Tony Galzin brings more than 12 years of diverse culinary experience from his hometown Chicago to current residence in Nashville.  After working through several kitchens while attending Columbia College in Chicago, Galzin decided he wanted to pursue a culinary career. In lieu of attending a traditional culinary school, he took advantage of living in one of the premier dining destinations amongst a myriad of chefs under which he could study. Chef Galzin began his professional career in 2004 as a line cook, and later pastry assistant, at the highly acclaimed Trio in Evanston, Illinois. Galzin’s culinary versatility between pastry and savory was showcased over the next several years as he worked as a sous chef at Follia, pastry assistant at Michelin-starred Naha, and sous chef at Michelin-Bib Gourmand winning Perennial. Following those experiences, he worked as a pastry chef for four-time James Beard Award-nominated chef Michael Kornick at mk from 2008 through 2012, where he met his wife and business partner, Caroline.
One of the founding members of Chicago’s Green City Market Junior Board, Galzin served as the event co-chair, organizing fundraisers to promote the importance of sustainable farming practices in the city. In 2012, Galzin and Caroline moved to Nashville to take part in the city’s burgeoning culinary scene. During their first year, the Galzins developed and launched, Sycamore Nashville, a pop-up focusing on the utilization of whole, locally raised animals, supporting the Hands on Nashville Urban Farm. Most recently, chef Galzin was the executive chef/partner at Fifty First Kitchen & Bar, a seasonally-driven, rustic Italian restaurant located in Nashville’s The Nation’s neighborhood, which he helped open in 2015. Nicky’s Coal Fired is the newest venture between chef/partner Tony Galzin and director of operations/partner Caroline Galzin. Nicky’s will showcase chef Galzin’s seasonal Italian cuisine, with the majority of dishes cooked in a four-ton, coal fired oven, the first of its kind
in Nashville.