Celebrity chef Fabio Viviani plans to re-enter the Tampa Bay market when he opens Chuck Lager American Tavern at The Shops at Wiregrass.
An opening date is to-be-determined, but this will be the third spot for the chain, joining others in Delaware and New Jersey.
It’s also the first time local foodies have been able to say Viviani’s name since he cut all ties with Tampa-based Nocturnal Group whose co-founder Lanfranco Pescante was caught saying violent and racist comments about Black Lives Matter protesters (the FBI launched an investigation into Pescante soon after).
Fabio Viviani Hospitality was a stakeholder in Nocturnal’s Osteria, Mole y Abuela and Shibui concepts, and had Nocturnal running the day-to-day. Viviani and Nocturnal group’s were even in the process of opening another Italian concept, La Pergola, before Vivani cut Nocturnal Group and its members out completely.
“If this was just business, I would’ve found a way to still save the day but there are some lines I don’t cross,” Viviani tells Creative Loafing Tampa Bay about the split from Nocturnal.
His first reaction was to immediately walk away when the reports came out. To him, the sad part was all the employees that were hurt in the process and he hopes he can hire as many of them back as possible. Unfortunately, he hasn’t heard any updates about consequences since cutting ties with Nocturnal.
“I build my business on inclusiveness, fairness, equality, and respect. I can’t mess with certain things so I had to walk away,” he says.
According to Chuck Lager's website, every menu item (including salmon risotto, Hawaiian BBQ flatbread pizza, and Fabio’s meatloaf) is made-from-scratch. Diners can pair their entreé with one of Chuck Lager cocktails, craft bourbons, or cold beers. Decadent desserts like limoncello mascarpone cake and Nona’s Apple Pie Bread Pudding satisfy any sweet tooth. Everything ranges between $8-34 so you could potentially still have money to spend at Wiregrass shops.
“It’s a higher-end American tavern with some sports bar components. We’re more geared towards a dining experience than a bar experience,” Viviani says.
Construction is currently underway in the space across from Grillsmith that was previously the outdoor mall’s Primebar restaurant. Viviani mentions people are already requesting reservations although a soft open isn’t until the end of the month followed by an official opening the first week of November.
“We’ve gotten a great reception. The town is excited,” he says.
UPDATED: 10/12/20 5:46 p.m. Updated to include comments from a phone call with Vivani.
Support local journalism in these crazy days. Our small but mighty team is working tirelessly to bring you up to the minute news on how Coronavirus is affecting Tampa and surrounding areas. Please consider making a one time or monthly donation to help support our staff. Every little bit helps.
Want to know everything going on with Tampa Bay's food and drink scene? Sign up for our Bites newsletter.
Follow Creative Loafing Tampa Bay on Google News, too.
This article appears in Best of the Bay 2020.