Nick Wiltz

IL Bistro and Amaro Bistro

Nick's grandmother owned a restaurant in Portland. He was just 3 or 4 when she retired, but he remembers that her home kitchen was filled with commercial equipment. "I thought it was so cool."

At 15, he started working at Butcher, Baker, Candlestick Maker in Alderwood-a full service, fine dining spot. He was a bus boy for two years. He worked at several other independently-owned places: Charlie R's in Mill Creek; the Cheyenne Social Club in Everett; and Anthony's and Trattoria Mitchelli while in college.

Once he had his degree from Washington State University in Hotel and Restaurant Administration, he went to work at the Sheraton Seattle. He was the Bar Manager when Caprial Pence was the chef, and the Restaurant Manager of Fuller's when Monique Barbeau was chef. He also worked with Kathy Casey and Tom Black.

As a Food and Beverage Director for the Sheraton Corporation, he moved around for two years working in cities like Atlanta and New Orleans. It was clear to him that Seattle was where he wanted to be, and apparently to others as well, as no one left Seattle and he couldn't get a job. He became the F&B Director for the Heathman Hotel in Portland overseeing the restaurant and bars. He then moved to Kimpton Hotels where he worked for six years, relocating to the Hotel Vintage Park in Seattle as the General Manager of the hotel. Being on the hotel side of things worked well for him during the years his children were growing up. Long hours still, but generally Monday-Friday.

He moved back into the restaurant side of things as Beverage Director at the Bellevue Club, then moved to Campagne and Café Campagne in the Pike Place Market as General Manager. While at Campagne, he started thinking about owning his own restaurant. He had a great deal of freedom at Campagne to make decisions and be hands-on with finances, and felt a sense of ownership.

He moved to IL Bistro in Pike Place Market since they were a dinner-only house and it left him time to look for an existing restaurant to buy or create his own from the ground up. After a year, Dale Abrams, the owner of IL Bistro, asked him if he would consider buying IL Bistro. His answer was yes; it became his on December 1, 2004.

A quick ten years later, Nick opened Amaro Bistro in Bothell on November 24, 2014.

IL Bistro
93A Pike St
Seattle, WA 98101
206-682-3049
www.ilbistro.net

Amaro Bistro
18333 Bothell Wy NE, #105
Bothell, WA 98011
425-485-2300
www.amarorestaurant.com