nick's ristorante

best in huntsville!. we had our best meal and restaurant experience to date in huntsville at nicks. the service was impeccable- even offered a black napkin when they noticed i was wearing black pants. they pay perfect attention to detail and took the time to get to know us, give excellent recommendations, and make sure we were never low on drinks or in need of a thing. we enjoyed a conversation with the owner, who is clearly passionate about what he does, and that shines through in the food- fabulous steaks, delicious drinks, wonderful asparagus, and dessert that is worth the calories! though the bar area is smokey, you can get a table in the back of the restaurant side and barely even know you are next door to it. worth the money! what a great evening.

all i wanted was a quiet and relaxing evening to spend with my wife on our anniversary. i made reservations and politely asked for a quiet table for us. upon arrival, not only did they have the perfect table for us, but they also wished us a happy anniversary and on the table was a card for us signed by the entire restaurant staff. it's little things like this that separate the mediocre from the great. the meal could have been made of dirt and worms and i'd still give them a 5 star review for their courtesy and attention, but the food was actually damn amazing! my wife and i both agreed that we can't wait to go back. thank you to the entire staff, and especially our server roger, for helping make this anniversary evening great for us. we will be welcoming our first child soon so this anniversary evening will always be memorable. cheers!

great service! great food! great atmosphere! i like that the cigar bar is separate from non-smoking dining but i just wish they had a bathroom on the non-smoking side. that's my only complaint! everything else is wonderful.

nick will fix it. thought i would share this with others who wirte reviews on various sites. as a periodic diner at nick's we visited recently and had another fine dining experience. everything was prepared as desired however my steak had a bit of gristle in it so i wrote on the comment card that is provided in the final bill folder. about two days later i received a personal call from nick himself asking for more details about the steak. he told me that he reads every comment card submitted and responds to many, especially if he finds an area of concern. he also said that he appreciates diners who provide him immediate feedback directly or via the comment card so he can fix any issues that may come up on the spot. he says he reads the review sites periodically but that he believes if a diner can't talk with him directly through his own process (direct communication or comment card) he can't really respond or fix the issue on a personal basis. i know he reads them because i noticed that he has arranged for a separate entry for non smokers and that appears to have been the biggest item raised by submitters. i will use the comment card from now on.......i know it works and he personally called me...........nick is obvisouly an owner who cares about his guests and we will go back often because that is a breath of fresh air.


-----28 oct, 2013-----

what a great ristorante. if you haven’t been to nick’s ristorante in a while you are really missing out. of course they have the best steaks in town as always and now they have a new chef trained in classical italian fare and he is creating magic in the kitchen. nick has also brought back the 20th diner program on weekdays so if you are the 20th ticket name to go through the kitchen you receive you entrée at 1⁄2 off.......this is a great way to get out on the weekdays and what a surprise when i found out i was # 20 tuesday night! they have also just about completed the direct access entry into the dining room so non-smokers won’t have to go through the lounge to get to the dining room. nick’s ristorante is a service disabled veteran owned small business(sdvosb) nick being a service disable vet he does all he can to accommodate folks from all walks of life.....still my favorite spot in huntsville and now they also have live entertainment on occasion as background dining music!!!!

disappointed. heard nick's was pricey but good so decided to try it. ordered the "house" sirloin medium rare. looked good but steak was only medium rare on the top. the bottom half of the steak was almost raw. to make things worse it was the toughest piece of meat i have had in a long time. got so tired of chewing i only ate half of the steak. additional cooking wouldn't have helped. my date ordered the $48 jumbo prawn and we expected something exceptional. wrong. the prawns were soft, mealy and lacked distinctive taste. my guess is they were frozen several times. definitely not fresh. on the positive side the crab cake appetizer was very good. won't go back. bn

changed chef!!. we have been to nicks on many occasions to eat dinner and have great drinks. the other night was a total failure!
it seems that everything that was successful at this restaurant has changed for the worst.
4 of us went the other night, and the food tasted cold, and undercooked. my steak was so raw, i just asked for a to go box, and the creamy mashed potatoes, were coarse and lumpy.
when we used to go when they first opened, the atmosphere was something out of a movie you wanted to be in. the cute blonde short haired bartender was the best in town and could light up a sky, the chef could cook a steak like no one else, and the servers were fantastick. the other night, we just wanted to leave, the great chef was no longer there, nor was the best bar staff,
wish it was like it was when they first opened with a plus service and cuisine.

