Dolce Vita Cicchetti Wine Bar

Great atmosphere, service and food! Definitely go and check them out!

This is the 4^th time we’ve been here. It’s always great from the service to the wine, to the Food. It’s a hidden Gem. I really hate disclosing a place like this just for the fear of it getting over run with other people. Unfortunately I have to give credit when it’s due. Matt on the wine and Anthony in the kitchen. It all works very well. This will be a mainstay for us.

My cousins and I decided to try this place it it was awesome. The service was great and attentive. I tried their flight and they have really good wine and an awesome selection. Also, their pizza cones were a yummy and interesting experience! I will definitely come back soon.

I met a friend for sips & bites at Cicchetti, the wine bar, and the entire experience was great. The small plates we tried were excellent, and so was the service ~ helpful and attentive without hovering. I tried two of their house wines, which were very good. Two of the small plate highlights were Grilgliata Mista and Risotto ai Gamberi.
We got seated before the crush, and as the place filled the noise level rose to the point of needing to raise our voices to be heard across the table … but it was certainly a happy crowd.
I can «amen» the other highly positive reviews here !

This wonderful Fairfax, VA hotspot is a regular stop for good friends who live in the area. After thoroughly enjoying my first experience here with these friends, I will certainly visit on my regular business trips to the area. Food was excellent, extensive selection of top shelf liquor and wine, atmosphere is extremely comfortable, and the staff could not be anymore pleasant and accommodating. Definitely worth having this place on your restaurant rotation list for sure.

Pizza Cones. Did you know this place services pizza cones?
My friend and I came here for a happy hour after work and the house wines were weren’t bad. We ordered a 5 piece (type) cheese plate with 3 meats and two cheeses for $ 15. The amount that they give you was worth it! Before I left I ordered a pizza cone, unfortunately I didn’t eat it immediately since I was stuffed from the cheese tasting plate… so I only had it reheated the next day. Still good. I ordered the the margherita.
I’d go back for both the happy hour and the pizza cone!

Somewhat «local» to Fairfax but don’t go out that way very often. My friends and I wanted a change of scenery from our normal-​local joints and I saw some review for this place on Unilocal.Pizza cones sounded interesting so we took a drive out there. Once there I knew I’ve driven by it before but never thought it was a «wine bar» as it looks like a regular Italian restaurant from the outside. Anyway, we went in Saturday afternoon at 4:00, and what do you know… happy hour started at 4:00! Apparently they have happy hour every day, which rules. Many wines listed about 3:50 each, all drafts $ 3.50 (including microbrews), and some food is on HH too, including the Pizza Cone! I think they were $ 3.00 and .25 cents for whatever toppings you add. Let me tell you, this was delicious! We all got em! Different, and fun, and quite tasty. Bartender (s) were very friendly. They were doing a wine/​paring tasting around 5:00 and the place got very crowded. We didn’t do the tastings, maybe next time. Basically we had a great time and will definitely go back again.

I’ve been here twice and I love the service and wine selection! Both times I ordered the Calamari and a pizza cone, so I can’t say much on the food (but the menu is pretty extensive and I’d definitely like to branch out). The pizza cone can get pricey because they charge $.50 for each topping, but it’s such a unique way to have a slice of pizza that I’d definitely recommend it at least once; It’s always so delicious and cheesy when I get one. There is one waitress there that has served me both times and I don’t know her name, but she’s great at wine recommendations. The first time I had their pinot noir and the second time, the pinot grigio. It’s the listed one on the back of the menu and they’re both awesome. I’m definitely going to get a bottle of the pinot grigio next time.
Overall, I have had a great experience both times. Parking can get a little tricky and they were a bit confusing to find because they’re right next to a restaurant that has the same name. However, it’s worth your while for a little dinner date/​afternoon brunch.

