ViVO Bar & Cafe

ViVO Bar and Café

Jody Pennette, nationally renowned for designing “high concept” restaurant venues and whose local work includes the Baang Café, Splash, and Bella Luna unites with eminent Hotelier, Russell Sternlicht (Starwood Hotel & Resorts) to present the ViVO Bar and Café, a neighborhood Greenwich bistro of comfort, style, and fine dining.

Artfully framed in a stately Victorian home, the ViVO’s compelling and distinct interior design blends an eccentric mix of colors and textures, with great food and wine in a warm, romantic, and seductive dining atmosphere aimed to “pamper the customer.”

Featuring the enchanting cooking style of Executive Chef Michel Wahaltere (a.k.a. “Michou”), trained by Roger Verge’ in the South of France, the “peasant Italian” menu fuses Michel’s European influence with sumptuous flavors and simplicity. He carefully selects his wines with origins similar to the food he is preparing. “They express various sensuous pleasures, and add to the experience.” Asked to define a Michel-prepared meal, he replies, “A simple, luxurious indulgence.”

The menu selections comprise: FOR THE TABLE - whimsical fare for the uncertain appetite featuring Antico Pizza with Italian Sausage, Roasted Bell Peppers Melange; Citrus-Almond Fritto Misto of Calamari, Shrimp, Scallops with Arrabbiata Sauce; “Michou” Smoked Salmon on Tuscan Flatbread With Red Onions and Crème Fraiche, and Family Style Salad; APPETIZERS - playful and edgy, selections include Tri-Color Salad with Gorgonzola, Apples, Walnuts, and a Balsamic Vinaigrette; Smoked Duck Carpaccio with Pear Julienne, Curly Cress, and Walnut Vinaigrette; Prosciutto Di Parma with Marinated Seasonal Fruit and Mixed Greens; PASTA - sumptuous Italian flavor and tradition featuring Rigatoni with Grilled Italian Sausage and Arrabbiata Sauce; Spaghettini with Cherry Tomatoes, Fior Di Latte, Mozzarella and Fresh Basil; Mostaciolle with Artichoke - Tomato Puttanesca and Herbed Goat Cheese; ENTREES - Pure Michel Magic includes Grilled Lamb Rackwith Woodland Mushroom - Artichoke Ragu, Mashed Potatoes, and garlic-Thyme Jus; Chilean Sea Bass with Roasted Porcini and Asparagus in a Port Vinaigrette; Braised Veal and Garden Vegetables with Red Swiss Chard and Four Cheese Polenta; DESSERTS - The ultimate seduction in the sweetest of terms features ViVO Crème Brulee with Italian Amarena Cherries; Grandma’s Homemade Chocolate Layer Cake; Brioche Topped with Apples, Almonds, and Rosemary Caramel Sauce.

Pennette and Sternlicht strive only for the best in food and service, and are especially proud of ViVO’s carefully selected staff. All must possess their passion for food and wine.

In Italian, ViVO means alive, lively - an appropriate invitation to every pleasant dining experience ever imagined or hoped for. Ask Michou what ViVO means; he states “A bountiful meal with the best product, vibrant flavors, perfectly delicious with a chef cooking passionately, an extensive selection of the finest wine from Italy and California to compliment the meal in a cozy and romantic milieu.”

©2006 aDouglasFordeSimmsprofile