Fabio Viviani (chef)
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Fabio Viviani (born October 10, 1978, in
Florence Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany Regions of Italy, region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilan ...
,
Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...
) is a chef, restaurateur, and cook book writer who has appeared on reality television. He also sells a range of wines. In 2005 he moved from Florence to
Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and cultural region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. It includes the Los Angeles metropolitan area, the second most populous urban a ...
. In 2008 he appeared on the
reality television Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring unfamiliar people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early ...
competition series ''
Top Chef ''Top Chef'' is an American reality competition television series which premiered on Bravo on March 8, 2006. The show features chefs competing against each other in culinary challenges. The contestants are judged by a panel of professional ch ...
'', where he was voted the "fan favorite"; since then he has had a second career as a television host, on-air personality and product pitchman.


Early life

Fabio Viviani grew up in
Florence Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany Regions of Italy, region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilan ...
,
Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...
. At age 11 he worked nights at a local bakery (since he was too young to officially join the staff) and held several positions in the restaurant industry during his teenage years. In 1992, 14-year-old Viviani began working at the Il Pallaio
trattoria A ''trattoria'' (plural: ''trattorie'') is an Italian-style eating establishment that is generally much less formal than a '' ristorante'', but more formal than an '' osteria''. A ''trattoria'' rooted in tradition may typically provide no pr ...
in Florence, which served Italian
comfort food Comfort food is food that provides a nostalgic or sentimental value to someone, and may be characterized by its high caloric nature, high carbohydrate level, or simple preparation. The nostalgia may be specific to an individual, or it may app ...
and had a 120-seat cover, becoming
sous chef A sous-chef is a chef A chef is a trained professional cook and tradesman who is proficient in all aspects of food preparation, often focusing on a particular cuisine. The word "chef" is derived from the term ''chef de cuisine'' (), the ...
by age 16, mentored by Italian restaurateur Simone Mugnaini.


Career

Viviani owned and operated seven restaurants in Florence, a farm house and 2 nightclubs by the time he was 27. In late 2005 he moved to Ventura County, CA, US and opened Café Firenze in Moorpark and, soon after, LA Italian restaurant Firenze Osteria in North Hollywood. Teaming up with Chicago's Dine, Amic Group, Viviani opened a third restaurant called Siena Tavern in Chicago in February 2013. Siena Tavern was reviewed favorably by the Chicago Tribune, Thrillist, and others. He also opened Mercato by Fabio Viviani for corporate lunches at two locations in Chicago. In February 2017, Chef Viviani will be opening a restaurant called Portico at the del Lago Resort and Casino in Tyre, New York Viviani holds several endorsement and licensing contracts with Bertolli Olive Oil, Smart Step Home Kitchen Mats, Picnic Time Giftware, and Bialetti Cookware. Viviani runs a website, www.fabioviviani.com, with original recipes, his Kitchen Academy blog, and upcoming events. In 2014 Viviani launched a free bi-weekly E-Magazine titled Fabio's Magazine, with recipes, wine blogs, lifestyle and health-related articles, and other content. In late 2018 Viviani, and Oklahoma City chef Jonathon Stranger, launched Osteria OKC in
Nichols Hills Nichols Hills is a city in Oklahoma County, Oklahoma, United States, and a part of the Oklahoma City metropolitan area. The population was 3,710 as of the 2010 census. History The 1,280 acres now known as Nichols Hills were developed as an exclu ...
, an upscale residential and shopping city within the Oklahoma City metro.


Television

Viviani's first appearance on television was as a contestant on the fifth season of reality TV show ''
Top Chef ''Top Chef'' is an American reality competition television series which premiered on Bravo on March 8, 2006. The show features chefs competing against each other in culinary challenges. The contestants are judged by a panel of professional ch ...
'' on the Bravo network. He came in fourth place, and was voted "''Top Chef'' Fan Favorite" by viewers.Andriani, Lynn, ''Publishers Weekly'' (March 8, 2009)
Top Chef’s Fabio Self Publishes Cookbook
/ref> Viviani returned to the show in 2010 to compete on '' Top Chef: All Stars''. In 2012, he was one of four ''Top Chef'' alumni whose lives were followed on the Bravo reality show ''
Life After Top Chef ''Life After Top Chef'' is an American reality television series that aired on the Bravo television network. It premiered on October 3, 2012. Premise The series follows former ''Top Chef'' contestants Richard Blais ('' Top Chef: Chicago'', '' T ...
'', which lasted for one season. He was also the host of ''Chow Ciao'', a web series on
Yahoo! Yahoo! (, styled yahoo''!'' in its logo) is an American web services provider. It is headquartered in Sunnyvale, California and operated by the namesake company Yahoo Inc., which is 90% owned by investment funds managed by Apollo Global Manage ...
, for which he won a
Webby Award The Webby Awards are awards for excellence on the Internet presented annually by the International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences, a judging body composed of over two thousand industry experts and technology innovators. Categories includ ...
for "Best Web Personality/Host" in 2012. Viviani has appeared in a number of television cooking segments and been a guest on television shows including '' Good Morning America'', '' The Talk'', ''
The Chew ''The Chew'' is an American cooking-themed talk show that aired for seven seasons from September 26, 2011 to June 28, 2018, having replaced the soap opera ''All My Children'', on ABC as part of the network's weekday daytime lineup. The name wa ...
'', '' Ellen'', ''
Good Day LA ''Good Day L.A.'' is an American morning television news and entertainment program airing on KTTV (channel 11), a Fox owned-and-operated television station in Los Angeles, California, owned by the Fox Television Stations subsidiary of Fox Corpo ...
'', ''
Access Hollywood ''Access Hollywood'', formerly known as ''Access'' from 2017 to 2019, is an American weekday television entertainment news program that premiered on September 9, 1996. It covers events and celebrities in the entertainment industry. It was create ...
'', ''
The Queen Latifah Show ''The Queen Latifah Show'' was the title of two American television talk shows hosted by Queen Latifah. The original ''The Queen Latifah Show'' ran from September 13, 1999, to August 31, 2001. The revamped ''The Queen Latifah Show'' debuted Septem ...
'' and '' Bethenny'', as well as hosting a regular spot on the channel
QVC QVC (short for "Quality Value Convenience") is an American free-to-air television network, and flagship shopping channel specializing in televised home shopping, owned by Qurate Retail Group. Founded in 1986 by Joseph Segel in West Chester, Pen ...
selling kitchen products. He was also a guest host on the
Hallmark Channel The Hallmark Channel is an American television channel owned by Crown Media Holdings, Inc., which in turn is owned by Hallmark Cards, Inc. The channel's programming is primarily targeted at families, and features a mix of television movies a ...
series ''Home and Family'',


