Some legacies are inherited. Others are earned through decades of dedication, an artist's eye and the kind of customer service that feels like family. For Toni Mitchell Sova, it’s both.
Greek-American Chef Toni, as she’s known — a private event chef, food stylist and founder of Nostimo Kitchen (Greek for “tasty”) — grew up in the world of the celebrated Mitch’s Tavern in Waterford, where she learned what she calls the “restaurant hustle” before she could drive. Sova’s father, Bill Mitchell, and uncle Tony Mitchell opened Mitch’s with her paternal grandparents, creating a beloved Michigan institution known for its generous portions, famous Greek salad (crafted by Sova’s grandmother Ella: She added beets to the traditional Greek salad, making it a Detroit institution) and the legendary pizza and breadsticks. At just 11 years old, Sova was boxing carryout orders; by 18, she graduated to waitress. The work was relentless, but it planted deep inside her something essential: an understanding that hospitality isn’t just about feeding people — it’s about taking care of them.
“My dad was a very Old-World Greek guy,” she says. “He had a true love of food, was a butcher in the Navy, he collected Gourmet magazines back to the 1950s — which I still have today. He was a special guy. So was my uncle.
“Bill and Tony made everything together. That’s why they had such a successful partnership,” Sova says. “Never in my life have I seen two partners so in-sync. They just gelled. I never saw them not have each other’s backs.”
After graduating college, then cooking school in Paris, Sova returned to Michigan with European technique polishing her already-strong foundation. She ran Mitch’s banquet hall, managed carryout, made desserts — mastering every aspect of the business.
“It wasn’t until I came back that I really understood what my father had accomplished — you don’t really realize until you see others who cannot do it. I learned the hustle there,” Sova says. “I could not do what I do today without learning what I did at Mitch’s. Going to school polishes you, but you have to put in the work — that’s the real hustle.”
After marrying and having three daughters (Vassi, Demi and Athena), Sova took a deliberate step back, wanting to be home with her children. But the passion never waned. Even during those years, she quietly designed menus for friends and catered small gatherings, keeping one foot in the world she loved.
Then, about 12 years ago, her daughters — now grown — urged her to “press the gas.” One particularly transformative event came through interior designer Elizabeth Fields, a friend who gave Sova creative freedom — for menu and decor — for her birthday celebration. “She said, ‘do your own thing, I want you to put out a Greek meal like you’re feeding your family.’”
The evening was a revelation. Word spread. The phone started ringing. And Sova, now 66, has rarely said no since. “I double-up and hustle,” she says. “Even if I’m booked, I’ll find a way to make it happen. In turn, my clients know they will be taken care of.
“I’m a one-man band. But I couldn’t do it without my daughter,” Sova says of Vassi Sova, an integral part of the Nostimo team. “She’s my right-hand person. She helps run the business.” Side note: Vassi is also the recipe developer of Sova’s community-famous chocolate-chip cookies.
Nostimo Kitchen is deeply personal. Sova describes herself as “Greek heritage, French-trained and farm-to-table focused.” She hits the farmers’ markets — Birmingham, Royal Oak, Ann Arbor — every day they’re open, sourcing the season’s best. Winter brings menus and tables featuring pomegranates and blood oranges; spring brings peas, dandelion greens and the most beautiful artichokes she can find, sometimes sourced directly from California farms.
Her menus honor her roots — Mitch’s famous ribs, handmade breads and Greek salad — while embracing modern sensibilities. She’s known for her lamb chops, truffle-kissed dishes and her specialty soups: lemon rice soup with a clear broth, roasted tomato bisque, butternut squash. “Whatever’s in season, whatever’s at the farmers market goes into the soup pot,” Sova says. She also travels often — including to Greece — for inspiration.
But what truly sets Sova apart isn’t just her food — it’s her approach. In an era where customer service often feels transactional, Sova operates like family. “Customer service is a lost art,” she says. “No one knows how to take care of people anymore.
“I love the idea of working and producing meals for people, making people happy and taking it to the next level. That’s the part I really love,” she says. “Making sure my plateware is perfectly matched to the client’s home — presentation and plating is an art of its own. Making a salad is artful to me.”
