Tony, who already owns and operates the popular Tonino’s pizzeria in Greenock’s Grey Place, has expanded his portfolio with his latest hospitality venture Vino by Tonino, but is making sure to keep his customers at its core.
The 40-year-old’s new business has finally found opened its doors on Gourock’s high street after a year of work to transform the building, which was once home to Domus Interiors’ design studio, into a bar.
The finished venue is something which would not seem out of place in Glasgow’s west end, with its modern design and changing menu of wine and antipasti sharing plates.
The inspiration for Vino came from Tony’s trips to Italy to see his family as small bars are a common sight in that part of the world and are very popular with locals.
The venue, which was bought by Tony in 2023, has been only open a matter of weeks but has already seen hundreds of people pass through the door for a glass of wine or one of their specialty cocktails.
He told the Tele: “It has been a big change and a totally different kind of spot from Tonino’s, but at its core it stays the same, we still source the same high quality, authentic Italian ingredients.
“For me it is always about offering amazing customer service, that has always been paramount for me and the business I do.
“Our Tonino’s customers are the best and we have already seen how loyal our Vino customers are in only a few weeks of being open.”
The most popular items on the menu are Tonino’s much-loved focaccias and the unique wines from around the world.
Despite the food and alcohol being imported from Europe, keeping the foundations of the wine bar local was important to Tony as he hired a young interior designer from Wemyss Bay to bring his vision to life.
Glasgow School of Art student Lucia Coggins, 21, who worked in Domus Interiors, was brought onboard to turn the former furniture shop into a classy cocktail spot.
Tony says from the early days of planning he was impressed by Lucia’s professionalism and he is thrilled about what they have been able to achieve in such a short space of time.
He added: “I had an idea of the logistics of the shop, things like what tomatoes we would use, where everything should go in the kitchen and what would be on the menu, but I had no idea what chairs to have or wallpaper to use and that is why I brought in Lucia.
“I could see early on how brilliant she was, she would put together colour palettes and renders of the space, so I just let her run with it and what we have is such a beautiful space.”
Vino has now been open on Kempock Street from Thursday to Monday since the end of November, and business is already booming with a packed house every weekend.
But despite the busy weekends, the business’s staff team of six are staying on top of things.
The team is being led by Michel Serpe who has worked alongside Tony in Tonino’s for seven years.
Tony says he is excited to be joining the high street which already has such a variety of spots for people to spend their evenings.
“There are plenty of great offerings on Kempock Street from the fantastic cocktails that Clyde makes in Picture Hoose, the Café Continental, which is an institution on the street, and Wildfire, but we hope to bring something different.
“I have had people tell me they feel like they have been transported to the west end of Glasgow and is what we wanted to achieve.
“We wanted to bring that city atmosphere to the west coast.”
Tony says he has ‘load of ideas up his sleeve’ for Vino in the new year, wanting to venture into wine tasting events and offering a off-sale option for customers to purchase their favourite bottles.
He added: “I couldn’t have asked for a better opening.
“It has been so well received, and I hope we can keep it going and eventually offer people new experiences and offerings.”
Tony would like to thank Billy and Eileen of Domus for giving him the space to create Vino, Lucia for her design work, Percival Joinery for crafting the bar, Kevin Duddy and Craig Brand for plumbing and electrical works, Dill Flowers for providing the shop’s greenery and his friend Gordy for curating the cocktail list.
Dining and Cooking