East Nashville’s historic Ambrose House — arguably the architectural crown jewel of an area of the city known for its many beautiful residential buildings — has sold for $3,197,000 to a New York-based restaurant industry power couple.
According to a Davidson County Register of Deeds document, Christina Tosi and Will Guidara now own the 1890-constructed building. The address of the 0.39-acre East End property is 122 S. 12th St.
Susan Brady and Corey Brady (the latter seemingly is a former Vanderbilt University professor who now works at Southern Methodist University) were the sellers, having paid $1,135,000 for it in 2016, Metro records show. The Bradys updated the home after purchasing it, according to online sources.
Tosi is founder and co-owner (with David Chang and hospitality company Momofuku) of dessert and bakery restaurant chain Milk Bar, serving as chef and chief executive officer. Food & Wine magazine included Tosi in its 2014 list of "Most Innovative Women in Food and Drink.”
The author of several cookbooks, Tosi has served as a judge on reality competition show MasterChef and has won two James Beard Awards.
In 2011, Guidara and chef Daniel Humm co-established hospitality company Make It Nice, which owns and operates multiple restaurants. Perhaps the best known is Eleven Madison Park, located in Manhattan’s Flatiron District and considered by many online sources one of the world’s top restaurants. Online source theworlds50best.com listed Eleven Madison Park in 2017.
Guidara and Humm later ceased their business partnership, with the former leaving Make It Nice.
Scene sister publication the Nashville Post was unable to determine what Tosi and Guidara — both of whom have written multiple books about the food and beverage industry — have planned for the building. Located about two blocks from Five Points, the property is not zoned to accommodate a food and beverage business.
The three-story Ambrose House offers four bedrooms, five bathrooms and about 7,500 square feet. Designed by the late Hugh Cathcart Thompson — known as the architect for Ryman Auditorium — the building is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Other previous owners of the property, according to Metro records, include Gordon Gilbreath (who co-owns Wedgewood-Houston commercial building Houston Station with a group of investors) and East Nashville real estate investor and property manager March Egerton.
This article was first published by our sister publication, the Nashville Post.
