Italian Cuisine – Vegetarian’s First Choice

Becoming a vegetarian is not an easy choice to make, but one that is gaining popularity. For the sake of one’s health, or as a result of religious beliefs and personal convictions, more and more people are becoming vegetarians. As a result, restaurants are now revamping their menus and offering creative and delicious meat-free options, in conjunction with all the old favorites. If ethical or environmental concerns have led you to become a vegetarian, you need to be positive that you are not consuming any meat or meat byproducts when you are dining out. Many dishes may contain gelatin, which is a meat by-product and refined sugar is often made using bone char. Some dishes may have been cooked in chicken stock, so clearing up any doubts prior to ordering is necessary to ensure your dish is truly a vegetarian entree.

That being said, vegetarians are given quite a few options when eating out nowadays. Exotic cuisines such as Indian or Middle Eastern cater easily to the vegetarian palate. But all things considered there can be no better choice for vegetarians than Italian cuisine. Traditional Italian cooking boasts a number of classic, vegetarian dishes, and those that aren’t can easily be modified.

Thanks to the fertile soil and moderate climate, Italy as a country is largely agricultural. Fresh ingredients abound, and the cuisine of each region makes the most of the seasonal fresh produce in simple yet tasty recipes. Italian cooking varies due to geography, and the South as a rule produces a more varied menu than the North.

In keeping with their vision to offer the best Italian food, The Urban Food Group brings its hugely popular Italian restaurant, Vivace, to Charlotte. Already one of the finest Italian restaurants in Raleigh, Vivace is a modern day Trattoria offering the best of home cooked Italian dishes. Urban Food Group is confident that the savvy diners in Charlotte will welcome this latest entrant onto the contemporary dining scene of the Queen city. Guests can look forward to a choice of formal and casual dining options – a formal dining room and a more laid back mezzanine lounge area. There are also two bars and a breathtaking view of Uptown Charlotte to add to the appeal.

Vivace will offer the best of modern and traditional Italian cooking and service. Executive Chef Jeremy Sabo, and Chef de Cuisine Andrew Schaumann, who has been Sous Chef at Vivace in Raleigh since 2007, has developed the creative Italian menu for the new Charlotte restaurant. But what is even more exciting is the extensive vegetarian items they offer. Start your gourmet feast with a variety of meatless antipasti options or artisanal cheeses. Move on to the salads using the freshest seasonal produce, bursting with flavors, and no meal at Vivace is complete without a taste of their creamy, indulgent pasta and the rustic, wood fired pizzas. Finish off the experience with one of their signature desserts, or a post dinner aperitif, and you will soon understand why Italian cooking is a vegetarian’s first choice!

Planning Your Next Event in Charlotte? Come to Vivace!

Looking for a new venue in Charlotte for an upcoming event? Look no further than the newly opened Vivace. The Urban Food Group brings their hugely popular Italian restaurant, Vivace, to Charlotte. Already one of the finest Italian restaurants in Raleigh, Vivace is a modern day Trattoria offering the best of home cooked Italian dishes. Vivace is located in the heart of the Metropolitan development, and has chic Italian décor courtesy of The Johnson Studio – the James Beard award-winning design firm. Guests can look forward to a choice of upscale and casual dining options – a formal dining room or a more laid back mezzanine lounge area. There are two bars and a breathtaking view of Uptown Charlotte to add to the appeal.

When it comes to event planning, Vivace is committed to giving you the best. From the initial consultation, to the final celebration, the staff at Vivace is always ready to assist. From the lavish and large, to the small and intimate, every gathering at Vivace is orchestrated to perfection. The restaurant offers one private dining room that accommodates up to forty guests for a seated meal, or sixty-five guests for standing receptions. For unique wedding receptions or corporate events, Vivace even offers you the possibility of an exclusive rental of the entire restaurant., The main dining room is ideal for up to 100 guests, the outdoor patio area seats another 75, and then the upstairs lounge area seats 35. So whether it’s a birthday, a baptism, a wedding, a corporate event or a product launch, Vivace has it covered. You select the event and leave it to our staff to take care of the rest.

Apart from the breathtaking modern venue, Vivace offers the best of traditional Italian cuisine. Using the freshest ingredients and seasonal produce, Executive Chef Jeremy Sabo and Chef de Cuisine Andrew Schaumann, who has been Sous Chef at Vivace in Raleigh since 2007, have developed the creative Italian menu. Vivace offers a seasonal Trattoria menu with dishes that are sophisticated yet simple. The restaurant offers prefixed menus specially created for every occasion. Choose from a wide selection of antipasti, house-cured meats and cheeses, homemade pastas, wood-fired entrees, and divine desserts to make your event unforgettable. Urban Food Group has also been awarded the Wine Spectator’s ‘Award of Excellence,’ and in keeping with their dedication to their highly rated wine program, Vivace offers a 500-bottle, exclusively Italian wine collection. As a result, Vivace is happy to arrange Italian wine tastings from a number of different themes as a unique addition to your next event.

To check on availability and to start planning your event, please contact their Private Events Director, Nikki DeMaras. At Vivace you are assured of exquisite style, professional service, and meticulous planning for any event of any size.

What to Look for in a Good Italian Restaurant

Italian restaurants at one time used to conjure up images of red and white checked tablecloths, a chalkboard menu advertising the daily specials, fat white candles stuffed into wine bottles and the soothing sounds of Italian opera in the background. However, all this has changed drastically over the years. Italian restaurants now vary from the classic family style decor to the ultra chic with dining rooms designed to impress. The one thing any good Italian restaurant must have is exemplary food. Italian food demands elaborate menus made from simple ingredients, meals that can stretch over a few hours and the enjoyment of each morsel and moment that makes Italian cuisine a culinary delight.

