Vicenza’s Moves Back to Tontitown

Vince Pianalto, the owner of Vicenza’s, closed his Fayetteville location in May and plans to have a new building constructed in Tontitown for the Italian restaurant by mid-August.

Vicenza’s began in December 1993 as an Italian grocery store with take-out meals in the back room of the Tontitown Flea Market. Vicenza’s became popular as a lunch spot and before long Pianalto began serving diner and expanded into an adjacent room at the site.

A year and a half ago, Pianalto moved Vicenza’s to a building in Fayetteville’s Colt Square that previously housed Muley’s restaurant. It was sort of a homecoming for Pianalto, who had worked at Muley’s during college.

Vicenza’s business didn’t increase at the new location, but the overhead tripled. Pianalto says visibility for a restaurant isn’t good at Colt Square since the location isn’t on a main thoroughfare.

Pianalto says the new location will be west of the Venesian Inn on U.S. Highway 412. The 4,500-SF building will seat about 50, he says. It’s about 1,500 SF smaller than the Muley’s location, which seated about 90.

In his new building, Pianalto says he’ll merge the Italian market and dining area to get quaint atmosphere he had at his original location.