Marra's: Old Favorite Still Rates High

If you love Italian food, you'll love Marra's, which is now owned by Irish Americans who are spending their retirement years running a busy restaurant. Winter or summer, you'll find a line of people waiting outside on Friday and Saturday nights.

They will be looking for Dorothy McGuire's meatballs or one of the many classic Italian dishes that have been on the menu since Al Marra and his dad founded the place as the Velvet Turtle some 31 years ago.

Over those three decades, Marra's has become a Ridgewood stalwart. There are now two comfortable sofas in the vestibule to accommodate some of the people waiting patiently for tables. 

So how did Dorothy and Joe McGuire wind up running Marra's? They blame it on their son, Mark, the owner of a sports marketing company who makes a habit of investing in restaurants and bars.

When Joe retired from the banking business and Dorothy retired from General Motors, Mark thought a restaurant was just the ticket to give them some extra income and a hobby to pursue when they weren't in Florida. "Little did I know they would skip the house in Florida, and stay home to be near the restaurant," he says today.

The restaurant's name was changed from the Velvet Turtle to Marra's when the retail space beside the original restaurant became available, and Al and his father were able to expand. Years ago, I visited with friends and had salmon on a maple board, which was fashionable at the time. It was good enough that I remembered it.

The McGuires bought Al Marra out seven years ago after his dad died, but while they added some paintings and other fresh touches, they kept the cooks and the waitresses. People who know what they are doing are invaluable in any business, and this group of people, some with tenure going back 24 years, proved no exception.

While Mark McGuire says the main menu is the same as when the restaurant was founded, there are interesting day to day variations and seasonal specials.

We started with the calamari that came already dressed with a fairly hot, spicy sauce, which the cooks call a Baresi sauce, presumably after Bari, Italy. It had a sweet/sour taste that we liked so we asked what was in it. The ingredients, according to one of the three chief cooks at Marra's, include white wine, balsamic vinegar, cayenne pepper, Tabasco sauce, Worcestershire sauce, smokin' chipotle ketchup and lobster sauce. 

I had a salad called All Capina from the day's special menu that consisted of goat cheese fritters over greens with walnuts and mandarin oranges. The menu also promised apples but it came with lovely, thinly sliced pears instead. This was hit. My partner was less enchanted with the Caesar salad.

For a main course I had what the menu called a salmon roulade, a salmon fillet wrapped around crabmeat over risotto with lobster sauce. The salmon and crab were wonderful, but the risotto was, for me, a little overcooked. 

My partner had the Scaloppine All'Ortolano, which is similar to veal Milanese, and Marra's earned a few stars. It was good.

There is also a children's menu and a welcoming attitude for the toddler set. "We are a family restaurant," the owners and their son stress. They also are up for any kind of catering. "We just did a big event for 700," Joe says.

As a rule, Joe is on duty at the front of the house during the day and Dorothy at night, except when she spends the day in the kitchen making her famous meatballs. She is as charming as Joe is humorous. Dorothy, who spends a lot of time talking to customers, says, "I like to get the vibes back."

And diners treat her like family. "She gets invited to weddings," Mark says. "She's even gone on vacation with one customer."

And neither Joe nor Dorothy, despite Mark's complaints about today's economy and Ridgewood in general, seem inclined to leave. "They had a phenomenal offer two years ago," he said. "I advised them to take it and run. They said no." 

Financially, are they where they were seven years ago? No. "Their business is off by a third," Mark says. "People who came three or four times a week, now only come once or twice, and they don't order as many courses. Ridgewood is a disaster. But [his parents] won't leave."

The McGuires seem content to sit tight and have faith that things will get better. Here's hoping they are right.

Food: Excellent

Service: Excellent

Entrée Price Range: $15.95-$25.95

Atmosphere: Very Pleasant

BYOB

Credit Cards Accepted