Today we’d like to introduce you to Vincent Viale.
Vincent, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I was born in Provence, France and discovered my true appetite for the culinary arts after working with seasonal agriculture. I went on to earn my degree from Lycee Hotelier Savoie Leman of Thonon-Les-Bains in eastern France and made the move to United States shortly after. The first stop was the East Coast, and I had the pleasure of working at several well-known establishments as I grew in my skills.
In 2005, I made the journey westward to California, where I had amazing opportunities to work at Tapenade Restaurant and Bernard’O. I love expressing myself as a chef, and I knew that the next logical step would be to open my restaurant. Through my work in San Diego, I crossed paths with Ludo Mifsud, and we clicked right away. We share the same mentality, work ethic and vision about our professional goals, so it felt natural to leap into restaurant ownership together. I developed the menu as the Executive Chef, and Ludo was tasked with handling all of the “front of house” duties. In 2016, our dream came together and we opened Et Voila! French Bistro on vibrant Adams Avenue in North Park.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Overall, the North Park neighborhood and the people of San Diego have been very welcoming. They embraced Et Voila very quickly. That’s not to say that there weren’t any struggles along the way. Building and remodeling the space for the restaurant was a challenge, and there were definitely some curveballs thrown our way. After all, I’m proud to say that we stuck to our desired budget and timeline.
Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about Et Voila! French Bistro – what should we know?
Et Voila means “here it is!” and it’s a traditional expression that is often used in France to express pride in the end result of something you work hard on to accomplish. With that in mind, we really wanted to make our restaurant into a great neighborhood bistro that the area deserves. We never wanted to be touristy or trendy, but rather more oriented towards locals who enjoy the comfortable atmosphere and authentic French food. At Et Voila, our menu offers classic dishes with a modern twist and priced right, which makes French cuisine much more approachable and less intimidating.
Is there a characteristic or quality that you feel is essential to success?
I think the successes that I’ve experienced stem from passion and consistency. Ludo and I both share an incredible passion for our restaurant. We are here every day, and we truly care about the experience our customers have. From our experiences, we’ve learned that we need to be willing to do anything and everything for our customers. Another big point to our success is being able to instill passion into our employees. It is important to be both a leader and a teacher. All of this requires a lot of hard work and long hours spent at the restaurant… but our determination is key to our success.
Contact Info:
- Address: 3015 Adams Avenue, San Diego, CA 92116
- Website: https://etvoilabistro.com/
- Phone: 6192097759
- Email: info@EtVoilaBistro.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/etvoilabistro/
- Facebook: https://www.instagram.com/etvoilabistro/
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/et-voilà-french-bistro-san-diego
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