Three Italian restaurants, one 91-year-old nonna's recipes
During the Second World War, in a mountainous coastal town in the South of Italy, Rosina Taverniti began rolling gnocchi and kneading bread for hungry soldiers.
“I was 14-years-old,” she told CTV News Toronto. Now, at 91, she is the nonna of three Italian restaurants in Toronto serving the recipes she first sunk her hands into as a teenager.
In 1956, Rosina left home, but her gnocchi, lasagna, tiramisu and dozens of other recipes landed with her when she arrived in Canada on a white Christmas eve. Soon, she was standing at a podium in front of a crowd of hundreds of factory workers in Toronto teaching them how to make pasta.
Growing up, Rosina’s children woke to the smell of ripe tomatoes simmering into sauce. In Rosina’s son Domenic’s eyes, his mother’s food was unmatched and he wanted to share it with the rest of Little Italy.
In 2011, they opened Trattoria Taverniti at College and Clinton with a four burner stove.
“We never once altered a recipe,” said Anthony Taverniti, Rosina’s grandson.
Food from one of Rosina Taverniti's restaurants is seen in this photograph. (Hannah Alberga/CTV News Toronto)
Just over a decade later, Rosina's recipes populated three kitchens: Taverniti, along with Tav’s Gnocchi & Pizza Bar right next door, and Rosina near King and Bathurst.
The latter two veer in a more modern direction than Taverniti’s red and white checkered tablecloths, playing louder music and attracting younger crowds.
“The food is consistent,” Anthony said. “The sauce would be the same, the pizza dough would be the same, the gnocchi, the same. Just the location and the environment of the restaurant itself completely changes the demographic of people we have there.”
Tables at Taverniti restaurant in Toronto are seen in this photograph. (Hannah Alberga/CTVNews Toronto)
While Rosina’s recipes steer new waters, she remains an anchor in the Taverniti kitchen. Still, she sits in a chair tucked into the corner and watches over the dinner-time rush.
“I don’t like to stay on the couch,” Rosina said. “ I come here for the company.”
ABOUT TABLE TALK
Table Talk is a weekly CTV News Toronto series that explores the people who shape Toronto’s food scene, published every Friday at CTVNewsToronto.ca
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Spectacular aurora light show to be seen across Canada Friday night
A rare and severe solar storm is expected to bring spectacular displays of the northern lights, also known as aurora borealis, across much of Canada and parts of the United States on Friday night.
Town of Fort Nelson, B.C., ordered to evacuate due to wildfire
The entire town of Fort Nelson, B.C., as well as the nearby Fort Nelson First Nation, has been ordered to evacuate due to an out-of-control wildfire.
Bouchard lifts Edmonton Oilers to 4-3 overtime win over Canucks in Game 2
Evan Bouchard scored 5:38 into overtime and the Edmonton Oilers bounced back for a 4-3 win over the Vancouver Canucks in the second round of the Stanley Cup playoffs on Friday.
McGill University seeks emergency injunction to dismantle pro-Palestinian encampment
McGill University has filed a request for an injunction to have the pro-Palestinian encampment removed from its campus.
Which Canadian cities have the highest and lowest grocery prices?
Where you live plays a big factor in what you pay at the grocery store. And while it's no secret the same item may have a different price depending on the store, city or province, we wanted to see just how big the differences are, and why.
Swarm of 20,000 bees gather around woman’s car west of Toronto
A swarm of roughly 20,000 bees gathered around a woman’s car in the parking lot of Burlington Centre.
Video shows naked raccoon catching B.C. family by surprise
When Marvin Henschel spotted a strange and hairless creature wandering through a front lawn in B.C.'s Lower Mainland, he could barely believe his eyes.
Barron Trump declines to serve as an RNC delegate
Former U.S. President Donald Trump's youngest son, Barron Trump, has declined to serve as a delegate at this summer’s Republican National Convention, according to a senior Trump campaign adviser and a statement from Melania Trump's office.
Out-of-control wildfire prompts evacuation alert for Fort McMurray, Saprae Creek Estates Friday night
An evacuation alert was issued for two Wood Buffalo communities Friday night, as crews battled an out-of-control wildfire near Fort McMurray.