Restaurateur Roberto Vigilucci is passionate about food. The Carlsbad resident hails from Milano, Italy, where families are raised in kitchens and food is a centerpiece of the culture. It was in Italy that Vigilucci learned about quality Italian food from his mother’s excellent cooking and from his grandmother, with whom he spent his childhood summers in Tuscany.
After coming to the United States in the mid-1980s, he fell in love with the restaurant business and found that he had a talent not only for creating great food and sharing it with people, but for restaurant management.
Long sensing a need for classic Italian cuisine in San Diego, Roberto opened his first restaurant, Vigilucci’s Trattoria, in 1994 in downtown Encinitas. A surfer’s paradise steeped in rich history, at the time it was still blossoming into the busy collection of hip shops and restaurants is has become today. The Trattoria was an instant success and has since become one of San Diego’s most popular dining spots, offering a selection of authentic Italian dishes including pastas, savory veal, chicken, steak and seafood, along with an award-winning wine list and full bar.
In 1999, Vigilucci’s Cucina Italiana opened on historic State Street in Carlsbad Village. Following in the fashion of the Trattoria, the Cucina’s authentic Italian cuisine and award-winning wine list provide a unique and memorable escape to the flavors of the Tuscan countryside. Inside the restaurant, hardwood floors, lofted ceilings and a stunning mahogany bar offer a cozy dining experience – or al fresco dining makes for a romantic evening on the heated patio.
Roberto Vigilucci departed from traditional Italian cuisine in 2001 when he opened Robbie’s in the heart of laid-back Leucadia. Here, diners can enjoy unique California fusion cuisine and comfort foods along with forty-five microbrews, a full list of award-winning wines, and a full service bar. Additionally, Robbie's features the finest jazz and blues musicians in North County, favorite sporting events on a gallery of digital high definition widescreen televisions, and a champagne brunch buffet on Sunday. Reflecting the true spirit of Leucadia, Robbie's has become a destination restaurant with a true beach community feel long appreciated by locals.
Never satisfied, Vigilucci has since added Vigilucci's Seafood & Steakhouse—on the corner of Tamarack and Pacific Coast Highway overlooking the Pacific Ocean—to his portfolio of fine dining establishments. Conceptually the restaurant again strays slightly from authentic Italian dishes to feature only certified prime steaks and the freshest seafood, all with a signature Italian flair. With its exquisite atmosphere, 180-degree ocean and sunset views and consummate service, the Seafood & Steakhouse truly raises the bar for dining excellence in San Diego North.
In the summer of 2004, Vigilucci's Ristorante & Pizzeria opened adjacent to Robbie's in Leucadia. Featuring a floor to ceiling wood-fired pizza oven, private courtyard with serene fountain and an attached bungalow ideal for dinner parties with friends and family, ambience is a key component of this charming restaurant. Guests also enjoy Italian fare made with the freshest ingredients and direct access to Robbie’s nightly menu of live entertainment.
In 2006, Vigilucci’s added a sixth location to its family of fine restaurants – Vigilucci’s Osteria on quaint Mission Avenue in Oceanside. With the Osteria, Roberto Vigilucci saw an opportunity to pioneer a community that he believes is up-and-coming and destined to explode into the next cultural hotspot in North County. Much like he helped to lay the foundation of Encinitas with the opening of the Trattoria nearly 15 years ago, Vigilucci is leading the way for a quality dining scene in Oceanside.
Late 2007 will bring more excitement to Vigilucci’s Restaurant Group with the opening of the Seafood, Steak and Chop House in the heart of La Jolla. The restaurant will boast an elegant, yet casually upscale atmosphere where everyone is welcome. The lunch and dinner menu will serve the finest steaks, fresh seafood and pasta. Menu items will be prepared with an Italian flair, which will set the new restaurant apart from other fine steakhouses in the area. Patrons of the new Vigilucci’s Seafood, Steak and Chop House will enjoy a lively happy hour and ‘see and be seen’ bar environment where live music and DJs will be heard Thursday through Saturday after dinner service. The 5,000 square foot facility includes a private dining room and outdoor patio seating.
Vigilucci’s also offers full scale catering services and can provide fully customized menus for every occasion and group size. All of the six North County restaurants are equipped to accommodate parties and special events, or you can opt to have a classic Italian dinner delivered to your location.