The Founders’ Vision at Nick & Toni’s<\/h2>\n
Jeff Salaway and Toni Ross met at a stone quarry in Carrara, Italy\u2014both studying sculpture, both falling in love with the country’s locavore traditions. They returned to the States with dirt under their fingernails and a radical idea. What if a restaurant prioritized ingredients over spectacle? What if the tomatoes came from down the road and the fish arrived still twitching from Montauk that morning?<\/p>\n
“Jeff was pretty prescient about wanting to have great food and not all the other stuff that went along with what people imagined in a fine dining experience,” Ross recalls. “We’re out at the beach\u2014we wanted the restaurant to feel comfortable and easy.”<\/p>\n The space they chose was hardly promising. A former pizza joint called Ma Bergman’s with awful floors and crumbling walls. But Salaway\u2014nicknamed “Nick” by friends\u2014saw potential. On opening night, they kept it quiet. No announcements, no fanfare. Then the door swung open and Craig Claiborne, the retired New York Times food critic, seated himself at his favorite table from the previous tenant.<\/p>\n He became their unofficial mentor. Claiborne returned repeatedly, bringing companions and offering critiques on everything from service timing to sauce consistency. For two unknowns gambling on a beach-town restaurant, his blessing was priceless.<\/p>\n Before “farm-to-table” became a marketing buzzword, Nick & Toni’s was building something genuine. The concept emerged naturally from what Salaway and Ross experienced in Italy\u2014restaurants that served what grew nearby, menus that shifted with the seasons.<\/p>\n Early on, Salaway enlisted Scott Chaskey, director of Quail Hill Farm in Amagansett, to establish an on-site organic garden. “Jeff rototilled that himself with his skinny little legs and his boots and his shorts,” Ross remembers. Today that garden covers nearly three-quarters of an acre, producing asparagus, heirloom tomatoes, herbs, and berries that land on plates the same afternoon they’re picked.<\/p>\n This commitment extended to every ingredient. Amber Waves, Braun Seafood, Stewart’s, Gosman’s\u2014the restaurant’s supplier list reads like a directory of East End agriculture and fishing. According to a 2025 dining trends report, 44% of consumers now seek restaurants prioritizing local sourcing. Nick & Toni’s was ahead by three decades.<\/p>\n “The simplicity of the food was a hard thing to grasp as a young chef,” admits Executive Chef Joe Realmuto, who joined the kitchen in the early 1990s. “It can be just three ingredients on a plate, but you use really good ingredients. That’s one main thing that has stayed the same since the restaurant’s beginning.”<\/p>\n The menu at Nick & Toni’s reflects a philosophy of restraint. Mediterranean and Italian influences dominate, but the cooking avoids heavy sauces or overwrought presentations. A wood-burning oven anchors the kitchen, producing whole fish with caramelized fennel, parsnip hash, and saut\u00e9ed spinach alongside rustic pizzas that rival anything in Naples.<\/p>\n Several dishes have achieved legendary status. The penne alla Vecchia Bettola\u2014a spicy, oven-roasted tomato sauce finished with vodka, cream, and Grana Padano\u2014has remained on the menu since day one. Ina Garten featured it on Barefoot Contessa, and the recipe circulates among home cooks who pilgrimage here specifically for that dish.<\/p>\n Equally iconic are the zucchini chips, whisper-thin and addictively crisp. The roasted free-range chicken with smashed Yukon gold potatoes. The Caesar salad, dressed tableside with the precision of a ritual. Remove any of these, and regulars revolt.<\/p>\n Chef Realmuto’s seasonal specials showcase his 30-plus years of refinement. Montauk yellowfin tuna crudo, wood-fired octopus over Sicilian purple potato salad, ricotta cavatelli with sausage rag\u00f9 and sweet peas. The menu changes constantly, governed by what arrives from the garden or the docks each morning.<\/p>\n Nick & Toni’s achieved something rare: It attracted Hollywood without becoming a scene. Steven Spielberg maintains a regular table. Jack Nicholson, Billy Joel, Paul McCartney, Tom Hanks, Barbra Streisand, Alec Baldwin, Howard Stern, Senator Chuck Schumer, Lorne Michaels\u2014the guest list spans entertainment, politics, media, and finance.<\/p>\n Yet the atmosphere remains curiously unpretentious. “A lot of people who come here for the first time have an impression that you have to be a celebrity,” explains Managing Partner Mark Smith. “But it’s much more of a convivial, casual, unpretentious place.”<\/p>\n That accessibility is deliberate. Salaway rejected velvet-rope exclusivity in favor of warmth. He’d mark up seating charts to squeeze in regulars, seat celebrities in back corners to protect their privacy, and send zucchini chips to every table regardless of status. The policy continues today.