At the end of the day, Sova wants her clients to be happy, and their guests to be happy. “I want them to have the time to sit down with their families and their guests. Entertaining sometimes makes people very nervous, so I try to ease their nerves. I try to let them see they can trust me. People have told me they never thought they’d entertain again, but they love it again, because they trust me.”
Even beyond events, Sova treats each person like they are her priority. She bakes weekly blueberry muffins for an elderly neighbor — not a client — who loves them. She’ll show up at a client’s home on Thanksgiving morning to calm their nerves before a big dinner, even if she’s not cooking the meal. She’ll drop off homemade cookies at a friend’s door, no charge, no fanfare. Her clients — many of them her Birmingham and Bloomfield neighbors, many high profile — call her for all kinds of reasons, not just catering. “The humility part is important,” she says.
“When people are my clients, I take it to heart,” she says. “They become my friends and family. I will do anything for them.”
Sova is quick to credit the people who’ve helped lift her up (see “The Lunch,” below). “It doesn’t take one person,” she says. “It takes a village to raise a child — and this is my village that has lifted me up. In turn, I lift them up every day.”
For Sova, presentation is as important as flavor. She’s invested thousands in plateware, sources specific linens and creates scapes on her tables in clients’ kitchens while prepping — grape trees, herb bouquets, seasonal fruit displays — that make every buffet feel like art. She brings her own iconography collection from Greece, her own premium Nostimo Extra Virgin Olive Oil (which she now produces and sells at Lori Karbal in Birmingham and area Market Square stores), she manages the florals — she brings an attention to detail that transforms a meal into an experience.
“My mother is a premier cook — her food to this day is magic,” Sova says. “And she always sets the most beautiful tables. When I started going into people’s homes and sometimes saw the beautiful food going onto plastic tablecloths — that’s when I added the layer of decor and design to being part of my service.”
Now, every element — from the Champagne flutes to the napkins to the plating of the lamb — is intentional. Sova creates moments with each handcrafted dish. And with each dish, she carries the legacy of her entire family who brought her to this moment of her own.
THE LUNCH
Chef Toni Mitchell Sova knows that much of her success is due to her Village — the devoted friends, fans and clients who’ve helped lift her up. In turn, she likes to lift them up when she can.
So when we decided to create a photo shoot to showcase her work, she curated an intentional guest list. Those around the table were treated to a Chef Toni menu featuring Champagne (of course) and a salad of baby spring Romaine lettuce and baby colored beets, miniature heirloom radishes, baby tomatoes and Persian cucumbers, drizzled with Nostimo Olive Oil and balsamic fig vinegar. Next, baby spring lamb marinated in seasonings including Greek oregano, Nostimo Olive Oil and lemon juice was served Grecian style with heirloom spring baby carrots and Jerusalem artichokes.
The guest list: Sova's daughter Vassi Sova, her mother's right-hand person; Katrina Molota, hairstylist and makeup artist at 6 Salon in Birmingham; Lou Flores, fashion stylist at Tender in Birmingham; Vincent Marcinelli, interior designer and event curator at BJMD Design, Birmingham; Molly Borman, founder of Housewife Essentials, Birmingham; Kristina Penz, owner of Kristina Penz Studios in Birmingham; Laith Karmo, artist and CEO of Market Square stores; Laura Daluga, florist with fleur detroit (and co-designer of florals at this lunch) and Sova’s niece Alexis Drakopoulos, owner of Republic in Berkley.
LIQUID GOLD
Because highest quality olive oil is essential to many of Chef Toni Mitchell Sova’s recipes, she created her own. Crafted by Sova and her three daughters, Nostimo Extra Virgin Olive Oil is sourced from a privately owned grove in sun-drenched Lechaina, Ilia — a historic region in Greece’s western Peloponnese known for its fertile plains, the mastered art of olive oil (and the ancient Olympic Games) — where 45,000 Koroneiki-variety olive trees are strategically planted for optimal root growth. The result: cold-pressed olive oil with a rich, fruity, authentic flavor that is a healthy alternative to butter. Available at Lori Karbal in Birmingham, all Market Square shops and nostimooliveoil.com.