Vivacino — Restaurant in North Andover

This is one of the hardest reviews I have ever written. My wife and I went to Buono Bistro for dinner on a Saturday evening. The decor was beautiful, with an open kitchen concept, a feature my wife and I have learned to value. We were promptly seated. Throughout the evening the wait staff was very friendly and attentive, our water glasses were never empty, the waitress ever available. We ordered drinks and I was informed they were “out” of ice tea, I guess they didn’t have hot water and a tea bag available. My wife ordered the Tuna Tar Tar appetizer special, I ordered the Fried Zucchini and Tomato Napoleon. Both came out rather quickly and both were simply delicious. At this point the restaurant is looking like our new favorite. We ordered our main courses while eating the appetizers. I ordered the Bistro Veal and my wife orders the Steak a la Toscano. The side salad I ordered with my meal came out about 5 minutes after ordering, both a large portion and made with very fresh ingredients. Thirty minutes after I had finished my salad and had it removed from the table our waitress stops by to apologize for the delay and states “the kitchen is crazy tonight”. Looking around the restaurant I can see they are only about ¾ full. Ten minutes after that our meals arrive, almost an hour after ordering. Both meals have excellent presentation. My plate and everything on it is stone cold. The mixed vegetables, cold and soggy. The potatoes, way over cooked, dried out and cold. The veal is so tough I am having trouble cutting it with a steak knife. After two bites of the veal / chewing gum I give up. My wife's meal is supposed to be served with caramelized onion truffle mashed potatoes, well she got the mashed potatoes, no sign of onion or truffle. She did say the steak was good. I inform my waitress that my meal is inedible, I have taken exactly four bites, one veggie, one potato, two of the veal just in case I got a bad spot. Our waitress apologizes and assures us she will inform the kitchen. We ask for the dessert menu, mostly because I am still hungry and we both figured the dessert will not take long. We both order the Spumoni. Ten minutes later we are served our desserts. Our waitress said that we are getting one dessert for free because of the inedible main course. I really don't see how a ten dollar dessert makes up for a twenty-three dollar main course but at this point we just want to get out. And SURPRISE the Spumoni is simply awesome, one of the best either of us has ever had. While the waitress repeatedly apologized for the meal, the owner who visited our table during appetizers and dessert never did. We are still deciding whether to make a...

Four of us dined here on a July Saturday night - not at all crowded, likely due to it being a long holiday weekend. Aside from what was a noise level, a little louder than my comfort level, everything was perfect.

Our waitress, Katya, was both knowledgeable, friendly, and efficient. Richard, an owner, was helpful, insightful, and quite charming.

All four of our meals were perfectly seasoned, prepared, and arrived at the right temperature. The crispy asparagus appetizer was amazing - have never had it served that way.

Our main courses, a layered eggplant dish, a chicken Caesar salad, and a ricotta based gnudi - another first - were all perfect. We finished with a ricotta/pistachio cake - served with an absolutely delicious caramel sauce - which was amazingly light and flavorful.

I'm not sure how the noise level might be on a much busier night, but after a meal of such excellence, we will certainly be back for more. Vivacino's is a most welcome addition to the local restaurant scene. Kudos for a job very well done !

A second opinion ...

Went back this past Thursday evening with two friends from out of town - looks like everyone has headed for the beach, as there were very few diners there.

That said, we had another fantastic meal. Cocktails were superb, especially my new favorite, Up In Smoke - beautifully served from a smoking carafe.

The swordfish/shrimp special was perfection - served on a bed of mashed potatoes and spinach. Apps were, not surprisingly, delicious, including our second time with the crispy asparagus. Our friends had the gnudi, on our recommendation, and were more than delighted. Panna cotta and the chocolate budino topped out a better than excellent evening.

Our server, Kamilla was warm, efficient, and knowledgeable. Both Richard and Nimesh - owner/chef stopped by, which highlighted their experience, goals, and hoped for a successful venture.

Not over priced by any standard, but a little pricier than for just a quick meal, we'll be back many times for what has become our favorite, local...

Some of the best food I've eaten in recent memory. My wife and I went for an anniversary dinner, and while I had only stumbled on this place in Opentable and hadn't heard of it otherwise, we were both very happily surprised.

Our meal started with a complementary prosecco for our anniversary which was such a nice touch. I've mentioned that before in reservation requests and this is the first time I've ever seen a restaurant actually recognize that, which was very kind.

I had the Silk Road cocktail which was dark and complex and smooth at the same time. Lots of unique drinks on the menu.

We split the broccoli for an appetizer which was a great combination of flavors that worked really well together. It was a nice light start to the meal.

For dinner my wife got the pasta with brown butter and sage which was just mind-bogglingly good. We both had a bite and were at a loss for words. I got the rigatoni ragu which was also excellent. Definitely an elevated taste on a common dish at a lot of restaurants. The pasta itself was perfectly cooked with a nice bite to it, and the sauce had a welcome sweetness and lightness to it.

For dessert we got the ricotta pistachio cake and panna cotta. The pistachio cake was delicious -- it was somehow light and dense at the same time, with a perfect amount of sweetness and pistachio flavor.

The price for all of this was very reasonable, considering the quality of ingredients and clear amount of love and effort they put into the food. Honestly everything from the plating, service, decor, and of course ingredients made me feel like I was eating at a place that cost 1.5x more than what we paid.

The ambience made for a great anniversary dinner, service was solid, and the owner was especially friendly and made us feel...