eat this

Whole oven-fired fish with fennel crudo, grapefruit, and kalamata olives

by Ben Leventhal

Another beach season has come and gone and Nick & Toni's, like it has been in each of the past 20 years, was the hardest primetime meal ticket in town. I went to the East Hampton Italian restaurant on four occasions this summer, starting from early May, and every time the restaurant was packed, swelling at least three patrons deep at the bar and with every table booked. The point of my reviewing Nick & Toni's is less to declare it good or bad-it is still a very good restaurant-but to determine if it's still worth braving the crowds, prices, and hassle of booking a table on a summer weekend if you're a civilian. VIPs and regulars need not read on: they're almost always accommodated.

The reality is that the staple items on the menu are excellent. The zucchini chips, lightly fried, are crispy and thin and certainly a table-pleaser at the start of a meal. Arancini, a fried riceball prepared with a touch of bacon worked into its creamy center, was beyond rich-in the right way. A watermelon salad was sweet and refreshing. With a bit of speck already on

the table, having arrived with the sheep's milk ricotta, the salad was made complete.

As for the entrees, the roast chicken is a surefire star. The meat is flavorsome and moist and comes with a substantial crust of peppered skin. To anyone who is of the belief that roast chicken is just roast chicken, I say: have this version. I could go on here about the food-a summery fluke, pitch-perfect diver scallops-but you get it: chef Joseph Realmuto can cook. He makes great use of fresh local ingredients and a wood-burning fireplace in the dining room.

Chow Bella Clockwise Sheep's milk ricotta with speck, truffle honey, and toasted Tuscan bread; Prince Edward Island mussels with salsa crudo; and watermelon salad with toasted ricotta salata, black olive, red onion and fresh mint.

Service is the real summer problem. At best it was sterile, and at worst it was indifferent, cold, and devastating to endure throughout a weekend meal. Endless waits before menus were dropped, huge gaps between courses, wine bottles stored in remote ice buckets-these are the trademarks of rush hour at Nick & Toni's. The exception was when I dined with a group of regulars; the service was impeccable at the Four Seasons of the East End.

At the best restaurants, for example Jean Georges in Manhattan, no degree of kitchen achievement brings complacency to the front-of-house staff. If anything, it does the opposite, which is to motivate servers, sommeliers, and

the rest to lift their game to match the experience of the food. Hubris has brought

about the opposite at Nick & Toni's, and knowing there are five potential diners for each one that actually gets a seat has made the service lazy.

On the upside, there are few better pleasures than walking into Nick & Toni's off-season, when it's easy to get a table and the service is significantly better than it is during peak season. The Tuscan-style dining room feels cozy and welcoming for the rest of the year and it's among the best places to dine out. Try to make yourself a regular now, so you'll be rewarded next summer-or else befriend a VIP who can always get a table.