Bona roots
Once upon a time, there was a little brat named Nick…
Nick grew up in the suburbs of New York City. His father and grandmother were from Italy. He remembers waking to smell of amazing food, made the old way, with fresh ingredients, usually home grown and definitely homemade. When he was five years old he told his father “I’m going to be a chef.” And he set out to do just that: working as a teenager in the local fine-dining spot, heading to the Culinary Institute of America for formal training, and ultimately opening his own restaurant, to high acclaim. Chef Nick Di Bona was on his way!
The funniest thing happened
As Chef Nick was getting some very nice attention for his culinary artistry, he was invited to compete on Food Network’s hit show Chopped® - the “Brunch Boxes” episode. Description of round 1. Description of round 2. He wins our hearts by donating some of his caviar to his struggling competitor. We get to round 3 it’s neck and neck. The basket ingredients are (maple syrup? bacon?) and he makes something something sabayon etc. and the judges are blown away. Of course, Nick wins with his ice cream!
And then the stars aligned
When the NY Times came to review his newly opened Madison Kitchen, the final sentence of a glowing review foretold it all: “Blah blah blah but oh the ice cream! He should really sell that stuff by the pint!” Eureka!! Nick suddenly realized that making ice cream is the most fun part of his job, and it always makes people happy, which always makes him happy. And then he does the unthinkable - he ditches his own restaurant and decides to focus 100% on ice cream. That’s it. He calls it Bona Bona Ice Cream. For some reason.
The ice cream that was born in Brooklyn
Bona Bona Ice Cream makes its big debut at the original Smorgasburg in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Describe the audition? Incorporating the old Italian values he grew up with while simultaneously ditching the all the rules. His unique ice cream style is a combination of Italian gelato and American Ice Cream. He started by taking traditional Italian desserts and turning them into amazing new flavors (Italian rainbow cookie, Holy Cannoli! etc., Nutella S’mores). Instagram foodies go crazy for the stuff. He opens the Port Chester flagship dessert emporium. He gets a truck and then another. He starts to sell it by the pint!
That’s only just the beginning…
Here’s where we hint that Bona Bona Ice Cream is going to be everywhere.