Her cooking classes were a hit, now this Fort Lauderdale chef wants to wine and dine you
2 min readSink into her purple couch with a glass of Napa Love Hammer Cabernet and a charcuterie board (you won’t want to share), and you could fall under a spell at chef Lenore Nolan Ryan’s new Grapes Wine Cafe and Market in Fort Lauderdale.
The destination is a pandemic brainchild by Nolan Ryan, who once ran a cooking school at the location but reinvented the space on Galt Ocean Mile as a wine cafe and marketplace.
“I want it to be a neighborhood restaurant where people can come in, feel safe, feel at home and come in for a glass of wine,” said Nolan Ryan, who is there seven days a week and will not only greet you, but ask you about the food you like to eat. Her cafe offers seasonal-inspired dishes and happy hour includes wine options from all over the world.
The chef-owner never went to culinary school but learned by watching her mother make homemade meals, not just for their family, but often for large get-togethers her father, a casino owner in Las Vegas and Havana, would plan. Soon enough, Nolan Ryan’s passion for cooking inspired her to launch a catering business at just 19 years old.
On this week’s Let’s Go, South Florida, Nolan Ryan opens up about her pandemic pivot from cooking school to cafe. She also demonstrates some of her charcuterie board secrets with host Arlene Borenstein. Watch the demonstration at SunSentinel.com/letsgo.
Grapes Wine Cafe and Market is at 3311 N. Ocean Blvd., Fort Lauderdale; 954-491-2340, grapeswinecafe.com.
Sun Sentinel PRIME Online
Chef Lenore Nolan Ryan will demonstrate with Arlene Borenstein how to prepare “Fast, Fresh and Delicious Fish” during the Sun Sentinel’s PRIME Online virtual event series for adults 50 and older.
The event, April 14-29, is free to attend but you must register at SunSentinel.com/prime.
Seminars focus on a range of topics, including health and fitness. Sun Sentinel health reporter Cindy Krischer Goodman will interview journalist and author Joan Lunden on “Why Did I Come into this Room? A Candid Conversation about Aging.”
“Taste” experts also include Fort Lauderdale restaurateur Elliot Wolf discussing “How to be Nice and Succeed in the Restaurant Biz,” in a conversation with Ben Crandell.
Funky Buddha brewery marketing director John Linn will demystify beer styles in “How To Talk Craft-Beer Styles Like A Pro,” with Phillip Valys.
Mystery fiction critic Oline Cogdill will interview best-selling novelists David Baldacci, Hank Phillippi Ryan and Linwood Barclay.
