Vivo Ristorante Pizzeria

Vivo was fantastic!
We had the calamari, Grandma's pizza and Veal Piccata. The veal wasn't on the menu but my husband really wanted it and they made it!!!! Everything was delicious, the service was fabulous- we will definitely be back!

Food was outstanding. I had veal parm and it is the best veal parm I have had in NC.

The pasta is cooked perfectly and the sauce is to die for. Grandma's pizza is highly addictive too. The staff is friendly and the service is attentive. The meal value is great considering the prices. We've been back several times and plan on regular visits.
Mike

The food was really really good (and we are a tough crowd). But it took an hour to arrive, during which we met proprietor Randy - very attentive. Plus, chicken piccata arrived instead of the pollo sorrentino we ordered, but they corrected it unprompted and let us take home the piccata.

Delicious and authentic food! Also our waitress was on point.

Seated within about 10 minutes of arrival - very busy Friday night with walk-ins right around 7:00. Had the Neapolitan pizza (added toppings) and house salad. Not the fastest service for a casual restaurant but good food and reasonably priced. First time and will definitely go back to try the pasta dishes.

Very nice meal good variety of food... 6 of us had a very good selection of foods and we all enjoyed the selection

Excellent food. Great service. Our friends fron New York were impressed.

Great food Waiter was awesome too!!!

Excellent locally owned italian restaurant. Authentic dishes along with the stable of basic's like Chicken Parm and Pasta. The Grandma Pizza is great as an appetizer or a large size as a stand alone meal. Gianni is terrific, if you don't see it on the menu and have a special request he is glad to accommodate you.

This is not a fine dining restaurant, it's a very casual / relaxed atmosphere. Very solid beer choices on tap and a nice selection of Italian wines at very reasonable prices. Wait staff is very accommodating as well.

We where sat immediately and given a choice of seating , Josh Our sever was attendant polite and super friendly! The was excellent and was not felt rushed ~ the night was relaxing. Thank you Gianni, Josh & Crew.

The appetizers were especially good. We like Vivos food and continue to go back. A one man band provided entertainment with a delightful mix of songs.

Please keep in mind I am Italian and very critical of Italian food. Our server was great, two of the dinners were a bit late, but not bad. I had pizza which i enjoyed and was still good cold the next day. My husband got eggplant parm. It was okay. It was coated with bread crumbs and fried, I prefer it floured and dipped in egg. but that is just a personal preference. Plus the sauce was too sweet for my taste. My friend ordered a caprese salad. The tomato wasn't ripe and was as hard as an apple. NO flavor. very disappointing. I would go back for the pizza, but I don't think I could convince my husband to go.

This is our new favorite Italian restaurant in town! The owner is super-friendly, the chef made the best eggplant parm I've ever had, and it felt like a home away from home.

This was an excellent experience for our 10th anniversary. We enjoyed nice atmosphere, great food and beautiful interior.

Food is excellent and fresh. Everyone is friendly. Family owned. Great selection for those who love Italian food and flavors, but must stay away from pasta. All around great place for classic Italian food.

We really enjoy this neighborhood Italian restaurant every time we go here. Food is great and well priced, and the staff are super friendly. Highly recommended.

Great bread, Pollo Parm and Scarpariello. Servers are nice, polite and helpful. Family owned and operated.

This is not just another pizza joint. Owner was born in Italy. Everything is cooked to order and it's delicious. Gianni does make pizza...it's great.

We went on a Friday night - had a booking but it was incredibly busy and had to wait about 20 minutes before being seated. I think there was a wedding rehearsal dinner.No big deal - the host looked v harrassed but apologised. No big deal. We were seen too very quickly once seated. Service was friendly, efficient. Food tasted good. Portions sizes were fair - too much to eat in one go..not quite enough for 2 meals (at least for the parmignia ordered). Prices were probably reasonable for location.
My only 2 criticism was that the entrees came out a little too quickly. We had not finished eating what we wanted of the appetizer when the entrees arrived. The other disappointment was that there was no bruschetta on the menu.
Aside from that - pleasant atmosphere. We would certainly come back another evening. Conveniently located and sufficient parking.

I wouldn't have believed that an Italian restaurant that features pizza would have such great meals. Everything was delicious!

Glad we discovered this place. Super friendly staff and absolutely delicious food. I've already recommended it to everyone in my office and hope to take my extended Italian family there next time we need a place for a big family dinner.

Amazing Italian food! This is an authentic Italian restaurant. Everything is made fresh on site from the pasta to all the sauces. I've not eaten anything here that wasn't absolutely delicious. The owners/Chef are so accommodating and wonderful. The last night we came we had the lobster ravioli which is one of the evening specials and was superb, another chicken with mushrooms and fresh mozzarella which was another dinner special and was Delicious. I had to go and order my fallback which is my favorite and that is their penne rustica. The flavors in the sauce is unbelievable. This is a must go to restaurant.

