By Cliff Dunn

Riddle me this: How does one of the most-seen guys in the Gayborhood turn into the Invisible Man practically overnight?

“Open a restaurant,” Bryan Nosal jokes. The owner of Kingpins Pizza & Wings in Wilton Manors is celebrating one year in business (okay, so it hasn’t been exactly “overnight”), and what a difference a year makes.

Just over a year ago, Nosal was the General Manager of one of the area’s most popular fitness facilities, the former Island City Health and Fitness (now Steel Gym Fort Lauderdale), and his was a face that was seen daily by the hundreds of local-residing members who religiously attended the health club (for many, even more consistently than they bellied up to the local bars).

“That was the fun part of working with Reece (Darham, the former owner) at Island City,” Nosal says. “Getting to meet so many great people, and making so many friends who have stayed friends.”

Nosal moved to South Florida 15 years ago from St. Louis, Missouri. “I moved here to be with my first ex,” he admits with a laugh.

It’s been a long and winding path for the boyish and modest Nosal, one that took him in 2003 to the then newly-opened Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino, first as Human Resources Manager and later as Director of 24-Hour Restaurant Operations.

In that position, an energetic and visionary Nosal oversaw the creation and implementation of innovative menus that introduced fresh, inspiring cuisine, award-winning wines, as well as contemporary and casual cuisine to South Florida locals and visitors.

Challenging? One might say so.

“I opened that hotel,” Nosal brags, but without pretense or superiority.

“It was stressful in the extreme,” he admits, “but it was a good ‘stressful’ and a great deal of fun.”

Among his accomplishments at the Hard Rock: “In February 2004, we created the nation’s largest job fair—we hosted 15,000 people in a day-and-a-half,” he notes.

A brief stop in 2007 in Human Resources at the Boca Raton Resort and Club was followed in 2008 by his decision to become General Manager at the then recently-opened Island City Health and Fitness (or “Island City Spa” as it was known to members, including Yours Truly). It would be an eventful five years for Nosal.

“That was such a fantastic time. We really took that club to where it had never been before as a gym,” Nosal explains.

“Part of the reason previous gyms didn’t succeed in that location was that they didn’t understand the area.”

Nosal explains that because of Wilton Manors’ relative size (population: just a smidge shy of 12K), he needed to cast his nets wide to attract members and keep the club relevant.

“You can only go so far as the ‘gay gym’,” he says, without sarcasm. “That small community is a wonderful anchor, but you need to expand on that base, which is what we did.”

Nosal promoted the gym to demographics beyond Gayborhood residents. “We brought in seniors, added trainers and classes, and built up the club’s presence throughout the larger geographic area.”

When Island City owner Reece Darham sold the gym in December 2013, Nosal knew it was time for a change of his own. He agreed to stay with the newly-named Steel Gym for a few months, but was able to “cast off” after a month Under New Ownership.

“When I left Steel Gym, I wanted to buy a business that already had an established customer base. I also knew that I wanted to open a restaurant, with a small staff. And so ‘Kingpins’ was born.”

Nestled inside Manor Lanes, at the NE 26th Street side of Wilton Manors, Kingpins Pizza & Wings represents the first step in a Master Plan that Nosal hopes to put into action over the next half-decade.

“The plan is to open three locations, with the next one a small, stand-alone location,” Nosal confides.

Along with pizza and wings, Kingpins serves “classic American food,” explains Nosal. “Burgers, salads, Philly Cheesesteaks—and our Grilled Chicken Wrap is very popular.”

Although a lot of Kingpins’ business comes from patrons at Manor Lanes (“A lot of business on league nights.”), more of Nosal’s receipts are coming from carry-out customers. That’s good news for one of the community’s good guys.

“Whatever it takes to get the job done,” Nosal adds with conviction and a smile.

In his case, serving good food and owning a great attitude are a formula for success.

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