The chef behind Mateo and Mother & Sons is putting his own spin on a beloved Bull City restaurant that got started in the early 1990s.
by Catherine Currin | photography by Forrest Mason

For Matt Kelly, the decision to open Nanas wasn’t just about business — it was personal. The original Nana’s was opened by Scott Howell as a “new Southern restaurant” in 1992, featuring seasonal dishes inspired by French and Italian fare.  “It had that old-school, fancy-restaurant vibe we reserved for special occasions,” says Kelly, who remembered it as the place where his parents celebrated many anniversaries. But when the restaurant closed as a result of the pandemic, Kelly felt called to bring it back: “To me, losing this restaurant meant losing a part of our community’s fabric.”

Kelly is a food-industry veteran known for popular restaurants Mateo Bar de Tapas and Mothers & Sons Trattoria in downtown Durham. Before opening those restaurants, Kelly worked in fine-dining favorites like The Fearrington House, Fins and Vin Rouge. He was the head chef and then co-owner of Vin Rouge before he opened Mateo in 2012.

Reopening Nanas in its original space in the Rockwood neighborhood would allow Kelly and his team, including chef and business partner Nate Garyantes, to tap into a burgeoning neighborhood in Durham. Rockwood is just a few minutes from Kelly’s downtown joints, sandwiched between Duke University and the Hope Valley neighborhood, and the location offers an eclectic, neighborhood feel. The new restaurant also would allow the team to flex even more creative muscles, developing a menu driven by seasonal, high-quality ingredients. “We put dishes on the menu that we’re excited about,” Kelly says.

Kelly enlisted designer Shaun Sundholm of Sundholm Studios, with whom he worked on the designs of Mateo and Mothers & Sons, to refresh the space. “Matt said he wanted to evoke a walk in the woods. I took that and ran with it,” says Sundholm, who evoked the tranquility of nature without being too literal. “I wanted to incorporate as much wood as possible to lend a sophisticated touch.”

Now, an orange velvet bench welcomes you — a tribute to the color scattered throughout the original restaurant. Black walnut trim and glossy green tiles accent the navy walls. “We wanted a space where diners could engage without distraction,” Kelly says. Sundholm’s design also incorporates nods to grandmothers (those original nanas) through subtle nods like a vintage travel spoon collection and a carpet in a retro plaid. “The space is luxurious, but not out of touch, and approachable,” says Sundholm. “I wanted Nanas to feel like a modern grandmother’s house.”

The new menu is loosely based on home cooking, but way elevated. There are buttermilk dinner rolls (made in-house) and a grits soufflé, fancied up with chanterelle mushrooms and foie gras. The pasta course pulls in a duck ragout tagliatelle and an oxtail mezzaluna for fresh takes on a Sunday gravy.

For entrees, the roasted chicken is done with chicories and a roasted garlic jus; the lamb shoulder is topped with creamed spinach and a giant mushroom ravioli. Even the sides have roots in everyday meals, like a broccoli topped with a Meyer lemon hollandaise.

At the bar, guests will find a simplified version of the original space’s layout. For drinks, there are Nanas version of grandparent favorites — like Nanas Take Manhattan, Grandad’s Old Fashioned, a Pisco Sour — plus inventive seasonal cocktails, like the Jessica Rabbit, a sweet and boozy concoction of mezcal, carrot and honey. There’s also an extensive, curated wine list and beer options, most from North Carolina breweries.

Pulled together, Kelly’s revamp of Nanas is a tribute to that special-occasion spot he grew up with, for the next generation. “Good cooking is good cooking,” Kelly says, “but being part of a neighborhood means building relationships and evolving together.”  

This article originally appeared in the August 2024 issue of WALTER magazine.