Incredible risk to open a restaurant in North Raleigh...but these folks have jumped in with entire family engaged. Great family story or traditional family values over Italian food prep in NY/NJ now relocated to NC for better family life. Great crew of folks caring and serving, but even better is awesome quality of food. Italian tends to gravitate to overcooked, low-end, high quantity play. .or over-priced small servings "fine touch". These folk have found the perfect middle ground, offering all fresh pasta dishes... with high end gloss... but good size portions.

This is our present favorite... replacing Bella Monica for comparable price/performance with wider menu array and better convenience in North Raleigh locaation.

This has become our favorite Italian restaurant in Raleigh. The food is always very good, the service is excellent, and the owner and managers are very friendly and helpful. They also have a Gluten Free MENU! You need to ask for it and it is more than just two food items. One of the staff members can't have gluten so everyone knows how to handle the food and prepare it accordingly. Nice touch!

Excellent experience !!!!! Couldn't be any happier with the entire experience !!!

The Cinellis have been part of the Raleigh food scene for some years now, and Vivo demonstrates the enthusiasm and solid quality they are able to bring to the restaurant business. We had a reservation for Valentine's eve, and though the place was quite packed, our table was ready on arrival. Very shortly thereafter we were approached by Gianni Cinneli's wife, and co-owner, who told us all of the servers were busy and she would be taking care of us. What a delightful piece of luck, as we not only were very well-treated but also learned that the establishment is a real family affair. She helped us with a wine-by-the-glass selection and then gave us time to choose an appetizer and more time to pick entrees. The entire experience was this way - no rush, just attentiveness to our needs. Our food was really good, and when it came time for dessert, we couldn't resist the tiramisu. And boy are we glad we didn't, because it's right up there with the best we have ever tasted. We will definitely be going back to sample more of what's on the menu.

My wife and I had been big fans of Cinelli's in Durham, where I lived for many years. It was our go to Italian restaurant when we wanted authentic NJ-style pizza and great Shrimp Fra Diavalo, along with an excellent wait staff. Living east of Raleigh now, we finally tried Vivo's, knowing the owner/manager was associated with the Durham Cinelli's (not to be confused with the one in North Hills quality-wise - though we haven't been there in years and it may have improved). Still fantastic food, with an expansive menu, and lots of personal attention from the owner and his family. We'll be back often! Don't miss the crab-stuffed mushrooms, and if you like Italian sausage, be sure to ask for a side order if your entree doesn't already have it as an ingredient. They used to have live music on Friday nights, with a Frank Sinatra/Tony Bennett sort of singer - I forgot to ask them if that's still the case.

I work at an Italian Restaurant downtown, so I don't often go out to eat for Italian generally. However, this is what my boyfriend wanted for his birthday dinner. Made a reservation and met his folks there around 6 on Sunday. The restaurant wasn't too busy, and we were seated quickly. Our server was enthusiastic about the restaurant, and a joy to talk to. The fried mozzeralla fritte was different enough to be interesting, dinner salads a healthy portion (although not included with the meal). The bread was awesome, and we loved the colander serving dishes! My lasagna was awesome, the boy's chicken/sausage dish was tasty with a good kick, and his parents enjoyed their manicotti and spaghetti and meatballs. They have a huge menu! The pizza looked delicious, and we will be back to try that soon! Overall, a lovely evening. They were starting to fill up a bit when we left, but there was plenty of room for everyone!

We had three very good entrees and one so-so entree - spaghetti and meatballs were just okay. The penne rustica was great. One person enjoyed the linguine with white clam sauce and another had manicotti. The tiramisu was really strong with alcohol but tasty. The lemon cheesecake with raspberry sauce was not good - we tried to like it but the texture and flavor were just off. Even so, I think we would go back and try the pizzas and some of the other pasta dishes. Had a very good selection of beer. Atmosphere is very casual and fun for a crowd and very kid friendly.

The sauces were really tasty and had just the right amount of seasoning (garlic) and the veal was first rate. The pasta was firm and not mushy. The seafood was plentiful and delicious (mussels, clams, shrimp, etc.). This is a hidden gem that we had to drive a bit to get to from Cary but well worth it.

Authentic Italian -- Very good food in a pleasant, relaxed atmosphere

Event that you made a reservation and was there on time and more than half of the restaurant is empty they let you stand and wait at the door for a very long time. they tell you we will need 10-15 minutes before we seat you down. We did not see any waiters ... at least four tables are waiting to be seated. The host is a little kid does not know what he is doing. The owner pass us and did not say anything then came back after few minutes telling us we will seat you in a few we just sat a lot of people at once and we need to calm down before we seat more people ... really???? Why do you take reservation then? Few minutes was long time and we did not see anyone or asked to be seated!!!! More than half of the restaurant was empty ... We only could see around 4-5 tables full... If you can't handle more that 4 tables should not take reservation or open a big restaurant. Very disappointed!