Vale Nina Vittorio: The ‘Mamma Cass’ of Casablanca whose heart beat for flavour and family

Antonietta ‘Nina’ Vittorio, chef and co-owner of Casablanca Pizza and Pasta restaurant, did both during her influential life and career.

Nina died on April 10, following a year-long battle with cancer. She was 77.

At St Brendan’s Catholic Church in Shepparton, family, friends, staff and customers gathered to share cherished memories of their ‘Mamma Cass’ at a funeral service on April 23.

Kathryn Kemp and her mother Faye Whyte, a friend of Nina’s for 50 years, described her as “the most wonderful, loving and hard-working person, with such a positive outlook on life”.

“She had this amazing ability to make you smile and feel so special,” they said.

Nina Vittorio was born in Italy on November 21, 1946, the eldest child of two born to Vincenzo Piccolo and Caterina Andreacchio.

Their life in Europe was brief, as Vincenzo and Caterina decided to move to Australia in 1951 to raise their daughters in a new country with more opportunities.

In 1955, the family established their roots in Shepparton.

Sadly, they had a reversal of fortune in 1963 when wife, mother, and pillar of the family Caterina passed away.

In the wake of this profound loss, Nina, at the tender age of 15, stepped into the role of caretaker for her father and little sister, Josie.

But at 17, her mother sent her an angel, the man of her dreams, Nunziato ‘Nick’ Vittorio.

They soon married and had two children, Maria and Tony.

In 1971, Nick and Nina opened Casablanca Pizza and Pasta, a homely, family-run restaurant, tucked into the tight grid of shops along High St in Shepparton.

It fulfilled the couple’s long-held dream of owning their own restaurant.

The menu, whittled down to perfection, is predominantly pizza and pasta, two staples of Italian cooking that remain firmly anchored in Shepparton’s multicultural region.

One dish in particular jumps off the page — Nina’s Special.

Concocted from tomato, mild salami, mozzarella cheese, mushrooms, onions, fresh sliced tomato and herbs, the pizza is indeed che buono!

For over 50 years, Casablanca has been a titan in Shepparton’s culinary crawl, where a mix of local folks from all walks of life gather to dine on customisable pizza, time-honoured pasta passed down through the generations and classic Italian desserts loaded with decadence.

But there’s more to this restaurant than food, and it boils down to one word: family.

“(At the restaurant), she always spoke with such pride and joy about her beautiful family — Maria, Richard, Michael, Marissa, Tony, Josie, Nikolas, Gabriella, Ava, her beloved sister Josie and her brother-in-law Peter,” Faye said.

When she wasn’t in the kitchen preparing her specialty meatballs for family dinner nights or whipping up some eggplant patties (her daughter’s favourite), Nina spent quality time with her children and grandchildren.

“She loved her family — it was everything to her, and she was everything to us,” Maria said.

“The kids would go out to the farm and spend time together; it was a blessing.”

Nina lived generously and selflessly, providing unwavering support to friends, family and beyond.

“She loved people ... always with a smile on her face, wanting to give; and social, very social,” Maria said.

“In the shop, she helped people in any way she could if they were going through a hard time.

“She used to be a matchmaker and put people back together, she was like a counsellor.”

Maria remembers her mother as a beautiful soul whose heart was for all.

She treated everybody, staff and customers included, like family.

Casablanca Pizza and Pasta now stands as a legacy to the culinary figure and phenomenal woman.

“She’s an icon to Casablanca,” Maria said.

“Dad’s the other half of the icon, and it’s still going with Dad, but he’s lost without her.

“We love and miss her so much.”

Nina Vittorio is survived by her beloved husband, Nick, two children and five grandchildren.