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Usually buying a restaurant means you transform it into a new concept.
But Chef/Partner Nate Garyantes and Chef/Owner Matt Kelly—who snapped up the restaurant in 2022—knew that Nana’s in Durham, North Carolina’s Rockwood neighborhood was special and already had a local following.
“I remember when I moved (to Durham) thinking that’s the coolest name on the planet,” says Kelly. “Especially being in the South, the term ‘nana’ is very popular. I’m from New York, and it’s ‘grandma.’”
Still, as new proprietors, they yearned to put their own twist on it.
Nanas (now minus the apostrophe) opened in December, sixteen months after the change in ownership. The former iteration closed early in the COVID-19 pandemic.
“I think we captured the spirit of the old Nana’s and brought it up to date,” says Garyantes. “We put our 2.0 version on what we believed that cuisine was that was served here before.”
“Interweaving the past and the present becomes part of the story but we’re also looking forward with our own ideas,” says Kelly. “If you have confidence, you don’t have to worry about what other people are doing. We’re not really trying to recreate Nana’s. Our core is what the chefs and I have been doing for our entire career—just trying to create really good food.”
From l to r: Chef/Partner Nate Garyantes and Chef/Owner Matt Kelly
Redesigning a restaurant interior can be daunting. But because the duo are seasoned restaurant veterans—MK Hospitality consists of four concepts, all in Durham: Mateo Bar de Tapas, Mothers & Sons Trattoria and Alimentari at Mothers & Sons—they already had a team to turn to. This includes Andrew Preiss with ARP Design Studio, who crafted brass accents that include archways; and Shaun Sundholm with Sundholm Studio, whose work appears on much of the interior.
“We bring in people we like to work with. We hang out at Andrew’s studio on spring and summer days,” says Kelly, adding that Preiss installed the lights at Vin Rouge, a Durham restaurant he opened several years ago. “Shaun’s got a great eye and a really good vision. He can mold thoughts and ideas and really create something better.”
Inspired by both vintage Ralph Lauren and the surrounding North Carolina woods, which served as an emotional connection to Kelly’s time hiking segments of the Appalachian Trail, this translated to earth tones, particularly blues and greens. Sapphire-blue velvet banquettes remind of the water and sky, and grass-colored tiles of the prairie, while the curved, wood-slat entryway mimics a forest path. Gorgeous woodwork with dark stains is also in abundance, adding to a "living room" vibe.
Nanas new design is inspired by both vintage Ralph Lauren and the surrounding North Carolina woods.
These design choices were also a practical solution for the existing space. “We wanted to bring the outdoors indoors into this space because there’s not tons of windows and there’s a fairly busy street in front of us,” says Kelly.
What felt different from previous restaurants is that the existing footprint had familiarity with local residents.
“It’s the neighborhood’s living room,” says Kelly, about why he chose not to take any walls down. “The restaurant’s been doing well for 28 years.”
That decision was also rooted in finances. “For an independent restaurant, I don’t have partners,” says Kelly. “It’s Nate and I. The bones are great, and the structure’s great. It was well designed in the beginning and really just needed a refresh and a remodel.”
Still, the dining-room space was underutilized in the past, and many customers chose to dine at the adjacent bar. A new goal was to open up that dining-room space: “We think our community wants to eat and dine in a dining room. Now our dining room is at least three-quarters full,” says Kelly.
Using an existing space also meant working with what was already there. This forced the design team to be even more creative. “The more we built, the more we learned how to hide things that are utilitarian but also turn it into something that’s effective and has a purpose, whether it’s noise absorption, noise blocking or light coming in,” says Kelly.
Despite the restaurant’s name, and while it is indeed an ode to grandmothers everywhere, the cuisine is decidedly more modern. “I think if you’re cooking, and you grew up with a grandma, they’re the first people who take care of you and [offer)] the first opportunity to eat. That’s a core behind a lot of chefs,” says Kelly. Case in point, a customer favorite on the former menu (risotto) was slightly revamped as a shrimp risotto, folding in Parmigiano Reggiano and shellfish beurre.
This same inspiration of “not your grandma’s food but still inspired by grandmothers everywhere” applied to the drink menu, which features cocktails like Nanas Take Manhattan and Grandad’s Old Fashioned.
Fortunately, Nana’s former menu gelled with Kelly’s and Garyantes’ experiences and preferences. “The type of cuisine the restaurant was doing was the type of food we like to cook—very Euro-centric with a lot of local and regional influences,” says Kelly. The duo had cooked together before, when Garyantes was at Mateo Bar de Tapas.
While many of Nana’s original patrons have returned to the new Nanas, younger diners are coming too thanks to the neighborhood skewing younger in recent years. “The more diverse our clientele is, the more exciting it is,” says Kelly. “We like to think we’re a neighborhood restaurant. They’ve received us back with open arms.”
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