Ponto Lago - Park Hyatt Aviara

Vivace never disappoints. From excellent service to amazing food and a wonderful wine list, this is a wonderful restaurant. Selection of interesting and delicious food is wonderful. Service spectacular...not to hovery but there when they need to be. I enjoy this restaurant every time I visit. My only sadness is that the restaurant is closing and opening after renovation as something completely different. I am disappointed for certain.

Excellent service by friendly knowledgable Adan and team. Everything was excellent. Romantic quiet setting by fireplace. All the tastes and combinations worked. We dine often traveling in fine restaurants, and often the food is impressive but not necessarily tasty. Each dish was delicious , and we finished every drop. Pecan soup excellent (rich); Warm squash salad delectable, and one of us doesn't usually like squash!; grilled octopus very good. Lobster risotto perfectly done with generous portion of lobster. Fresh pasta (rigatoni with short rib Bolognese) as good as Italy, and better than my grandmother's. Chef prepared a very special combination on a plank for my birthday: caramel budino; smooth creamy corn flan; bombolini (little donuts with raspberry sauce and nutella)!

My husband and I have been going through a rough time with our dogs health. As we are visiting hear for a special cancer treatment we decided to get out and have a nice meal. Not only was our meal exceptionally delicious our server was the sweetest most kind lady who made our special night out that much more special! From the appetizer to the desert to my mouth watering pork chop that I can’t wait to have again it was nothing short of perfection! Thank you for an amazing meal and for taking our minds off of such a tough patch for our family!

Fixed
Price four course meal for Valentines. Main courses were just so so for the price. Some hit, some mossed. Not acceptable for the price

Awesome experience and perfect for a romantic Valentines dinner. Everything was perfect and all the gluten free options were perfect. The desert was to die for. Looking for a nice romantic dinner? This is the place to go

The reason why I stayed at the Park Hyatt resort for one night was the restaurant Vivace. I have dined here four other times and was never disappointed. Their wine selection is very good by the bottle or the glass. Since I was by myself, I always will have two glasses of wine.

My first course was the Salumi, which is Wild Boar Prosciutto | Bison Salami | Venison Salami | Duck Prosciutto | Fermented Cabbage. Served with toasted bread and seeded mustard.

My second course was the Black & Green Bucatini which is Braised Octopus | Prawns | Spicy Chili Oil -highly recommended.

My third course was the Wood Oven-Roasted Chicken withCharred Brussels Sprouts | Duck Ham | Apples | Chestnut and White Truffle Cream sauce. I was starting to get full from the bucatini so I just slowed down by consumption to a more leisurely pace. It was too good to leave over. Note: when you order the tasting menu, the course portions are smaller which I appreciate.

I just requested a small portion of sorbet to cleanse my pallet.

On a sad note, Vivace is closing in a few months. The Park Hyatt is undergoing a complete renovation and Vivace will close. In its place will be a new Mediterranean restaurant however I prefer Italian flare.
Valet parking for non-guests. Smart casual dress.

My second visit to Vivace and it was as delicious and wonderful the second time as the first. Service is attentive but not overbearing, very nice wine list and spectacular food and presentation. The table in front of the fireplace is my favorite and they were very willing to accomodate my request. Lovely evening.

Christmas Dinner

Wonderful special occasion restaurant. Delicious, innovative food at a slow pace.

Another wonderful evening we had at Vivace, A beautiful table near the fireplace, a spectacular dinner and probably the best waitress we’ve ever had. Erika was a delightful polished professional, warm and welcoming and she knew every detail of the amazing menu and wine service. We enjoyed the evening, never feeling rushed, able to enjoy our company and the ambiance of the beautiful dining room. Kudos to the kitchen and wait staff !

Great service and good atmosphere and conducive for people to socialize and enjoy their meal

The high quality food was very unique with combinations that complimented each other. Food was beautifully presented. Amuse Bouche was a pecan soup with cranberries.

Best scallops ever had. Braised short rib was not braised nor a short rib. Service, decor, ambiance all over the top. A very slow Monday night at 7 pm, only three tables occupied.

We were incredibly impressed with this restaurant. Our server Erica was especially wonderful. We live in the area and have discovered only a few restaurants that have become our favorites. We have already made a reservation for Thanksgiving. Since the Hyatt took over from The Four Seasons the hotel has gone down hill. We were reluctant to try the restaurant but were pleasantly surprised. So if you go, walk quickly through the hotel and strait to the outdoor dining. Vivace is a great Italian restaurant with an inspired chef.

