Vivace - Charlottesville

Cool vibe, dated bar set up.. but the service and the food were awesome! Very attentive and friendly bar tenders. Didn’t feel rushed even though we were there close to closing time.

We love this place! It's lovely and the food is exceptional. We had El W the two times we went and she was fantastic! The eggplant was so tasty and the cheesecake is the real deal! The only disappointment was that the soup of the day was so salty we couldn't enjoy it but we have had the soup in the past and it's been fine so it was just an off night. We can't wait to go back again!

Overall a decent experience. The staff was friendly. Food was hit or miss. The calamari was delicious, as was the Gnocchi. But the nightly special “Ribeye” was just ok. For $48 I expected more. Half of my cut of meat seemed to be just fat. Flavor was just ok. Plus the side potatoes seemed like they’d been cooked that morning and microwaved for my plate. And I received all of 5 asparagus. Also, the cheesecake and tiramisu seemed frozen. I highly doubt they were made onsite. Worth a shot, but don’t expect too much.

The food was amazing. The Eggplant Parmesan was cooked perfectly and had great flavor. The Lasagna was very good, with a hearty robust flavor. The Oreganata was wonderful with a great sauce. The house rolls were also good. The restaurant was very busy and messed up our table reservation which lead to a short delay in being seated. The tables upstairs where too close together and the atmosphere was noisy. The waiter was overwhelmed and struggled. We sat with our appetizer for a while as we had no plates. The mussels were very good and flavorful. While pricy, we will go back, perhaps on a weekday night minus the crowds, which should help with the service.

Great food is probably the best in Charlottesville. Friendly staff and our waitress aleah was the best.