New restaurants fill the bill for closed favorites By Mike Dunne – Bee Restaurant Critic
…Yesterday: For 12 years, Maurizio Contartese gamely tried to make a go of his Bravo Ristorante Italiano along Fair Oaks Boulevard between Howe Avenue and Munroe Street, just in front of a Borders Books but secluded behind a Swanson’s Cleaners. He gave up a year ago. Contributors to the Yelp thread regret that his rustic Italian cookery, his boisterous parties inspired by the movie “Big Night” and the piano music of the late Mario Ferrari no longer are around.
Today: Much of the spirit that distinguished Bravo is available nearby, just down Fair Oaks Boulevard at Watt Avenue, where Cafe Vinoteca occupies a compact corner of Fountain Plaza at Arden Town Center. Cafe Vinoteca’s interpretation of Italian cooking is broader and more contemporary than Bravo’s, but the relaxed if lively setting is just as warm, and servers strike a similar balance between propriety and good humor. For music, an acoustic guitarist appears Wednesdays, and on the last Thursday of each month the restaurant bakes a large, complex and amusing timbale, the centerpiece pastry and pasta drum from “Big Night.