Great night for a special anniversary. Attentive staff, excellent value on the prix fixe menus. Good wine selections. And quiet venue for private conversations.

The menu is not as good as it used to be. Overall, Vivace is no longer worth the cost of both food and wine. Try one of the very good Italian restaurants in Encinitas or Carlsbad Village instead.

Wonderful dinner for a very special occasion! Requested wine pairings and Jeremiah did a fabulous job choosing the perfect wine for each of our four courses.

Great food, service, ambience. Went on Tuesday night so there was no corkage fee.

This was our second visit to Vivace and it was as good as we remembered. The service, presentation, the room - our table was near he fireplace - were close to perfect. We'll definite book another dinner on our next visit to the area.

Wife’s Birthday and she Really Enjoyed the Experience 👏🏾👏🏾👍🏾👍🏾

Brought our friends from out of town here to celebrate a Birthday. Wonderful service, beautiful outdoor seating, and delicious food. We live in Carlsbad and enjoy this beautiful restaurant.

An absolutely fabulous dining experience. The food is delicious and beautifully presented. The lobster (Maine) risotto, their signature dish, is out of this world. Adan, our server, is so knowledgeable and is so attentive to all our needs. What a great find so close to home.

Excellent Italian food, smallish servings lovingly prepared. A special occasion and costly experience but definitely worth the money. Shared a salad and had the Gnudi with braised lamb, my spouse seafood. I would pass on the Black Forest cake for dessert.
Ambiance is quiet and elegant, excellent, excellent service. We celebrated a special anniversary and had no regrets dining there for that occasion.

The restaurant was extremely noisy due to a very large wedding party. Service was impacted and consequently slow. Prices have also increased since our last visit so it is, at least for this visit, less than enjoyable.

The jerks at the table next to us were so drunk and singing children’s songs to their kids, I couldn’t believe it. The staff should have asked them to leave.

We have been here many times, several years in a row. Our visit this last August, over Memorial Day weekend, was disappointing. Lost some of the charm it previously had, with many tables added in the smaller dining, menu changes and noisy. The food was "okay", but nothing exceptional for the price. Good for someone staying at the hotel for a night in, but maybe not worth making a trip to the hotel just to eat here.

We have a fab waiter who helped us understand the menu and wine pairings beyond just telling. Stephen educated us. Service and spacing for the courses was perfect

You must get the corn panacotta!

What a beautiful restaurant! The view, service and food were all amazing! Absolutely delicious Italian food!! Can’t wait to go back!

Incredible views, service and culinary experience!!

We had the best dinner of the year this past Saturday night. From Natasha seating us to Ted walking us through each course the dinner was amazing. Excellent service. Food was out of this world. Highly recommend the four course option with delectable desserts...

Consistently wonderful for 14 years. Every year we come to Carlsbad we go here.

My expensive bone-in pork chop was uncooked in the center—literally uncooked. The server acknowledged the meat wasn’t cooked, and I returned it as a refused meal (I don’t return meals to the kitchen after a complaint—I don’t trust what might happen when I’m not watching). Later, I was charged for the meal, and I paid without protest. I also fully tipped the servers 22% for their polite care; even though I thought they should have deducted the near $50 bucks for the bleeding pork chop. So I’m protesting now by telling all my fellow business dinner sponsors, stay clear of Hyatt’s Vivace Restaurant. Not trustworthy for dining. Business-wise or otherwise.

I was excited about lobster risotto however it was bland and taste only tomato. New York steak and panda cotta were amazing!

Nothing special

Great dining experience and Fantastic knowledgeable staff.
Beautiful ambiance. Food is always excellent!!

The restaurant is very dated. No energy. Hasn’t changed a thing in 15+ years. Food was good but nothing to brag about. Vegetables were too spicy to eat which isn’t what you want when drinking a high end Italian wine. Peach salad was outstanding deserts were a 10. Everything else average. Waiter tried very very very hard and was nice. 4 courses is too much food. If you do eat here go with 3 or a la carte for 2 courses.

Everything was absolutely perfect!! Summer peach salad was delectable as was the corn panna cotta for dessert.

Very disappointing.
I have dined here several times before. This Saturday evening, they were understaffed and service was horrible. No apology or any gesture to make up for the high price.

While in Carlsbad on business, Vivaci is a regular stop. Best of everything I want, ambiance, service, food and wine list. No better place to chill after a full week of business!