A group of Italian grandmothers staff a restaurant kitchen in "Nonnas," an under-seasoned comedy that tastes more like fast food than a home cooked meal.

Vince Vaughn plays Joe Scaravella, a New Yorker grieving the recent loss of his mother. Her savory family recipes remind him of her and his nonna, his grandma, and the MTA worker uses his $200,000 inheritance from her death to open a restaurant to honor both her memory and her cooking.

Ah, but not just any restaurant. Joe's bright idea is to hire Italian grandmothers to do the cooking, to give that special touch, that taste of home that everyone enjoys. Why not re-create that in a restaurant setting?

He hires a group of grandmas, including his mom's best friend Roberta (Lorraine Bracco), along with Gia (Susan Sarandon), Teresa (Talia Shire) and Antonella (Brenda Vaccaro). (Technically they're not all grandmothers, but they're of grandmother age, and they all know their way around the kitchen.)

After prepping the space — Joe's best bud, Bruno (Joe Manganiello), is a contractor — he opens for business. But it's far from a runaway success, as Joe faces opposition from his Staten Island neighbors, led by Al (Michael Rispoli), who resents Joe's outsider status (he hails from Brooklyn), and the fact that he disrespected, in Al's eyes, the history of a sacred neighborhood landmark.

Joe is at risk of losing it all, and he needs a miracle to stay open. Can he get the right person to taste his delicious polpette dish before it's too late? Can you say Capuzzelle?

"Nonnas" follows a familiar underdog formula and checks off story beats you can set your watch by. Liz Maccie's script is based on the true story of Enoteca Maria, which was opened by the real Scaravella in 2007, but she rounds the corners of her story with cliches — a lost love (Linda Cardellini) from Joe's past, a testy interaction with a building inspector — that make "Nonnas" feel more like a restaurant chain than a mom and pop eatery.

Director Stephen Chbosky ("The Perks of Being a Wallflower," "Dear Evan Hansen") is missing the secret ingredient that would elevate his meal to the level of fine cuisine. He understands the essence of what makes home cooking so appealing, but he doesn't translate it to the screen. He's missing the personal touch, the love, that is baked into every standout entree served at home, and he glosses over the nuts and bolts of the day-to-day operations of running a restaurant that would make "Nonnas" feel more authentic and less like a fairy tale.

Great food movies, from "Big Night" to "Chef" to "Ratatouille," allow viewers to practically smell the dishes being prepared. They have a way of activating your senses as well as your spirit, and they leave you feeling full. "Nonnas" never rises to that level. It needs a little more time in the oven.

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'NONNAS'

Grade: C

MPA rating: PG (for suggestive material, language and thematic elements)

Running time: 1:51

How to watch: Netflix

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