Sicilian-born mother, son serving up tastes of their homeland at Fiorello's Café

WEST CHESTER, Pa (WPVI) -- Danny Fiorello and his mother Ninfa have been serving up Italian favorites at Fiorello's Café in Chester County since 1997.

"We have some of the modern Italian, but we also keep the old-world cuisine," says Danny.

Many of the recipes used at the restaurant were passed down through their family.

"My mama teach me," says Ninfa, who makes the Sicilian plates, such as the string bean salad.

"It's the typical food everybody eats in the area where we're from in Sicily," explains Danny.

A lot of the dishes are his mom's recipes, like the chicken rollatini.

Danny is the chef at Fiorello's Cafe, but says his mom gives him a hand in cooking some of the traditional stuff, like the pasta fagioli.

"They love her cooking, the flavors," says Danny.

"Mama" does much of the prep work. Everybody knows her as Mama," says Danny. "She's everybody's Mama."

"She watches things, makes sure that the food is right," says Danny.

You can find Danny in the kitchen cooking up authentic Italian, like the risotto pescatore. It is made with a variety of seafood.

"Everything we cook here - it's cooked by order, always fresh," says Danny.

And he says keeping it simple is key to a great dish. Fresh clams, mussels, a few pieces of tomato and fresh garlic go into the risotto pescatore. He lets that cook before adding the risotto. "The langostino - that was the magic touch, he said. "That's it."

Danny says he hopes everyone feels like family at his restaurant with Mama serving up the meals.

"She does it for fun now. It's not even about work," says Danny. "And it keeps her happy."

"No customer, family," says Ninfa. "I love it."