Natasha Mahdi uses her nonna’s recipes for hot Italian sandwiches, meats and pastas at her new takeout spot
FERGUS – When people think of a typical Italian-Canadian experience of a big family, a love of people and lots of delicious food, they’re thinking of families like the one Natasha Mahdi had growing up in The Ward neighbourhood of Guelph.
Now, Mahdi is looking to share that experience of growing up with nonna’s food through a new takeout spot in Fergus.
Mahdi is the owner of Nonna’s Spoonfuls at 920 St. David St. N. in Fergus towards the north end of town. The spot is focused on homestyle cooking with hot Italian sandwiches, meats and pasta, including a 10-layer lasagna, which are all her grandmother’s recipes. There’s both takeout and also in-restaurant seating.
A third-generation Canadian, Mahdi’s grandparents first came to Canada in the 1930s from San Giorgio Morgeto in Southern Italy’s Calabria region, first settling in Hamilton and later Guelph.
“We always grew up with a big family, loved to cook, loved to eat,” Mahdi said. “That’s how I started my love for cooking and my nonna taught me all my recipes.”
She had a lot of time to learn from her nonna Catina Anselmini’s recipes, as she lived right next door.
“We were there every day after school, there was always a big plate of pasta on the table,” Mahdi said.
Mahdi learned from her nonna and aunt, who works with her now, who did catering jobs but otherwise did not have professional experience in food service.
She started with at-home catering during the pandemic two years ago in 2021, a year that was also marked by her nonna passing away.
Mahdi said she’s honoured to get to carry on the tradition of her grandmother’s food through her recipes at the restaurant.
“Food brings people together, so that’s why I opened this place too,” she said.
When the catering became too busy to do from home, Mahdi got the permanent spot on St. David Street North in April and spent four months renovating the place.
Officially opened on Aug. 30, the restaurant recently held a grand opening event to let people know Nonna’s Spoonful, acknowledging it is kind of tucked away in a nondescript plaza on the edge of town.
So far, Mahdi said reception has been overwhelmingly supportive from the community.
“I’m happy to bring this type of food to the community,” Mahdi said. “That’s what people are saying, they’re happy for home fresh food.”