Do you want me
to tell you
a SECRET?
The story that I am about to tell begins here in Assisi when Maddalena Pierluca purchased the medieval structure at number 4 Via San Rufino in 1863. A story of talents and successes, passion and recognition, a regular family destined to become special and famous.
In this house siblings, Ferdinando (Nando) and Angela (Nini) Pierluca, children of Maddalena, took flight toward successful lives.
Ferdinando Pierluca
Angela Pierluca
Ferdinando loved writing and his dream was to pursue a career as a journalist. For 25 years, he worked for the Italian national newspaper Il Corriere della Sera creating all the satirical political cartoons.
Nando’s talents transformed over the years in multiple directions where he exceled at sculpting wood and bronze. At one point he devoted himself to the art of the nail (ARTE DEL CHIODO), that, at the time, was extremely popular in Paris. Changing mediums once again, at an advanced stage of his career, he began to produce his first drawings in black and white, always stimulated by strong political messages. During the late 70s and early 80s he was painting with oil on canvas. You can view a few of these original works of art inside the restaurant Nonna Nini at this address in Assisi.
Nando, the painter never tried to conceal his nature as an “art rebel”. As stated in his autobiography, LA CAROTA, Nando always tried to distance himself from the artistic precepts of the time that were largely influenced by political and social pressures. Nando made a name for himself in the European art world thanks to an original and countercurrent style, which allowed him to collaborate with painters such as Pablo Picasso.
His wife, Bettina, was also a great painter. She equally enjoyed great success during the last century. The couple owned art workshops in Milan, Italy and Paris, France where they exposed their art works to the most prestigious galleries. Though, it is at 4 Via San Rufino, on the upper floor of the building you are now facing, above the restaurant Nonna Nini, where that they preferred to create their works. According to some critics, most of their best productions were produced here in Assisi. Original paintings by Nando and Bettina are exhibited inside the restaurant.
Angela Pierluca, called “Nini” called by her grandsons Henri-James and Laurence Tieleman was Nando’s sister. Thanks to Nini’s passion for politics and her impeccable French language skills, Nini became the first Italian woman to represent Italy at the European Parliament in Luxembourg.
Nini had one daughter named Dr. Mirella Tieleman (PhD in Public Law and in Economy from La Sorbonne in Paris,) who followed in her professional footsteps and was assigned an important role at the European Economic Commission in 1963. The current EU headquartered in Brussels, Belgium. This is where Mirella, met her Dutch husband Dr. H.C.A Tieleman (PhD in Philosophy and MBA from UCLA in California, US.) The “genetic” talent and “family” resourcefulness were inherited by their children: Henri-James and Laurence.
Laurence Tieleman became one of the greatest Italian tennis champions of the 90s and was Italy’s #1 professional player in 1997-98. He was also a member of the Italian Davis Cup team. Laurence had a record of wins on grass in 1998 even against Pete Sampras. During his career, Laurence recorded wins over Roger Federer, Jim Courier, Tim Henman, Greg Rusedski, and Cedric Pioline only to mention a few tennis celebrities. Henri-James Tieleman took the challenging career path as an entrepreneur. He launched one of the first Wireless Area Networks, created and designed a line of sportswear for Tennis, Golf and Casualwear and earned 7 utility and intellectual world patents + 8 design patents. Today he is currently driving a successful international consulting company called Genius Partners. Henri-James has a BSc from Bentley University – US; a post-graduate degree from Harvard University – US and a double MBA from Washington University in St. Louis | Fudan University, Shanghai, PRC.
It is during Henri-James’s studies in the USA, where he met and married Traci Mondella. Traci was born in Vermont but is of Italian origins from Benevento.
Traci worked in the hospitality industry for almost two decades in the USA. In 2014, after studies at the Culinary Institute of America, this international family decided to return to their Assisi roots and fulfill Traci’s dream of opening a restaurant. Traci has a deep passion for cooking all types of cuisines but always with integrity using fresh and seasonal ingredients.
The inauguration of “Nonna Nini” was on April 13th 2014. Traci transformed an empty space into one of the best places to eat in the Perugia region and Henri-James and Laurence were able to pay homage to their family through Traci’s food and cooking in the best possible manner. We all came back to our origins, thanks to Traci’s dream, culinary innovation, and ambition.
Continuing the culinary journey with an abundance of creativity, Traci realized that many ingredients that are grown and widely used in Umbria are also used in Indian cuisine. Suddenly, a new idea to create fusion dishes between the Italian and Indian kitchens was born. Think of the famous lentils from Castelluccio of Norcia, onions from Cannara, Saffron from Cascia, fennel that is grown across the region (including wild fennel pollen) and chickpeas only to start the list. Chef Sanjeev Kumar from New Delhi, India joined the Nonna Nini team in 2022. Chef Kumar arrived in Assisi with more than two decades of experience in the restaurant industry in India and other Asian countries. The new Nonna Nini team is whipping up tasty creations to delight the palate that begin in Umbria but take you to the far reaches with signature Indian flavors.
Inside the restaurant, some original paintings by Nando and Bettina are on display.