Books

Viviani's first cookbook, ''Cafe Firenze Cookbook: Food and Drink Recipes from the Tuscan Sons'' was published in August 2009. It was followed by ''Fabio's Italian Kitchen'' in April 2013. This cookbook was on the New York Times Best Seller List in May 2013. ''Fabio's American Home Kitchen'' was published in October 2014. Viviani has released several
e-books An ebook (short for electronic book), also known as an e-book or eBook, is a book publication made available in digital form, consisting of text, images, or both, readable on the flat-panel display of computers or other electronic devices. Alt ...
, including ''Did I Really Make Breakfast'' (Vol I & II), ''The Skinny Country'', ''We The Soup'' and ''I Would Love To Meat You''.


Controversy

On June 1, 2020, an employee of one of Viviani's establishments in Tampa, Lanfranco Pescante of the Nocturnal Hospitality Group, was exposed for posting "shoot them all" in response to Tampa protesters. Viviani's employee, Lanfranco Pescante has also been associated with other messages featuring racial slurs and suggesting racial discrimination of his patrons. He is now being investigated by the FBI and State Attorney for violent comments and is accused of sex trafficking and rape by several Tampa Bay women. Some of the victims were minors, and others have stated that some of the sexual misconduct occurred in establishments operated by the Nocturnal Hospitality Group. Fabio Viviani Group was never associated with the venue cited in the LawSuit, Franklin Manor. In response to these developments and public backlash, Viviani immediately announced on June 4, 2020, that he was cutting ties with the Nocturnal Hospitality Group and its Tampa Bay restaurants -Osteria Bar + Kitchen, and Mole y Abuela and Shibui. Viviani stated: "My whole Hospitality Group, Career and Venues have been built in the spirit of inclusiveness, equality, love and freedom for all, I cannot stand behind any form of hate or harassment nor being associated with people demonstrating such behaviours and for these reasons we have decided to cut ties with all our Tampa Partners and Operators".


Restaurants

* Osteria – permanently closed due to his coworker, Lanfranco Pescante, being under investigation by the FBI and State Attorney for violent remarks, racism, and allegations of sex trafficking/rape.
Tampa, Florida Tampa () is a city on the Gulf Coast of the United States, Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The city's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and ...
* Osteria by Fabio Viviani –
Downers Grove, Illinois Downers Grove is a village in DuPage County, Illinois, United States. It was founded in 1832 by Pierce Downer, whose surname serves as the eponym for the village. It is a south-west suburb of Chicago. The village is located between I-88 and I- ...
* Cafe Firenze – permanently closed
Moorpark, California Moorpark is a city in Ventura County in Southern California. Moorpark was founded in 1900. The town grew from just over 4,000 citizens in 1980 to over 25,000 by 1990. As of 2006, Moorpark was one of the fastest-growing cities in Ventura County. ...
* Firenze Osteria – permanently closed Hollywood,
California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...
* Siena Tavern –
Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...
,
Illinois Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Rockf ...
* Bar Siena –
Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...
,
Illinois Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Rockf ...
* Portico –
Waterloo, New York Waterloo is a town in Seneca County, New York, United States. The population was 7,338 at the 2020 census. The town and its major community are named after Waterloo, Belgium, where Napoleon was defeated. There is also a village called Waterl ...
*Osteria OKC –
Nichols Hills, Oklahoma Nichols Hills is a city in Oklahoma County, Oklahoma, United States, and a part of the Oklahoma City metropolitan area. The population was 3,710 as of the 2010 census. History The 1,280 acres now known as Nichols Hills were developed as an exclu ...
* Chuck Lager –
Wilmington, Delaware Wilmington (Lenape: ''Paxahakink /'' ''Pakehakink)'' is the largest city in the U.S. state of Delaware. The city was built on the site of Fort Christina, the first Swedish settlement in North America. It lies at the confluence of the Christina ...
* The Eatery –
Washington, Pennsylvania Washington is a city in and the county seat of Washington County, Pennsylvania. A part of the Greater Pittsburgh area in the southwestern part of the state, the city is home to Washington & Jefferson College and Pony League baseball. The populat ...
*Jars - Sweets and Things by Fabio Viviani *Taverna Costale, St Petersburg, Fl, opened January 2022 *Bar Cicchetti – Columbus, Ohio


References


Fabio Viviani Bravo TV biography

ShopTalk Crush of the Week: Fabio VivianiChef Fabio Viviani
;Footnotes {{DEFAULTSORT:Viviani, Fabio Living people 1978 births Italian chefs Top Chef contestants Restaurateurs Cookbook writers