Mike's Birthday Dinner: Vivace

Vivace is a new restaurant located at North Hills (off Six Forks). We had a little trouble finding it because it wasn't exactly where we thought it was but we finally found it tucked into a corner. It's run by the same people that run Frazier's (where we celebrated our anniversary last August) and Porter's City Tavern (which we haven't had a chance to try yet). Vivace is their Italian restaurant and it was every bit as good as Frazier's.

We ordered calamari for an appetizer and it was served with a spicy tomato sauce. We were also served bread with spread. Next, I ordered a tomato, basil and fresh mozzarella salad. The balsamic syrup on top was very thick and different from other variations I've had on this salad but it was good. Mike ordered a bean and pork soup and said it was very tasty.

For our main course, I ordered four cheese ravioli. It had a cream sauce on top but the ravioli were sitting in a pool of red sauce and wilted spinach. It was good and the portion was more than I expected - sometimes you order ravioli and only get about 4 pieces of pasta on your plate but I'd estimate closer to a dozen. Mike's entree was agnolotti with smoked chicken, sun-dried tomatoes, wild mushrooms and roasted garlic cream. It looked delicious and the serving size was large for his meal as well.

With all that food and a bottle of 2005 Torre di Luna Pinot Grigio, neither of us were interested in dessert though the lady at the table next to ours ordered a chocolate cake that smelled amazing. Maybe next time we'll skip the appetizer and have dessert instead.

Appetizers range from about $5-$10, entrees from $15-$20. There are options for more and less. With the appetizer, soup, salad, entrees and bottle of wine, our total came to about $85 before tip. Not bad for the quality of food. I think Frazier's was on par with that as well.

The only complaint, and this is a complaint I have often, is that it was a little cramped in the dining room. Unfortunately the lady to the right of me was quite loud. I know all about her kid, what school he goes to, his girlfriend, her vacation plans...

But overall it was a great night. Now it makes me really curious to check out Porter's City Tavern. Maybe we can do that soon.

Find me a man who's interesting enough to have dinner with and I'll be happy. -Lauren Bacall