100% dissatisfied! the smoke is overwhelming. to pretend the non-smoking section is truly isolated as the web site suggests is laughable. we waited almost 10 minutes for someone to take our drink order, 35 minutes for salads and then received slightly warm chicken parm. with the price of the food, that of a top notch restaurant, i expect service and quality to match--we received neither.

we went for my wife's birthday and were sorely disappointed. i don't expect to go to what purports to be a fancy restaurant and come home smelling like i've spent the evening in a bar. i will not recommend this restaurant and will certainly not return.

lungo vive nick!!!. we've enjoyed nick's on ~ 6 different visits, including new year's eve and several anniversary dinners. i'm noticing that others have issue with the smoking section in the bar area. i've only dined in this area, so cannot confirm, but i've noticed there are plenty of ceiling vents that do a good job of "sucking" the smoke from the bar area, within that area. nick told me that the least smoky area is in the back corner of the dining room (again, i've never been back there, so i can't say.) maybe those of you who are bothered by the smoke, could mention it to nick or sherry, or i think his brother's name is dave, and perhaps suggest that they add a separate entrance to the non-smoking dining. anyway, on to my opion of our experiences:

this is my new fav. restaurant in hsv!!!! nick's has a wonderful local/neighborhood "feel" to it. nick and sherry mikus are exceptional owners who act as hosts, whom you are visiting at their home. we enjoyed not only the friendliness of everyone there, the server's attention to detail (no glass left empty, offering suggestions, quick pick up of used dishes, etc.) but also the atmosphere, (casual, yet slightly upscale), and then the **food**.

we started off with the crab cake app which was wonderful, no remoulade (sp?) needed, a squeeze of the (provided) fresh lemon encased in cheese cloth (nice touch that you don't often see), was all it needed. cakes were not heavy on the breading like so many others and were huge in comparison to most restaurants. then, we each had the blue cheese wedge, which could be a meal in itself (your choice of dressing, didn't have to be bleu cheese, with olive garnish). i had the 6 oz filet, cooked to perfection - could have cut it with a butter knife, but was (surprisingly) provided with a steak knife with a side of garlic mashed potatoes. my husb. had the salmon, which i tasted and found it perfectly seasoned and cooked to perfection! no complaints at all! nick mentioned that they may be adding more northern italian fare to their menu, which looked good on the menu (veal piccata, etc), but their steaks cannot be beat. i was disappointed that they were out of port wine, which i would have enjoyed as an after dinner drink. however, i was so impressed by the extensive and very reasonably priced wine ( a glass that would cost, easily 9.00 elsewhere is 7.00 here and bottle prices are even better!!!) .

cigar donations (which is the cost of their cigars for sale) support the u.s. army! nick is a u.s. army veteran (40 yrs?) and my only regret is not thanking him for serving our country.

you should try nicks, you won't be disappointed. i wish there were a "nick's west" that is closer to our house...maybe in the future nick and sherry???

looking forward to your special events (scotch tastings, etc) and look forward to being on your mailing list.

they have live entertainment on new years eve, streamers, and a photographer, and they accommodate your special event (e.g., wedding anniversary) with (i think) comp'ed prosecco. nice touches!
thanks for the great ristorante!!!!!!!!!! ringraziarla per una sera meravigliosa! buono ciao e la buona salute!

okay, i actually have not eaten here. i tried-really! we got dressed up, drove and drove down bailey cove... when we hit the door there was no way i could go in. i heard the food was good, but even that couldn't get me past the overwhelming smell of cigar smoke. maybe we could look into take out??? if you can't tolerate smoke, don't bother!

we have been several times and the quality is always excellent. if you are a steak lover, the filet is noteworthy.

a special place for appreciative patrons. nick's is a unique dining experience unlike any other i know of in huntsville. the atmosphere, cuisine, and personal touch makes this a very special restaurant for relaxing and winding down. the negative comments regarding cigar smoke are unwarranted. i detected zero smoke in the dining room, and was glad to see people enjoying cigars and relaxing. for those that turn around at the door, i say good riddance. have you been to europe? like 95% of everyone smokes!

ok. not outstanding. after reading reviews and recommendation from daughter and husband we decided to try nick's. the atmosphere and decor are very nice but other than the fried green tomatoes we were not impressed. one reviewer on this site that a pleasant surprise was receiving individual bowls of olive oil for bread dipping. we received one meager plate. during the one or two visits by our waiter he never offered to refill our wine glasses. based on the "bragging" on nick's web site my wife decided to try the pork chop. if there was anything stuffed in it, she could not find it. in fact, it was not until talking with our daughter that we found out it was to have been stuffed. i tried the ny strip. it was a very good size and prepared mostly as i requested. it was ok but not outstanding. in my visits to steak houses out west i have eaten better. in our 20+ years of travel in the army my wife and i have eaten in some of the best restaurants in europe and the far east. if nick is trying to emulate these, he has a way to go.

while we munched on the breadsticks, we pondered the menu. i was a little disappointed with the choices, which felt very "safe".

if you like the smell of cigar smoke you will like nicks. the salmon i had ok but not great. the lady with me said her's was too done and hard to chew. the cigar smoke is everywhere even in the no smoking dinning area. prices are way too high for what you got.

still hungry when i left. very smokey. prices were high got a rare peice of meat when i asked for medium well. did i say smokey? not coming back to say the least.