From revitalizing Nanas to helping launch the family-friendly Dino’s, Matt Kelly continues shaping Durham’s food scene while spotlighting the next generation of star chefs
By Hannah Lee | Photography by John Michael Simpson
Matt Kelly didn’t come to Durham with the intention of building a dining empire. He just wanted a job. “A straight-up gig,” he says. This was back in the early 2000s, when celebrated restaurateur Giorgios Bakatsias was seeking a chef for Vin Rouge, his vision for a French bistro that he hoped could become a local mainstay. And Matt, an up-and-coming young chef eager to grow, was looking to stretch his culinary legs. “I saw a great canvas,” he recalls, “and thought I could practice cooking there.” Practice he did, and in the process, he turned Vin Rouge (which he now co-owns) into a cornerstone of Durham’s burgeoning dining scene. That was the first of many restaurants Matt would help transform into local favorites over the next two decades, including Mateo, Mothers & Sons and the recently revived Nanas.
This impressive track record earned him the recognition of one of Durham’s best chefs from Durham Magazine readers for the 10th time – the most in the publication’s history. Just don’t let Matt hear you giving him all the credit. “When you build a larger brand, people always want to focus on you,” Matt says, “and it’s a huge appreciation – but at the same time, there’s all these amazing people who are working their a**** off who also need to start building their own name. I try to be a pretty big proponent of that.” Matt hopes this latest accolade brings overdue (and well-deserved) recognition to the chefs driving his restaurants forward: Steven McRae, the head chef at Vin Rouge; Abby Bangs at Mateo; Josh DeCarolis at Mothers & Sons; and Tom Cuomo, who is the chef and co-owner at Dino’s, which opened July 18. (Matt remains the executive chef at Nanas, which he bought from former owner Scott Howell in 2022. Scott originally founded Nana’s in 1992, but when pandemic pressures shuttered the iconic restaurant, Matt stepped in and revived it with a new menu, interior makeover and slight name tweak.)
Now, Matt has come full circle and is doing for his culinary team, who he believes are Durham’s next wave of star chefs, what Giorgios once did for him – give them the canvas. “I just hope they’re the catalysts who make Durham a tastier place,” Matt says. “[That] they get to practice what they want, make a good livelihood, balance life for themselves and keep Durham tasty, as the chefs and small business owners before us have.”
A Slice of What’s Next
Before Dino’s, there was Dean. As in, Tom Cuomo’s 8-year-old son. But the name behind Tom and Matt Kelly’s new pizza joint, which opens at University Hill this summer, isn’t just a sentimental nod to Tom’s firstborn. It’s a testament to what Tom and Matt hope Dino’s becomes: “A place where our families could go,” Matt says. While Matt’s other restaurants – including Mateo, where Tom once served as sous chef – are family-welcoming, both he and Tom acknowledge that taking a toddler to a fancier establishment can sometimes be more trouble than it’s worth. “I think about trying to bring my kids in [Nanas], and they would just tear the dining room apart,” Tom says. “Especially my 16-month-old. So to think about being able to create a place where those things are the norm – where we can look forward to having those groups in there – was exciting.” That family-friendly ethos doesn’t mean that diners should expect a basic menu aimed at picky eaters. Not at all. For the past year, the chefs have been refining recipes in the oven at Alimentari at Mothers & Sons, perfecting their “crispy and crunchy” dough that works with every topping (including Dean’s favorite, pepperoni).
“I was eating pizza five nights a week during those times,” Tom says. The pies will be the star, but Dino’s will also serve complementary classics, including crispy wings, cheesy strombolis and simple salads. The buzz has already exceeded expectations. Matt says he’s heard more hype for the forthcoming casual eatery than he did for Nanas and the now-shuttered Saint James’ reopenings combined. Even Dean, who always kept his family nickname a secret, now wears it like a badge of honor. Pride can do that. “He tells all of his friends,” Tom says, “to call him Dino now.”
