Growing up in Florence, Italy, Christian Pietoso followed in the footsteps of his brother 35 years ago and was always excited about the possibility of his father immigrating to the United States.

“They all sought an American dream and tried to do better for themselves and their families,” he learned the art of cooking while his father pursued his dream of opening a restaurant in the United States, with Florence Pietoso, who stayed abroad to work in London, says he opened his nickname Nikola in 1996, first in St. Louis and then in Cincinnati.