Fabio Viviani (chef) explained

Fabio Viviani
Birth Date:10 October 1978
Birth Place:Florence, Italy
Style:Italian
Restaurants:Firenze Osteria, Cafe Firenze, Siena Tavern, Bar Siena, Chuck Lager, Bar Cicchetti, Taverna Toscana
Television:Top Chef

Fabio Viviani (born October 10, 1978, in Florence, Italy) is a chef, restaurateur, and cookbook writer who has appeared on reality television.[1] He also sells a range of wines.[2] In 2005 he moved from Florence to Southern California. In 2008 he appeared on the reality television competition series Top Chef, 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, Italy. 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 in Florence, which served Italian comfort food and had a 120-seat cover, becoming sous chef by age 16, mentored by Italian restaurateur Simone Mugnaini. He was married to Jessica in Italy and she was watching the restaurants while he was competing on Top Chef.[3]

Career

Viviani owned and operated seven restaurants in Florence, a farm house and 2 nightclubs by the time he was 27.[4] 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.[5] [6] Teaming up with Chicago's Dine|Amic Group, Viviani opened a third restaurant called Siena Tavern in Chicago in February 2013.[7] Siena Tavern was reviewed favorably by the Chicago Tribune, Thrillist, and others.[8] [9] 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 [10] 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.[11] [12] [13] [14]

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.[15]

In late 2018 Viviani, and Oklahoma City chef Jonathon Stranger, launched Osteria OKC in Nichols Hills, 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 on the Bravo network. He came in fourth place, and was voted "Top Chef Fan Favorite" by viewers.[16] Viviani returned to the show in 2010 to compete on . In 2012, he was one of four Top Chef alumni whose lives were followed on the Bravo reality show Life After Top Chef, which lasted for one season. He was also the host of Chow Ciao, a web series on Yahoo!,[17] for which he won a Webby Award for "Best Web Personality/Host" in 2012.[18]

Viviani has appeared in a number of television cooking segments and been a guest on television shows including Good Morning America,[19] The Talk,[20] The Chew,[21] Ellen,[22] Good Day LA,[23] Access Hollywood,[24] The Queen Latifah Show[25] and Bethenny,[26] as well as hosting a regular spot on the channel QVC selling kitchen products. He was also a guest host on the Hallmark Channel series Home and Family,[27]

Books

Viviani's first cookbook, Cafe Firenze Cookbook: Food and Drink Recipes from the Tuscan Sons was published in August 2009.[28] It was followed by Fabio's Italian Kitchen in April 2013.[29] This cookbook was on the New York Times Best Seller List in May 2013.[30] Fabio's American Home Kitchen was published in October 2014.[31]

Viviani has released several e-books, including Did I Really Make Breakfast (Vol I & II), The Skinny Country, We The Soup and I Would Love To Meat You.[32]

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.[33]

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.[34]

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.[35]

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".[36]

