I have well and truly lost count of the number of times that myself, my family and friends have walked through the door of Nino's. We have lived where we are living for well over a decade, and Nino's has been a steady companion pretty much all along. Thus I felt it was time for me to put together a small but heart-felt tribute to what I feel to be a marvellous establishment.
For many years initially, we were rarely seen out of the place week-on-week, and though there may have been gaps in visits of varying length, I for one was and still am always extremely happy to return. As a result of my lengthy and still ongoing period of interactions with this fabled Italian "with a Lancashire twist", I have been treated to quite an evolved and intrinsic journey that has seen Nino's become what it is today.
Yet almost always, whatever has happened with the ins and outs of the place, the atmosphere, welcome and quality has shone through.
The man simply known to many as Alex (a true Italian gem of a man) has fostered and reared Nino's from its relatively humble beginnings to a successful and consistently great business and restaurant experience; one that has become the reliable go-to place for legions, and whose reach now stretches across the county and most probably the country. Every scrap of success Alex and his team have garnered they well and truly deserve. I cannot conceive of the amounts of effort, finances, tough choices, hope, faith and passion that have been driven into Nino's over the years. Of course, you may say, the same could be said of many an eatery. True, but few places I have seen where this is so evident from the customer's perspective. It really is a great feat when one stops to think about it.
Today at its core Nino's remains what it always was; a great place to spend an evening run by great people who serve consistently pleasing fare. Alex, rather like Nino's version of the Godfather, now takes a slightly more peripheral (though just as invested) role now that he has a well established team or "family" (literally and figuratively) to run things and run things well. From my point of view, whilst the transition to get to this stage has at times been rough, the result is one that I am proud of, nevermind Alex. To anyone who knows anything or has any experience of Nino's, the state in which it finds itself today must surely be a fitting and happy one.
I for one have experienced and enjoyed numerous meals, night's out, birthdays (my own and those of others) and get-togethers there and long may there be more.
Indeed, Nino's star is seemingly ever on the up, as in the last year or so Alex has set his sights upon a new site in Cliviger, Burnley; a sister restaurant to the original Nino's home in Rossendale. By all accounts this new branch is exceedingly popular and is set to do just as well. Whilst I have seen and been inside the Burnley branch (and was mightily impressed indeed!) I am yet to eat there, but hopefully that will soon change.
Really this all boils down to me expressing what I am sure generations of people have felt upon coming out of a night at Nino's: thank you. Thank you Alex, and thank you to all of your team from beginning to present. You've surely cracked it with Nino's - long may you continue!
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