooking. We’ve been cooking this way for 50 years…that’s what is actually marketing it.

“A neighborhood few arrived in from Rome and stated this is the same food items which is more than there. It felt like they had been back in Italy.”

Choose OUT AND DINE IN

Prospects have the selection to dine in, take out or get their meals for delivery by DoorDash and UberEats.

NonnaLisa’s is open up Wednesday through Saturday with varying hours.

At this time, on Wednesdays and Thursdays, hours operate from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. On Fridays, hours operate from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., and on Saturdays, hours run from 2 p.m. to 9 p.m.

McDonald stated the hours, as well as the menu are issue to transform in the upcoming as they carry on to determine points out.

HOW IT IS AT Household

A single issue she is familiar with for particular however, is that her “job” does not feel like a task.

“This is accurately how it is at residence: the correct exact natural environment, the same design, it’s just being property. Because we’re loved ones-owned and family members-operated, family is here all the time,” McDonald mentioned.

“It doesn’t truly feel like operate, due to the fact we would be executing this at house. I would be cooking at home.

“I just designed a even bigger pot.”