<\/p>\n The restaurant’s discretion earned trust. When asked about famous patrons, longtime manager Julie Berger offers only: “We treat them the way we treat other people. If people want privacy, we respect it.”<\/p>\n Before opening Nick & Toni’s, both Salaway and Ross worked at Jonathan Waxman’s legendary Jams restaurant in Manhattan. Waxman\u2014credited with introducing California cuisine to New York\u2014instilled principles they carried to the East End: seasonal ingredients, bold simplicity, and an open kitchen where theater meets craft.<\/p>\n Jams revolutionized Manhattan dining in 1984 with grilled proteins, baby vegetables, and a rock-and-roll atmosphere that rejected French formality. Salaway absorbed those lessons, then adapted them for the Hamptons market. The result merged California’s sun-drenched philosophy with Italian rusticity and Long Island’s abundant local produce.<\/p>\n The connection persists. Waxman appeared at Guild Hall in 2023 for Nick & Toni’s 35th anniversary celebration, sharing memories with Ross and Chef Realmuto. His influence echoes in every wood-fired dish that emerges from the kitchen.<\/p>\n On September 1, 2001, everything changed. Jeff Salaway, driving home after a late service, crashed his car into a tree less than two miles from the restaurant. He was forty-six years old.<\/p>\n “That’s when everybody’s world changed personally and professionally,” Smith recalls. “It was a very uncertain time because he was the face of the restaurant to a large degree.”<\/p>\n Ross, grieving and raising young children, stepped back from operations. The question hung over everything: Could Nick & Toni’s survive without Nick? Smith, Realmuto, director of operations Christy Cober, and floor manager Bonnie Munshin answered by committing even harder to Salaway’s vision.<\/p>\n “They kept it the mom and pop place that Jeff and I had started,” Ross says. “I couldn’t be present at all because I had young kids. But Mark, Joe, Christie, and Bonnie understood the mission completely, so I never worried about it.”<\/p>\n Smith channeled the tragedy into building Honest Man Hospitality\u2014a restaurant group sturdy enough to withstand any future shock. The company now operates Nick & Toni’s alongside Rowdy Hall (recently relocated to Amagansett), La Fondita, Townline BBQ, and Coche Comedor.<\/p>\n The accolades arrived early and kept coming. Ruth Reichl awarded Nick & Toni’s two stars in her 1994 New York Times review, praising its convivial atmosphere while noting the inevitable celebrity-spotting: “Heads turn each time the door opens. Did you see who just came in? Just another night at the beach.”<\/p>\n Food & Wine declared it “the best Italian restaurant on the East End.” GQ bestowed the Golden Dish Award. By 2001, the Times upgraded its rating to three stars\u2014”excellent”\u2014under then-critic William Grimes. The 2015 review reaffirmed its status as “very good,” remarkable for a restaurant approaching its third decade.<\/p>\n Chef Realmuto has cooked at the James Beard House twice and appeared alongside Bobby Flay as a judge on The Next Food Network Star. Giada De Laurentiis featured the restaurant on Weekend Getaways. The acclaim validates what regulars already knew: This place delivers, consistently, year after year.<\/p>\n Nick & Toni’s commitment to local sourcing anticipated a movement now reshaping American dining. Research from the National Restaurant Association names sustainability the top trend for 2025, with 73% of diners considering a restaurant’s environmental approach when choosing where to eat.<\/p>\n The restaurant was among the first to join the East End’s Dock to Dish program\u2014essentially a fish CSA connecting restaurants directly with local fishermen. Braun Seafood in Cutchogue, Gosman’s in Montauk, and independent fishers supply what they catch, ensuring freshness while supporting sustainable practices.<\/p>\n That on-site garden now includes a massive row of blackberries and raspberries used by Executive Pastry Chef Rachel Flatley for seasonal desserts. The garden evolves constantly\u2014adding varieties, experimenting with heritage crops, responding to what thrives in the East End’s maritime climate.<\/p>\n “The garden’s been through a gradual morphing over the years,” Smith notes. “Initially offering small but important finishing elements, like microgreens and fresh herbs, to eventually featuring asparagus and heirloom tomatoes.”<\/p>\n Nick & Toni’s welcomes guests Wednesday through Monday, opening at 5:30 PM. The Tuscan farmhouse setting features dark wood tables, elegant pina lanterns, outsider art, and a long bar crowned by a crocodile sculpture. A buzzing energy fills the dining room most evenings\u2014convivial without becoming chaotic.