In Italy a meal is never rushed. The food served is simple but with flavors that linger on long after the experience is over. Along with your meal, there will be a selection of the best wines Italy has to offer and you can expect to get through several glasses of red and white before the meal is through. Indulgence is part and parcel of Italian cuisine. A good Italian restaurant will always have an array of dishes to offer. There will be freshly made lasagna and cannelloni, crusty just-baked breads ready to be dipped into saucers of fragrant olive oil, melt in the mouth meats and seafood and decadent desserts to round off the feast. The chef in charge will create them all in keeping with age-old recipes and culinary secrets passed down from generations.

Another mark of a great Italian restaurant is the quality of its pizza. While the lines still stand drawn between lovers of the thin crust verse those who prefer the more doughy thick crust preparations, both parties are unanimous when it comes to the freshness of the tomato sauce and the simplicity and freshness of the ingredients used. There simply cannot be anything better than a freshly baked pizza with a juicy tomato sauce, topped with basil and delicious mozzarella. If the restaurant has mastered this one thing, you pretty much know you are in for a wonderful meal ahead.

Apart from the food, the service should always be courteous and friendly, and the ambiance warm and welcoming. And when all three of these come together in the right combination, you will know for sure that you have found a great Italian restaurant! This is exactly what proprietors Stacey and Kevin Jennings planned for their newest restaurant Vivace in Charlotte. Designed by the James Beard, award-winning restaurant design firm, The Johnson Studio, Vivace in Charlotte boasts two floors, including a mezzanine lounge area for more casual dining and a formal dining room, a glass enclosed cheese and meat aging room, and two bars including an indoor/outdoor mezzanine bar with dramatic views of Uptown Charlotte. Diners enjoy a specially created seasonal menu by Executive Chef Jeremy Sabo and Chef de Cuisine Andrew Schaumann. The menu consists of classic Neapolitan pizzas, homemade pastas, and a selection of delicious entrees along with their highly rated Italian wine selection and well-stocked bar. Queen city diners can look forward to a true Italian experience at Vivace which opened on November 2, 2009.

Wine and Italian Cuisine

The boot-shaped country of Italy may be three-quarters smaller in size than California, but in spite of this, it is considered to be the world’s second largest wine producer after France. Thanks to its soil, the climate, and centuries of winemaking tradition, Italy boasts a number of truly spectacular wines. Winemaking has been part of the Italian lifestyle for 3,000 years now, and their wines stand out amongst competitors in flavor, fragrance, and taste.

The true appreciation of Italian wine comes from pairing it with authentic Italian food. While a lot of people automatically think red sauce equals red wine, the complexities of Italian cuisine and the regional specialties demand a more subtle approach. With wines ranging from fruity cabernets, sparkling whites, intense merlots, to refreshing sauvignon blancs, it’s no surprise that accentuating the flavors of an Italian menu can be quite complex. Regional food is often best paired with wines from the same area, since they are more or less developed in tandem.

When you think of classic Italian food, you think of freshly made pastas, rich tomato sauces, creamy risottos, crusty breads, fragrant olive oils, crisp pizzas and the freshest meats, vegetables, and seafood around. Experts on wine recommend pairing Italian appetizers and soups with dry, light wines, while anti-pasti like pancetta, prosciutto, and salami go best with full-bodied reds. Pizzas can be enjoyed with reds like Merlot, Chianti, Cabernet Sauvignon, or Cabernet Franc. A common way to pair Italian wine with Italian food is to match the wine to the sauce. Generally the lighter the sauce the lighter the wine. Keeping this in mind, a rich sauce would need a heavier, more complex wine to bring out the nuances of the dish. For most tomato-based or cheese sauces, a Chianti compliments the acid levels in the dish, and is often the quintessential choice for wine. Seafood pasta dishes are paired well with a Chardonnay, as are creamy favorites like fettuccini alfredo. A Pinot Noir would be your best bet with a light vegetarian lasagna, but a full-bodied meaty bolognaise would need a Cabernet Sauvignon or a Valpollicello to bring out the flavors of the various ingredients. Italy also produces an amazing range of dessert wines, the most famous among them being Tuscany’s Vin Santo. Distilled from grapes, dessert wines can be dry or sweet and are the perfect ending to a lavish Italian feast. For more detailed suggestions on which wine to have with what food, always ask your waiter or sommelier.

When the Urban Food Group opened their latest Italian restaurant - Vivace in Charlotte proprietors, Stacey and Kevin Jennings bring a little piece of Italy to the Queen city. Promising to be a stylish Italian trattoria offering authentic Italian cuisine, Vivace l boasts a traditional Tuscan menu with seasonal specialties, classic thin crust pizzas, an extensive house-cured meat and cheese selection and an extensive wine collection with the best the country has to offer. Urban Food Group has been awarded the Wine Spectator’s ‘Award of Excellence.’ In keeping with their dedication to their highly rated wine program, Vivace’s 500-bottle all-Italian wine collection will be displayed in an elegant temperature-controlled cellar in the dining room. Diners and drinkers alike can select from bottles typically ranging from $40 - $65 hand selected by Urban Food Group’s veteran Sommelier Scott Luetgenau. With two bars including an indoor/outdoor mezzanine bar with dramatic views of Uptown Charlotte, Italian food and wine has a new address.