Celebrate Valentine's Day at Vivace Charlotte

There is no better way to say ‘I Love You,’ than over a romantic Valentine’s Day dinner with your spouse/significant other. As the holiday draws nearer, the search is on for the perfect spot to celebrate the occasion. Apart from a romantic ambiance, one is looking for a restaurant that serves up an exquisite meal along with attentive service.

In Charlotte, savvy diners now have a new address to go to this Valentine’s Day – Vivace. After years of perfecting the art of fine dining with a host of other popular restaurants, The Urban Food Group has opened the second Vivace in Charlotte (the first still remains one of Raleigh’s most popular Italian restaurants). Kevin and Stacy Jennings have created a contemporary dining space in the heart of the midtown area in Charlotte. Designed by The James Beard award-winning restaurant design firm, The Johnson Studio, Vivace has a wide variety of dining options. For Valentine’s Day this year, you could go formal and opt to take your meal in the dining room, or keep it more casual and intimate and choose the mezzanine lounge area instead. One can start their feast with a sampling of traditional Italian wines and liqueurs at one of the two creatively designed bars. Urban Food Group’s Sommelier, Scott Luetgenau, has worked closely with the restaurant to create a prized 500bottle, all Italian wine collection that is proudly displayed in a specially built temperature-controlled wine cellar. As the views of Uptown Charlotte vie for your attention, you can enjoy some of the delicious Tuscan specialties on the menu.

Meaning “lively” in Italian, Vivace lives up to its promise of a stylish Italian trattoria offering authentic Italian cuisine. The menu designed by Executive Chef Jeremy Sabo, and Chef de Cuisine Andrew Schaumann boasts a variety of traditional Tuscan dishes. Choose from seasonal specialties, classic thin crust pizzas, homemade pastas and an extensive house-cured meat and cheese selection. Like all good Italian cooking, the menu at Vivace is a study in balance. Each ingredient is used to complement another and none will overpower the rest. The magic of Italian food is superbly mastered at Vivace. What stand out most is the simplicity of the food and the stellar pairings of tastes and textures. Inspiration and skill work in tandem to create a meal to remember.

The dining experience at Vivace is the celebration of both chefs who are truly passionate about what they do. Just like in a traditional Italian household, every dish is infused with love and diners leave with the feeling something special has transpired over the course of a meal. What better place then to spend Valentine’s Day with your loved one than at Vivace? Just remember this is a popular night for dining out, so reservations are strongly advised; Call ahead and make this Valentine’s Day one to remember.

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.

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.