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PEOPLE | SHOPPING | EVENTS | DINING | CULTURE
IN THE G IN IN D N IA L A IT D L OLD -WOR
n o t n a C f o t r Hea Whether you are a regular or a first-time diner, everyone is treated like family at Mamma Onesta’s in Canton.
Canton City Councilman Shawn Tolan, a restaurant regular, posted on Facebook inviting others to come to the downtown Italian eatery and find out for themselves why the restaurant is so popular. “Mario and Melanie have it going on. The food is amazing, atmosphere is perfect, and those two are awesome individuals. If you haven’t eaten there yet, do yourself a favor and give them a try. If you have eaten there, well, you know what I mean,” Shawn wrote of the restaurant. Customers love the extensive menu, reminiscent of what you might find in an upscale New York trattoria. Diners love the romantic, oldworld atmosphere in the street-front location of the Babcock Building, where large windows provide a perfect view of the historic downtown. Couples in for an anniversary, friends and family celebrating birthdays, and diners just out looking
for a nice meal settle in comfortably around tables set with white tablecloths and linens.
Mamma Onesta means honest mother and is named for the hard-working matriarch of the DeGrassi family, which opened the first restaurant of that name in 2008 in Lockport, Illinois. Ten years later, the suburban Chicago restaurant made a move south and Frank DeGrassi, along with his best friends Mario Buonauro and Melanie Molloy, brought Mamma Onesta’s to the heart of downtown Canton. The new Italian eatery quickly built a reputation for good food and caring staff. Now owned and operated by Mario and Melanie, the couple serves up traditional Italian cuisine with special touches that make customers come looking for more. “Everything here is homemade and very traditional. We can’t take you back in time, but we can give you the dining experience you might remember from other places and times,” Mario promises. “Each customer is treated like family.” The popular signature dish, Chicken Onesta, is a perfect example of what the restaurant turns out to the delight of hungry guests. The dish features chicken cooked to perfection in garlic, white wine, and oil, and served on a bed of homemade pasta completed with spinach, roasted red peppers, and provolone cheese. The dish is also available with veal instead of chicken.