NonnaLisa's offering homemade Italian food

PLATTSBURGH — With the assist of loved ones driving her, Lisa McDonald adopted her desires and opened the doors to her pretty very own Italian cafe, NonnaLisa’s, at the close of March.

Her sisters Jeanine Sawyer, Rachael Sawyer and Greta Sawyer have been doing the job at the restaurant considering that the opening, and although McDonald is the head prepare dinner and owner, her sisters aid prepare foodstuff and enable operate the restaurant.

MOTHER’S INSPIRATION

McDonald, a former nurse, claimed their mom was the inspiration behind NonnaLisa’s.

“Each of us experienced our have expert backgrounds, then my mom recently died, so we form of received back again jointly and weren’t guaranteed what to do with ourselves, so we made the decision to open up this,” she said.

Former IRONS Place

NonnaLisa’s, positioned at 20 Plattsburgh Plaza, now occupies the space in which Irons restaurant utilized to be.

McDonald explained a couple regional eating places had started listed here right before they moved on to even larger spaces.

“My mom, in fact, by means of the many years, experienced taken me to this exact location three occasions and wished me to open an Italian cafe,” she said.

“It’s odd that it experienced become open up when it did…and every little thing just fell so properly into location.”

Long run Designs

Because attaining the area, McDonald has set her have type into the restaurant by portray the walls and incorporating an Italian flair to all the things.

If small business carries on to do very well, she will hold making renovations.

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

“We’re going to increase the dine-in, make it a lot more intimate, make it extra Italian, that’s the prepare. A extremely little, intimate Italian wine and liquor (bar)…that’s the system at the instant.”

ITALIAN Offerings

NonnaLisa’s current menu has the common Italian pasta dishes like baked ziti, lasagna, rooster 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 made available also.

“There’s a couple sandwiches here that no one has read 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 specific.

“Our cannoli dip: it’s pure cheese, authentic cheese.”

MOTHER’S RECIPES

Consumers are also encouraged to inquire about the weekly specials, which have highlighted eggplant parmesan and fried pizza most not long ago.

McDonald said each and every dish at NonnaLisa’s is an aged recipe she acquired from her mom increasing up, and all of the food is well prepared with refreshing, regionally-purchased components.

“We grate our individual cheese, we grind our own meats, we filet our very own meats, with just a handful of very simple components,” she reported.

“This is old-school cooking. We’ve been cooking this way for 50 years…that’s what is seriously providing it.

“A regional pair arrived in from Rome and explained this is the same food items which is above there. It felt like they were again in Italy.”

Take OUT AND DINE IN

Consumers have the option to dine in, choose out or buy their meals for supply by way of DoorDash and UberEats.

NonnaLisa’s is open Wednesday by Saturday with different hours.

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

McDonald reported the several hours, as effectively as the menu are matter to improve in the long run as they keep on to determine factors out.

HOW IT IS AT Dwelling

A person thing she is familiar with for selected even though, is that her “job” does not feel like a position.

“This is particularly how it is at property: the precise same atmosphere, the very same design and style, it is just staying household. Simply because we’re family-owned and household-operated, family is below all the time,” McDonald said.

“It doesn’t truly feel like do the job, mainly because we would be doing this at dwelling. I would be cooking at home.

“I just made a more substantial pot.”