Vivere

This is my favorite restaurant of the 3 at the Italian Village. The decor is very chic and its a great date place. The wine list is the best in the city, if not the midwest. The cellar boasts over 40, 000 bottles. The sommelier is one of the best I&# ... more

This is my favorite restaurant of the 3 at the Italian Village. The decor is very chic and its a great date place. The wine list is the best in the city, if not the midwest. The cellar boasts over 40, 000 bottles. The sommelier is one of the best I've spoken with in the city. I highly recommend the Ossobucco, its very tender and the tomato sauce is outstanding. The Gnocchi is my absolute favorite, its in a white wine shallot sauce. Excellent. less

This was an experience that I will not forget. The food was prepared as ordered, adn very authentic. Everything, including the hot appitizers were cooked with the the utmost perfection. The wait staff were very attentive. The host greeted you as i ... more

This was an experience that I will not forget. The food was prepared as ordered, adn very authentic. Everything, including the hot appitizers were cooked with the the utmost perfection. The wait staff were very attentive. The host greeted you as if you were one of the family who owned the place. Very pleased with our meal and our after dinner desserts and cocktails were to die for. Louis XIII cognac was a wonderful experience. less

Vivere offers a fine alternative to the slick Chicago Italian Dining scene. First and foremost is the room, a way over the top phantazmagorical melange of gold and red. The room may only take a back seat to the wine list. With one of th ... more

Vivere offers a fine alternative to the slick Chicago Italian Dining scene.
First and foremost is the room, a way over the top phantazmagorical melange of gold and red. The room may only take a back seat to the wine list. With one of the best wine lists in the USA, one would expect a rather snooty staff. This is not the case. Very helpful. Very knowledgeable. The squid ink ravioli stuffed with sea bass, the gnocchi with duck, or the braised veal in an ox tail reduction are all great just to mention a few. Try the creamy parsnip soup with shellfish and pear as a soup. It comes with a delightful deep fried basil leaf in a light tempura batter. We have dined with as many as 6 people, each with 4 or 5 courses and have had different wines by the glass for the entire party. that's nearly 30 selections in an evening "by the glass"!
Vivere and it's room mate the Italian Village are the only truly Italian restaurants I take visitors to Chicago. less