Vivace Italian Restaurant & Cocktail Bar — Restaurant in Plantation

Review of Vivace Italian Restaurant

For years, Vivace held a special place in my heart. I’ve dined there countless times, witnessing their journey from a cozy local gem to a bustling, expanded establishment. I’ve always rooted for them, taking pride in their growth and the joy they brought to so many. But after my last two visits, it’s with great disappointment that I say I’ll never return.

When I first started going to Vivace, the owner’s personal touch elevated every experience. They would walk around during dinner service, ensuring every table was happy, every bite was perfect, and every guest felt like family. Sadly, those days are long gone.

Visit 1: Cold Food, Empty Apologies

During my penultimate visit, the issues began. We were served cold food, and the arancini, usually a highlight of the menu, arrived with cheese so solid and unmelted that it was inedible. The general manager apologized, blaming a “new cook who was still getting the hang of things,” and promised us free dessert on our next visit. While I appreciated the gesture, it felt like a band-aid on a much deeper problem.

Visit 2: A Comedy of Errors

Despite my previous disappointment, I decided to give Vivace one more chance. I now regret that decision.

Upon arrival, we were greeted by a young Black woman who asked if we had a reservation. When I responded, “Not yet, but I can make one if needed,” she laughed and said it was “too late for a reservation.” As I looked around, I noticed one empty, cleaned booth and two dirty tables that hadn’t been cleared. Oddly enough, she told us those tables were being held for reservations.

Curious, I opened the OpenTable app and, to my surprise, successfully made a reservation for 25 minutes later. When I mentioned this, she informed us we’d still need to wait for a table to open. After 15 minutes, we were finally seated—at a small, uncomfortable table—not the booth that remained empty the entire time.

By the time my reservation time came and went, we still hadn’t been greeted, served water, or even given menus. Finally, a server named Alyssa approached us. She was polite and professional, but by that point, the damage was done. This was later compounded by them, bringing us menus that were deteriorating, Fingerprint stained wine glasses before we had even touched them.

The Atmosphere: Chaotic and Unpleasant

Another glaring issue was the expansion. While Vivace’s decision to create a cocktail bar next door initially seemed exciting, it’s now a source of frustration. The bar area is often used for private events, with no barrier or wall separating it from the dining room. The noise from the events spilled into the restaurant, creating an overwhelmingly loud atmosphere that ruined any chance of a relaxing dinner.

Conclusion

What makes this all so heartbreaking is how much I once loved Vivace. Weekly visits used to be the highlight of my dining experiences, but the consistent lack of attention to detail, poor service, and chaotic environment have turned it into a shadow of its former self.

Vivace had everything: delicious food, warm service, and a personal touch that made it stand out. Now, it’s plagued by poor management, untrained staff, and a complete disregard for the customer experience.

While I’ll always cherish the memories of what Vivace used to be, I can no longer recommend it to anyone. It’s truly the...

I was really looking forward to taking my brother and sister-in-law to Vivace for dinner tonight. We’ve enjoyed their pizza and salad via delivery in the past, but this was our first time dining in together. Since their past visits never aligned for a dinner out, I was excited to finally take them, especially after hyping it up over the years.

We arrived for our 7 PM reservation and were seated at a nice booth, but surprisingly, the table was completely unset without linens, utensils, plates, or glasses. Our server quickly brought everything over and set the table, but it did start the evening off on a slightly disorganized note.

We ordered sparkling water and a couple of martinis. When our server returned with the drinks, she asked if we were ready to order, which we were. My brother had been especially excited to try the bone-in veal chop after reviewing the menu beforehand. Unfortunately, he was told at that moment that they were out of the veal chop and all steaks except for the filet mignon. This was very disappointing, as the veal chop was one of the main reasons we chose Vivace that night.

Our server offered to prepare the filet mignon, which she said was 6 oz, with the same chimichurri sauce and potatoes that usually come with the skirt steak, which sounded like a decent compromise despite not being what he wanted. My brother reluctantly agreed and added a side of meatballs. I ordered the eggplant, and my sister-in-law chose the branzino. We also shared the Italian chop salad.

When the food arrived, things took another turn. The filet came pre-sliced, which felt very odd and uncharacteristic of how a filet is typically served. It also looked nothing like a filet. I flagged our server, who assured us it was a filet but we remained skeptical. On top of that, it was overcooked, closer to medium-well than the requested medium-rare. But since my brother was very hungry, he decided to eat it rather than send it back.

He also received a salad with his meal, which was not mentioned on the menu or by our server. Had he known, he wouldn't have substituted for something else, so it went uneaten as a result. Small detail, but another oversight. My eggplant parm came with a side of pasta. I had requested gnocchi with alfredo sauce and when it arrived it had red sauce so I asked for it to be sent back. At this point we were just kind of over it and I was embarrassed at how the dinner had turned out since we had considered a few other options before deciding on Vivace.

As for the drinks: the martinis were underwhelming as they were not particularly cold and served with mushy, off-tasting olives.

Overall, this visit was a letdown. For a place I’ve praised and supported for years, the experience didn’t match the standard I had come to expect. While the food wasn’t terrible, the service missteps, lack of communication, and poor execution on key items left us feeling disappointed, especially after building it up.

I truly hope this was just an off night, but unfortunately, it left us second-guessing...

We tried this place for the first time on a Friday night. When we arrived the restaurant was full but there wasn't anybody waiting. As the first party in line, it took just over 45 minutes for us to be seated....at a table which didn't accommodate our party at all[small two-top table in the middle of a lot of traffic for three people], but we took it because it was getting ridiculous at that point.

After we were set it took around 20 minutes for us to receive menus and water. Granted it was busy, but how hard is it to seat the party with menus in hand and have a couple glasses of water ready so as to not infuriate them any more? Table bread finally came about 50 minutes after we sat down, which was about 30 minutes after we ordered, despite us being told when we sat down that fresh bread is 'on its way."

From the time we ordered until the food came out we didn't see our waiter one time. Someone else brought the appetizers, which were absolutely flavorless and we couldn't seem to flag anyone down for condiments or anything else we needed.

The entrees took around an hour 10 minutes to be served- only for two of them to be brought out cold and undercooked. It's odd how the pastas are served as well, in a type of salad bowl you would expect in something like a cafe with salads for lunch - not a very expensive Italian dinner restaurant such as this!

For the price here, dinner here should definitely come with soup or salad. Many restaurants in the area, which are a lot more upscale, around the same price point or less, have more generous portions and are more delicious, have pastas/entrees which come with such.

Trying to get the check and to go boxes for our leftovers was another exercise in futility [almost 25 minutes after asking twice].

The ambiance is quite decent - it's a shame nothing else is in the realm of acceptability...