Founded in 1998, Le Colonne was a perennial choice for upscale Italian food in Sarasota for years.
“Local celebrities used to go there for holidays, for anniversaries. They were very successful, very good at it,” Amber Mayner, partner to chef and owner Simone Salustri, told What Now on Tuesday.
Hard times came with last year’s brutal storm season.
“After Helene, it was almost recoverable,” Mayner said. “We spent our last resources on repairs—and then Milton did everything all over again. We just realized there was no way we could bring it back.”
The founder of Le Colonne, and Simone Salustri’s grandfather, Umberto Salustri retired, and the restaurant closed. But as it turned out, Chef Simone wasn’t ready to let the family tradition come to an end. Soon, Simone and Amber found themselves pricing food trucks, and before long they had opened Buonissimo Mobile Italian Kitchen. After that leap of faith, it would just be a question of how the food was received. Spoiler alert: it went really well.
“Really well,” Mayner says. “We’re still basically fully booked. We opened the food truck to keep the legacy going, and we finally made enough funds to open the restaurant again. Simone’s food is just so good. You put in your mouth and it’s like—whoa. People were blown away.”
Now, Le Colonne is preparing to reopen with Chef Simone at the helm, under new name honoring Le Colonne’s founder. Opening in the same location, at 22 S Blvd of the Presidents, St. Armands Circle, it will be called Nōnnō Umbertō Italian Seafood & Steakhouse.
Mayner says the new menu will feature many of the same favorites, while adding aged steaks and wagyu choices. Further menu details are still forthcoming.
Check out the restaurant’s first construction update here, and keep up with Nōnnō Umbertō Italian Seafood & Steakhouse news by following the restaurant on Facebook.