Restaurants

References

Footnotes

Notes and References

  1. Haughton, Natalie, Daily News Los Angeles (February 17, 2009). Chef Viviani brings love of Italian food to Americans
  2. http://www.fabiovivianiwines.com Fabio Viviani Wine Collection
  3. Web site: Wiener. Allison. Success Beyond Reality TV: Interview with Fabio Viviani. Media Mayhem - The Lip.TV. 4 December 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20130127214025/http://thelip.tv/success-beyond-reality-tv-with-fabio-viviani/. 27 January 2013. dead.
  4. Web site: Each. Molly. Fabio Viviani. Splash Chicago. Chicago Sun-Times. 4 December 2013.
  5. Web site: Cafe Firenze - About Us . Cafefirenze.net . 4 December 2013 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20140302232121/http://www.cafefirenze.net/about-us/ . 2 March 2014 .
  6. Web site: Firenze Osteria - About Us. FirenzeOsteria.com. 4 December 2013.
  7. Web site: Siena Tavern - About Us. SienaTavern.com. 4 December 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20130602124138/http://sienatavern.com/about.html. 2 June 2013. dead.
  8. Web site: Siena Tavern. Chicago Magazine. Chicago Tribune. 4 December 2013.
  9. Web site: Cooley. Sean. A TOP CHEF ITALIAN OUTPOST IN RIVER NORTH. Thrillest. 4 December 2013.
  10. Web site: Portico By Fabio Viviani del Lago Resort & Casino Seneca County, NY . www.dellagoresort.com . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20170126103501/https://dellagoresort.com/dining/porticobyfabioviviani/ . 2017-01-26.
  11. Web site: Let's Cook with Chef Fabio Viviani and Bertolli Olive Oil. Appszoom. Appzoom.com. 4 December 2013.
  12. Web site: Fabio Viviani Comfort Mats by Smart Step Home. Smart Step Home. Smart Step Home. 4 December 2013.
  13. Web site: DeSocio . Jeffrey . Fabio Viviani Loves America: 4th Of July Picnic Ideas . Los Angeles Local News - Fox 11 LA KTTV . Fox . 4 December 2013 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20140209085416/http://www.myfoxla.com/story/22754065/fabio-viviani-loves-america-4th-of-july-picnic-ideas . 9 February 2014 .
  14. Web site: Bialetti & Chef Fabio Viviani Continue Partnership with Launch of Aeternum Signature Series. PR Web. Vocus PRW Holdings. 4 December 2013.
  15. Web site: Barnett. Heather. Top Chef alum Fabio Viviani talks new ventures. She Knows Food and Recipe. 19 March 2013. She Knows LLC. 4 December 2013.
  16. Andriani, Lynn, Publishers Weekly (March 8, 2009). Top Chef’s Fabio Self Publishes Cookbook
  17. Web site: Life After Top Chef (Season 1). 2013-12-04. https://web.archive.org/web/20121030075252/http://www.bravotv.com/life-after-top-chef/season-1. 2012-10-30. dead.
  18. Web site: 2012 Honoree: Chow Ciao . Webby Awards . 5 February 2016.
  19. Web site: Italian Classics With Chef Fabio Viviani. ABC News. Yahoo! - ABC News Network. 4 December 2013.
  20. Web site: CBS The Talk Photos. CBS The Talk. CBS. 4 December 2013.
  21. Web site: ABC's The Chew's Official Youtube Channel. https://web.archive.org/web/20140705172855/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HVgeyIO_A08 . 2014-07-05 . dead. Youtube. Google, ABC. 4 December 2013.
  22. Web site: Ellen's Healthy Living - Veggie Burgers with Fabio Viviani!. EllenTV. Yahoo! Lifestyles Network. 4 December 2013.
  23. Web site: DeSocio . Jeffrey . Chef Fabio Viviani Brings His Holiday Favorites. . Los Angeles Local News Fox 11 LA KTTV . Fox Television Stations, Inc. and Worldnow . 4 December 2013 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20130420105734/http://www.myfoxla.com/story/20246618/chef-fabio-viviani-brings-his-holiday-favorites-a-dessert-and-a-drink . 20 April 2013 .
  24. Web site: Access Hollywood Live: Let Your Kids Cook For You On Mother's Day! . Access Hollywood . NBC Universal . 4 December 2013 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20130115104348/http://watch.accesshollywood.com/video/access-hollywood-live:-let-your-kids-cook-for-you-on-mothers-day/1315387124001 . 15 January 2013 .
  25. Web site: Fabio Viviani's Pizza Dough Recipe | Queen Latifah . 2013-12-04 . https://archive.today/20131204220942/http://queenlatifah.com/living/fabio-vivianis-pizza-dough-recipe . 2013-12-04 . dead .
  26. Web site: Fabio Viviani's Easy Weekday Lunch Salad | Bethenny.com . 2013-12-04 . https://web.archive.org/web/20131031072856/http://www.bethenny.com/2013/10/16/fabio-vivianis-shrimp-avocado-salad/ . 2013-10-31 . dead .
  27. Web site: Home and Family Episode Guide. Home and Family. Crown Media. 4 December 2013.
  28. Web site: Cafe Firenze Cookbook: Food and Drink Recipes from the Tuscan Sons. Abe Books. AbeBooks Inc.. 4 December 2013.
  29. Web site: Fabio's Italian Kitchen: Over 100 Delicious Family Recipes. Cooks&Books&Recipes. Cooks&Books&Recipes. 4 December 2013.
  30. News: Best Sellers. The New York Times. 4 December 2013.
  31. Viviani, Fabio. "Fabio's American Home Kitchen." N.p., n.d. Web.
  32. Web site: Celebrity Chef, Fabio Viviani Releases I Would Love To Meat You, His Second in a Series of Free Monthly eCookbooks. PR Newswire New Releases. PR Newswire. 4 December 2013.
  33. Web site: Co-owner of Franklin Manor, other Tampa restaurants steps down after his posts spark outrage. 2020-06-05. Tampa Bay Times. en.
  34. Web site: FBI and state attorney now investigating violent comments from Tampa restaurateur Lanfranco Pescante. 2020-06-05. Creative Loafing: Tampa Bay. en.
  35. Web site: FBI and state attorney now investigating violent comments from Tampa restaurateur Lanfranco Pescante. 2020-06-05. Creative Loafing: Tampa Bay. en.
  36. Web site: Fabio Viviani pulling out of Nocturnal Hospitality Group's Tampa Bay restaurants, all of which are now closed. 2020-06-05. Tampa Bay Times. en.
  37. Web site: Osteria By Fabio Viviani - Osteria Downers Grove . www.osteriadownersgrove.com . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20191023114559/http://www.osteriadownersgrove.com/ . 2019-10-23.
  38. Web site: Café Firenze closes its doors after 11 years in Moorpark. 10 January 2020.
  39. Web site: Fabio Viviani's Firenze Osteria to Close, Reopen as New Concept. 30 July 2014.
  40. Web site: Home . sienatavern.com.
  41. Web site: Home . barsiena.com.
  42. News: 'Top Chef' opening restaurant at del Lago Resort & Casino. Rochester Democrat and Chronicle. 2018-05-10. en.
  43. Web site: Dynamic duo. Threadgill. Jacob. Oklahoma Gazette. en. 2019-01-23.
  44. News: 'Top Chef' contestant opening Pike Creek eatery . delawareonline. 2019-11-16. en.
  45. Web site: The Eatery by Fabio Viviani: Food Hall & Draft House Hollywood Casino at the Meadows. 2021-11-24. Meadows. en.
  46. Web site: Jars - Sweets and Things by Fabio Viviani. 2022-01-14. jarsbyfabioviviani.com.
  47. Web site: The Columbus Dispatch . 2022-12-13 . www.dispatch.com.

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