Tony and Cathy Mantuano at The Joseph
Early this year, when Tony Galzin realized that chef Tony Mantuano and his wife Cathy Mantuano were eating at Nicky’s Coal Fired — the restaurant Galzin co-owns in The Nations — he kind of freaked out.
“Holy shit,” says Galzin. “I could not believe they were sitting in my restaurant. I didn’t want to embarrass them, but I had to say something. I am such a big fan. When their cookbook, Spiaggia, came out, I was just a line cook, and after work I would read through it until I fell asleep and come up with fake menus I would serve from it.”
The rest of Nashville is about to get as excited as Galzin. Tony was the longtime chef at the Michelin-starred Spiaggia, one of Chicago’s most beloved restaurants, while Cathy ran its lauded wine program. Tony ran the restaurant for nearly 35 years — an uncommonly long stretch in the restaurant world — before they moved to Milan in October 2019 to eat, drink and think about their next act. At the beginning of this year they moved to Nashville, where they are now announcing — you read it first in the Scene — that they are the food and beverage partners at The Joseph, a luxury hotel opening downtown at the corner of Korean Veterans Boulevard and Fourth Avenue South in early August.
“We could have stayed in Italy another year, but this became too enticing,” Tony says. “These kinds of projects don’t really come along that often. They want [to be] the best Italian restaurant in the country.”
The Columbus, Ohio-based Pizzuti Companies, which owns The Joseph, has spared no expense to make that happen. That includes 27 dies for a pasta extruder imported from Italy to make Tony’s signature dishes as well as hand-blown wine glasses from Verona. And in what is sure to be the showstopper, a see-through cheese cave will connect the dining room to the kitchen and will house eight wheels of imported Parmigiano-Reggiano, each of which will weigh up to 80 pounds. The walls will be lined with more than 600 bottles of wine.
Whole fish
In their new positions, the Mantuanos will be at the helm of Yolan, a fine Italian dining restaurant; Denim, the more casual rooftop restaurant and bar; Four Walls, a cocktail bar; the hotel’s banquet and event dining; plus hotel room service and even touches like picking hotel products for the in-room mini-fridges (where visitors can expect to find local products like Poppy & Peep chocolates and Bloomy Rind cheeses).
While there won’t be Spiaggia dishes on the menu, there will be connective threads to the Mantuanos’ past professional lives. “We are who we are,” Tony says. “We are not going to change because we moved to Nashville. We are known for high-end luxury Italian cuisine, so that is what we are bringing here. Denim is going to be more casual, but Yolan is fine dining.”
Pizzuti Companies president Joel Pizzuti attended Vanderbilt University, as did his two sisters. He has a strong affinity for Nashville, and thought it made sense to open the second Joseph hotel here. Pizzuti knew he wanted a fine-dining Italian restaurant in the hotel. He runs the family business with his father, and he named the hotel after his grandfather and a restaurant after his grandmother, so having a spot that reflects the family’s Italian heritage made emotional sense. And he figured bringing a high-end Italian restaurant to Nashville made business sense.
Pizzuti began meeting some of the country’s best Italian chefs, and he had dined at Spiaggia. “Within the first five minutes of meeting Tony, I liked him,” Pizzuti says. The two bonded quickly over shared beliefs, among them that a bad espresso is not worth drinking. (Suffice to say, any espresso served at The Joseph will be done right.) The good vibes continued when he met Cathy, witnessed her breadth of wine expertise, and saw the way Tony and Cathy worked together.
Tony has received 12 nominations from the James Beard Foundation, and won Best Chef: Midwest in 2005. He has received a Michelin star every year since 2011, he’s appeared on Bravo’s Top Chef Masters, and Chicago’s most famous former resident — that would be President Barack Obama — names Tony as his favorite chef. Cathy was one of the first people to compile an all-Italian wine list in the U.S.
It’s not hyperbole to say that Italian cuisine wouldn’t have the acceptance it does in the U.S. if it were not for Tony and Cathy. And like the espresso, they feel strongly about those dishes.
“There is so much bastardization nowadays of classic dishes from Italy, and that is one thing that irks us,” Cathy says. It’s great to have creativity, but don’t call it carbonara if it has an egg floating on top or peas mixed in, they say.
“Call it ‘Todd’s Pasta Whatever,’ ” Tony quips.
With almost four decades of work experience, much of that together, the Mantuanos know they are not as young as many of the best-known chefs in Nashville. “We’re the O.G.,” Cathy laughs. But they’re ready at this point in their careers to take on new challenges — multiple food and beverage outlets in a luxury hotel opening during a global pandemic definitely counts as a challenge. What’s more, they’ll continue to train others. The Mantuanos are already known for their mentoring. Acclaimed chefs Missy Robbins (Lilia in New York) and Sarah Grueneberg (Monteverde Restaurant & Pastificio in Chicago) worked under Tony at Spiaggia.
Caviar service
“If you want to learn, if you come hungry, we’ll feed you,” Tony says.
“Standards are not optional,” Cathy adds. “Forget anything else you have ever learned.”
While Tony is in the kitchen and Cathy is in the front of the house, they are open to each other’s ideas, and think they can lead by example.
“You don’t have to work six days a week,” says Tony. “Find a way to build your team, so you can take two days off. If you want to have a relationship, you need to spend time with it. I hope that’s one thing we show people, is that you can have a relationship, you can work together. You can have a life outside of the restaurant.”
“If Tony and Cathy can’t inspire you, then you can’t be inspired,” Pizzuti says.
Of course, the hotel — with its 297 rooms and check-in desk wrapped in custom-tooled Lucchese leather — is designed for guests. But Pizzuti hopes the property is also a draw for locals.
“Our clear goal is to create a local, regional and national destination that will be important to those who are attracted to world-class food and service,” Pizzuti says. His family is known for its impressive art collection; it is their name on the Pizzuti Collection at the Columbus Museum of Art, and art is an important part of The Joseph. Works by Tennessee artists will line the walls and outdoor spaces, and locals will be encouraged to interact with them. Cathy plans to lead wine workshops and other events for locals. Afternoon tea will be a draw.
While the Mantuanos are still consulting on the Terzo Piano restaurant at the Art Institute of Chicago, they now live within walking distance of The Joseph (as they did with Spiaggia in Chicago), which Cathy says makes them feel connected to the community. They even recently volunteered to assist Tandy Wilson in his efforts to help longtime Nashville institution Silver Sands reopen.
Galzin has helped connect the couple to local farmers — they’ve spent lots of Saturdays at Bells Bend.
“I am so excited to have a chef like that in Nashville,” Galzin says. “We have Sean [Brock], and this is really, really special to have a chef of this caliber in Nashville. ... This is the highest echelon. This is insane.”