<\/p>\n The wood-burning oven remains the kitchen’s heart. The wine cellar, built over thirty-seven years, ranks among the region’s finest. Outdoor patio seating extends the season into late fall, with heat lamps warding off the chill.<\/p>\n Reservations are essential during summer months, when securing a table requires planning weeks ahead. Walk-ins are welcomed but prepare to wait. For those seeking the Nick & Toni’s experience without the reservation challenge, Rowdy Hall in Amagansett offers a more casual English pub atmosphere from the same team.<\/p>\n Location:<\/strong> 136 North Main Street at Cedar Street, East Hampton, NY 11937 Thirty-seven years in the restaurant business is extraordinary. In the Hamptons\u2014where trends cycle faster than ocean tides\u2014it’s almost unprecedented. Nick & Toni’s endures because it rejected trendiness from the start.<\/p>\n The formula seems simple in retrospect. Source relentlessly local ingredients. Cook them simply and well. Treat every guest like family. Stay open year-round to serve locals, not just summer crowds. Hire people who stay for decades and promote from within.<\/p>\n Salaway’s spirit persists in details large and small. The herb garden he planted still grows. The stone dogs he collected flank the entrance (after being recovered from a bizarre theft). His sculptures stand weathered in the garden behind the restaurant. And his insistence that hospitality means making people comfortable\u2014regardless of fame or fortune\u2014remains the governing principle.<\/p>\n “A lot of people depend on this place for a living,” Smith observes. “In today’s environment, if you’re not moving forward, you’re moving backward. But that being said, you also don’t want to lose what you are.”<\/p>\n Nick & Toni’s hasn’t lost what it is. The penne still arrives perfectly sauced. The garden still feeds the kitchen. The tables still fill with locals, celebrities, and everyone in between, sharing the kind of meal that feels like coming home. That’s the secret, really\u2014not so much best-kept as perfectly preserved.<\/p>\n To discover more hidden gems across the East End, explore our Hamptons Winter Events 2025-2026 Calendar<\/a> and Best Hamptons Hotels 2026<\/a>. For insider access to where deals close over dinner, see our Insider Hamptons Hotels<\/a> guide.<\/p>\n Contact Social Life Magazine to feature your luxury brand at Polo Hamptons or inquire about advertising opportunities that reach the Hamptons’ most influential audience.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The Hamptons’ Best-Kept Secret Restaurant Walk through the doors at 136 North Main Street in East Hampton and you enter hallowed ground. Nick & Toni’s isn’t merely a restaurant. It’s […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":17918,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_yoast_wpseo_focuskeywords":"","_yoast_wpseo_keywordsynonyms":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[42,35],"tags":[3494,3507,941,236,1100,3514,3513,3523,3517,3515,3522,3520,1376,3519,3521,3516,3518],"class_list":["post-17917","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-food","category-the-archive","tag-celebrity-restaurants","tag-east-hampton-restaurants","tag-farm-to-table","tag-hamptons-dining","tag-hamptons-fine-dining","tag-honest-man-hospitality","tag-italian-mediterranean-cuisine","tag-jams-restaurant","tag-jeff-salaway","tag-joe-realmuto","tag-jonathan-waxman","tag-local-sourcing","tag-nick-tonis","tag-penne-alla-vecchia-bettola","tag-quail-hill-farm","tag-toni-ross","tag-wood-fired-oven"],"yoast_head":"\n![\"Nick](\"https:\/\/social-life-magazine.s3.amazonaws.com\/~sociall1\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/28022615\/Screenshot-2025-11-28-021813.png\")
How Nick & Toni’s Pioneered Farm-to-Table Dining<\/h2>\n
Nick & Toni’s Signature Dishes and Wood-Fired Excellence<\/h2>\n
![\"Nick](\"https:\/\/social-life-magazine.s3.amazonaws.com\/~sociall1\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/28022612\/Screenshot-2025-11-28-022034.png\")
A Celebrity Dining Institution<\/h2>\n
The Jams Connection and California Cuisine Roots<\/h2>\n
Tragedy and Resilience<\/h2>\n
Critical Acclaim and Awards<\/h2>\n
Why Sustainability Continues to Matter<\/h2>\n
Nick & Toni’s Today: Dining Details and Reservations<\/h2>\n
![\"Nick](\"https:\/\/social-life-magazine.s3.amazonaws.com\/~sociall1\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/28022613\/Screenshot-2025-11-28-021915.png\")
\nPhone:<\/strong> 631-324-3550
\nHours:<\/strong> Wednesday\u2013Monday from 5:30 PM
\nReservations:<\/strong> Online via website (no email reservations)
\nNote:<\/strong> No pets permitted on restaurant property; service animals welcome per ADA guidelines<\/p>\nThe Lasting Legacy of Nick & Toni’s<\/h2>\n