Justin Fox Burks/Samuel X. Cicci
Sabine Bachmann with sons Armando Gagliano (left) and John Paul Gagliano (right). Not pictured is her third son, Mario Gagliano.
Tonica owner Sabine Bachmann didn’t necessarily set out to get into the restaurant business, but her love for all things food-related has led her to open multiple establishments in Memphis, most notably the populer Italian-inspired Ecco on Overton Park. When a building half a block from her flagship restaurant needed new tenants, she knew it was time to bring a different flavor of European cuisine to Memphis.
Bachmann opened Tonica earlier this year at 1545 Overton Park in the Evergreen Historic District in Midtown. Since the doors opened in February, diners have been rushing through for a taste of Spain. “Things have been really good at Tonica,” she says. “People are always curious about new places, but I feel we’ve been lucky in that we were crazy busy for quite a while. It toned down for a bit, but has picked up again.”
photograph by samuel x. cicci
She’d had her eye on Tonica’s building when first thinking about where to open Ecco almost a decade ago, but the space didn’t quite fit the plans for that restaurant. However, when the former tenant, Parish Grocery, relocated to the Cooper-Young neighborhood in the spring of 2021, Bachmann pounced. “I wouldn’t say we had been planning to go into that space,” she says, “but when the opportunity presented itself, we said, ‘Why not?’”
Bachmann’s pathway to the hospitality industry came through wine. She originally worked as a wine rep for wholesalers in Memphis, but had always wanted to have her own business. “There was a little-bitty space that opened up on North Front Street where the Blue Monkey is now,” she says. “At the time, the laws were that you couldn’t taste wine in a liquor store, but you’d be able to do so in a little restaurant. So that’s when I decided to open my first venture, Fratelli’s, in 2002.”
That little deli eventually wound up at Memphis Botanic Garden, and its success led Bachmann to open Ecco and, more recently, Libro inside Novel, the bookstore at Laurelwood Shopping Center. The Spanish-inspired Tonica was a logical next step considering her European background and love for food. Originally from the German city of Nordhorn, she grew up taking frequent visits to southern France. She also lived in Italy while studying for veterinary school. It was, ironically, in Italy that she found her penchant for the smaller, tapas-style dishes offered at Spanish restaurants.
“I like the idea of small plates,” she explains. “That’s how I like to eat. I like to go to restaurants and just have a bunch of appetizers rather than a big, full entree. And then with every appetizer I have a different glass of wine. I just enjoy that. I think it makes for great conversation and it’s a change of pace. So tapas was the way to go when we were setting up Tonica.”
A trip to Barcelona allowed Bachmann to become familiar with the tastes and styles of Spanish food before she tasked one of her sons, Armando Gagliano, with crafting a menu. The many dishes at her new restaurant encapsulate the Mediterranean flavors so common in Spain. “For the most part, we’re trying to provide food that is very authentic to Spain,” she says “although we also have a few surprises that may not be as traditionally Spanish.” With so many choices of tapas, it’s easy to order plenty for the table.
photograph by samuel x. cicci
The paella uses bomba rice as the base.
One of Bachmann’s mainstays at Tonica are the croquetas de jamón serrano. “They’re like these little béchamel bites,” she says, “you let it get cold, and then you form them into these little balls or shapes. You roll them in breadcrumbs or something similar, and then deep-fry them. When you bite into those things, the béchamel is hot, and it’s a bit liquidy again, and it’s fantastic. I love them. We make ours with serrano ham. This is something that I encountered almost everywhere I went in Spain.”
For a mild kick, an intriguing plate serves up pimientos: peppers with flaky Maldon salt. According to Bachmann, diners frequently munch on padrón peppers as a quick and easy snack with a bit of a bite to them. Since those peppers are very difficult to source here in the States, Tonica creates the dish with shishito peppers, which she says taste very similar. “It’s not very spicy, but we deep-fry them here, and put Maldon salt on. They’re delicious little things.”
“We really wanted this to feel authentically Spanish. So almost all of our wine is coming from the country. We do have a couple of Portuguese wines, but you’re not going to see any American or Italian varieties. It’s all Spanish here.” — Sabine Bachmann
While most of the dishes are smaller portions, Tonica’s menu includes a couple of entrees, like the barbacoa, a hearty helping of Spanish-style barbecued beef. I chose to order a large tray of paella, one of the most classic of spanish dishes. I had the vegetable mix, but the restaurant also serves it with chicken, shrimp, sausage, or all of the above. The soft and velvety mix of rice and veggies make for unfussy eating as the blend of herbs and spices wafts up from the plate. Companions should try a bite or two themselves; even though the menu lists the paella as an entree, I found it easily shareable.
“For our paella, we use bomba rice as the base,” says Bachmann. “We mix it in with herbs, spices, some vegetables, and any one of the meats that we offer. I used to make this all the time at home in the oven. That’s harder to do here at the restaurant, so we’ll pre-make some of it during the day, put it in the pan later, heat it up, and then put it in the oven for a short time to give it a little bit of a crust on top.”
