As the Cold Magazine team piles into Marylebone’s Sunday in Brooklyn, it dawns on us that maybe this meeting spot is a little too on the nose for Love Island’s first ever US-winner, Toni Laites.
Luckily, this US-style brunch spot is a regular hangout for Toni, who knows what she wants to order straight away (a New York Roast Beef Sandwich complete with cheddar cheese and fries). The Full English doesn’t even get a look-in.
Toni pulls a face: “I’m going to say it once and for all: beans do not belong in breakfast.”
It’s not hard to see how the straight-talking 26 year-old captured the hearts of British-watchers. The zero-fuck giving attitude wasn’t just for show; in fact, Toni resonated so closely with viewers that she hosted Love Island: The Debrief, ITV’s new companion show, which aired directly after the 2026 show.
How then, does an American from Connecticut find herself at the heart of Britain’s favourite show? Toni’s story smacks of the American Dream, of utilising the hustle to make fantasies become realities.
Having been scouted whilst working as a waitress in Las Vegas by a holidaying Love Island Producer, it would seem the road to fame should have opened up rather easily. Yet Toni’s visa struggles as an American citizen meant all her winnings were spent on London rent.
As our table piles with a hefty selection of buttermilk chicken burgers, scrambled eggs on brioche, and a stack of pancakes that look like they’ve been snatched off the screen of a US TV commercial, there is not a bean in sight. Toni, it seems, prefers pickles with her brunch. It is yet another reminder that Toni is staunch in her US roots. No British breakfast will change that.
Cold takes a seat with Toni to see just how well the American hustle holds up in that good ol’ London grind.
Cold Magazine (CM): I’m guessing you didn’t get breakfasts like this in the villa — were you cooked for much?
Toni Laites (TL): Oh, it depended if you had a boy that really liked you or not and he made you eggs in the morning. Some were better than others, but normally they were a bit burnt – dry eggs. They didn’t know how to cook at all.
CM: But that wasn’t the worst thing about Love Island, right? What was your biggest cultural shock coming into the villa?
TL: I think it was the fact that I wasn’t accepted. I thought, “Oh, everyone’s going to want an American baddie.” They did not. It was really surprising. They weren’t… I think accepting is the right word to use.
CM: Did you find yourself having to bend or change your personality and identity as an American? Or were you staunch to your roots – American through and through?
TL: I’ll never change for anyone. I don’t even think it’s the American in me; I think it’s just who I am as a person. No matter whether the people in the villa liked me or not, I am me, and you have to deal with it.
CM: After you won, I think a lot of people would expect that because the show is so big, it would be instant fame, instant success – your life is made, you’re sorted. But you actually went through quite a few tumultuous times. What was that like?
TL: Oh, there were some struggles, girl. I think if I was from here, it would have been that instant fame. But without a visa, you can’t work, you can’t get a bank account, you can’t rent an apartment. I really had to get through those bumps in the road before anything. But it was worth it. It was kind of nice to realise that sometimes you have to take a step back and stop everything before you can actually find success.
CM: When you had to go back to sort your visa, what made you want to come back?
TL: I just felt like I was missing out by not being here. I had FOMO. It’s weird though, because the London loneliness is very much real. It’s weird seeing everyone else with their friendship groups and feeling like you’re on the outside. It’s strange. I feel like it’s a really tough city to make friends in.
CM: I hear you. Some people use dating apps to find friends – what are your thoughts on that?
TL: Fuck an app. I like real life.
CM: That’s refreshing to hear. Say you’re on a date with a guy at a restaurant, what’s the biggest ick he could give you?
TL: Talking with food in his mouth. I hate that. I thought the Brits were supposed to have table manners.
CM: So fair. I guess the dating scene is different for you post-Love Island. Did you ever have an inkling that this would be where your life ended up?
TL: It sounds really strange, but yes. I always had this weird feeling that I would be famous one day. When I told my friends I’d met the producer, they were like, “Of course you did. Why wouldn’t you meet the executive producer of Love Island at work?” I just feel like it’s the circles I’ve been in over the years. It was bound to happen one day.
CM: You’re the first American winner of Love Island – do you think it’s easier to become a ‘somebody’ in the UK?
TL: I don’t want to say it’s easier to stand out here, but there are definitely fewer people here than in America. In America, I feel like you just become a statistic. Whereas here, I was the first American on Love Island ever. No one can ever take that from me. There’s no replacing me.
As we wrap up the interview, pickles munched and chips eaten, I feel a tad guilty. All the talking and eating has set a slumber upon us. It’s only 2pm. Toni pulls out a red bull – she’s now off to record Love Island, The Debrief, along with Shakira Khan and Yasmin Pettet.
There’s certainly something admirable in seeing an overseas creative pave their way through London life:
“It’s taken a long time, but I’m still here, I’m making a life for myself, and it’s going well now. I’ve paved a lot of my life choices off men. Now I’m doing it for myself”.