It’s hard to go wrong with any of the tapas at Tonica. But as Bachmann says, she especially enjoys her small plates accompanied by a glass of wine. To share that experience with her diners, she drew up an extensive wine list for the restaurant, with almost every bottle arriving straight from Spain. “Again, we really wanted this to feel authentically Spanish,” she says. “So almost all of our wine is coming from the country. We do have a couple of Portuguese wines, but you’re not going to see any American or Italian varieties. It’s all Spanish here.”
She aimed to build a wine list focusing on both quality and value. “Some of the Gran Reservas that you get here compare to Bordeauxs and Burgundies that go for, say, $200. And the Spanish wines are going to be way less expensive than that.” Her personal favorite is a bottle of Priorat, a dry red from the Catalan region. For the warmer summer weather, she goes with the Emendis, a sparkling brut rosé fused with raspberry and currants; with its fruity finish, it’s perfect for patio sipping.
photograph by samuel x. cicci
The “Daybreaker” ismade with Rives 1800 gin,Campari, grapefruit and hibiscusshrub, lime, honey, and cassiabark bitters.
For the wine-averse, Tonica provides plenty of brightly colored cocktails, curated by food and beverage director Mary Connor Jones. The “Daybreaker” immediately caught my eye with its arresting purple shade and grapefruit-slice garnish. Made with Rives 1800 gin, Campari, grapefruit and hibiscus shrub, lime, honey, and cassia bark bitters, the tart concoction balanced the savory tapas, and also made me rethink my usual avoidance of gin.
Something that surprised Bachmann when she visited Barcelona was the prevalence of gin and tonics — or as they call them in Spain, gin tonics. “Hence, the name of our restaurant, Tonica,” says Bachmann. “They’re a little bit different over there. So here, we make our own bitters, and put in herbs, spices, and all kinds of things, which make them really special and really good.” The restaurant also makes its own red and white sangria in house, and there are plenty of sherries as aperitifs, along with a few sweeter options to be enjoyed as a dessert beverage.
While Tonica’s menu is settled for the time being, Bachmann eventually wants to expand their offerings and provide different tastes to diners. “It won’t always be the same, because honestly, when the restaurant is open, I come and eat here almost every night. So if I’m doing that, I cannot eat the same thing over and over again,” she laughs. “We will eventually add a couple of things, but we wanted to become just very, very good at what we’re doing now before we expand.”
From her restaurants’ successes, it’s clear that Bachmann is very good at what she does. Helping her oversee her own miniature European restaurant empire are her three sons, Armando, Mario, and John-Paul Gagliano, who all lend their cooking and management expertise. “Overall it’s great, working with them,” she says. “My sons are all hard workers and I can trust them, they know what they’re doing, and they have the best interest of the business at heart. But then of course it’s family, right? So, even though once in a while there are moments, overall I enjoy it very much. All of them do a really fantastic job. I couldn’t be happier with them.”
That joy, both of food and family, manifests itself in the Tonica space. While previous establishments at 1545 Overton Park were perhaps a bit dim, the interior has been transformed. Numerous windows let in plenty of light, while hanging greenery gives the inside a lush, natural feel. The bar room has a couple of small tables, while next door is a larger dining space, in addition to an outdoor back alley when the weather is good. A speaker system provides quiet and upbeat guitar thrums to diners while they eat, flamenco chords lulling and crescendoing in perfect tribute to an evening spent sipping drinks in the Spanish Riviera and beyond. Perhaps all that’s missing are the claps and stomps that accompany such a live flamenco performance. For a moment, you may just forget that you’re in Memphis.
Sam’s Picks
Tapas can be tough for the indecisive diner! While everything is good, here are three starter options.
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photograph by samuel x. cicci
Croquetas de Jamon Serrano
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Aliutas de Pollo
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photograph by samuel x. cicci
Patatas Bravas
CROQUETAS DE JAMÓN SERRANO - $8
One of Bachmann’s favorites, and now one of mine. Béchamel bites are an apt description for the three little snacks. I wasn’t quite sure what to expect as I bit into my first one, but with the soft, milky texture inside and the crunchy breadcrumb exterior, I felt as if I’d fallen into a Spanish fusion of a tater tot and a mozzarella stick.
ALIUTAS DE POLLO - $10
I don’t think of chicken wings as a Spanish dish. But what I do know is that if wings are on the menu, I need to try them. “We have a couple things on here that aren’t very Spanish, and these are one of them,” says Bachmann. “But they’re so good, and I eat them almost every time.” These wings aren’t traditional buffalo-style; rather, the sauce is made with Calabrian peppers from southern Italy. The crispy wings do have a bit of a kick, but there’s a bit of a sweetness to the mixture as well. Still, if you can’t handle the spice, dip them into the house-made blue cheese dressing, and chase them with the included carrots and green pepper slices.
PATATAS BRAVAS - $7
A traditional Catalan dish, this spicy potato tapa is simple, yet oh-so-delicious. The small potato chunks are fried in oil before being tossed with an assortment of spicy sauce and aioli. Forget french fries; this potato snack needs to be on more menus in the U.S.
Tonica is open from 4:30 until closing (hours vary), Thursday through Sunday. 1545 Overton Park Ave. 474-7693. TONICAMEMPHIS.COM