Happy hour menu changed and prices have gone up. the wines I had the first time with the old menu was much better than the house wines on the new hh menu! The mushroom and sausage polenta was too salty, mussels were huge and the highlight of our entire meal, 3 skewers w couscous was good but was it worth the price of $ 12? I’m not sure since the portion was pretty small. The calamari was average nothing to rave about, the marinara sauce that came with it was way too sour.
I really wish the old hh came back! For marketing purposes’ the $ 2 dollars off is less appealing than the actual set in price on an actual happy menu… Even if it is same price.

The happy hour deal was pretty much 2 $ off certain food and drinks but because the prices were affordable to begin with, it was a great deal. it’s from 4pm-​7pm.
We had the meat and cheese platter (4 for 15 $ or 8 for 25 $), mussels and calamari. The food is okay, it was good for the price but nothing extraordinary. Good place if you want to just drink and eat small bites without spending too much

Love this place! The Dolce Vita restaurant next door has held a special place in my heart for the last few years, but Dolce Veloce Wine Bar is the more modern, fun, and elegant version that I much prefer! The manager mentioned that they are going to incorporate some of the dishes and style to the Vita restaurant side soon, too.
Happy Hour wine specials (4−7pm) are awesome! As little as $ 3/​glass. My favorite small plates are:
— Heirloom Tomato salad. AMAZING and so colorful *see pic*. They have a farm about 20 miles out where they pick the tomatoes fresh.
— Crab and corn fritters
— Pizza cones
— Seafood Risotto
— Pineapple sorbet for dessert — served in a real pineapple!
Free valet service in the evening is very convenient as the small parking lot can be a bit cumbersome to park when busy. Service is super attentive, friendly and quick to offer great suggestions. Great classy place for a light (or heavy) dinner of small plates and wine!

Absolutely amazing! The food, the service, everything. Highly recommend the pizza cones. Actually, I don’t think anything on the menu would disappoint.

We LOVE this place! The happy hour is amazing. I’ve never had bad food here. The servers are great at giving wine suggestions as well. Eat a pizza cone. You won’t regret it.

This place is soooo cute! I love their pizzacones which they offer on their happy hour menu for $ 3.50. They also have wine specials ranging from $ 3-​$ 5. It’s a small space with outside seating, but it’s a great relaxing place to be at. The waiters were nice and accommodated to our needs. We had a few unexpected friends come by so our table grew, but the waiters were great in putting together extra space for us.

Best happy hour in town. Great food and drink specials. The pizza cones are THE BEST!!!

happy hour review only — PIZZAPIZZA — cones! great service, delicious food, AWESOME happy hour prices! i haven’t been for dinner, but if their dinner is anything like their hh (4 – 7 which is great), i’ll definitely be back. Wines are very decent for the prices and all of the apps were tasty — only slight complain was that the sauage is a bit overly salty, but paired with the polenta, it was perfect. I’m already planning to go back for HH soon!

HH from 4−7pm.
$ 3.50 pizzacones and $ 3-​$ 5 wine specials.
Their floor to ceiling windows at the front definitely adds to the comfortable and warm ambience.
My gf and I were definitely the youngest customers there but we didn’t mind. :) There was some cigar/​wine/​whiskey tasting at the front patio and seemed like everyone was enjoying themselves.
I will definitely be back!

Stopped in at the tail end of happy hour. The server recommended the sausage and pesto pizza cone and arancini. Both were delicious! The Sangiovese and Verona were very good, too. Cute place and friendly staff. Definitely worth a try. I will be back.

After the Nats game Saturday, 4 of us came in to grab a bite and a glass of wine. It was a steady crowd, not too busy but a consistent group so each server had a few tables each. We were seated and given menus and ordered a round of waters… we all wanted wine but no one ever came back to ask; after waiting 10 minutes we debated heading somewhere else when our server came to take our food order, still no drinks and it was so rushed we decided just to skip the wine. We each ordered a couple dishes; the portion sizes were just right. I had the Umbria; piccante, fontina, and marinated peppers served on a baguette with a balsamic vinaigrette– it was tasty and filling but a bit too much vinaigrette. I also opted for one of the pizza cones I’ve heard so many great things about; I had bacon, cheese, and roasted red peppers– it was good but it was not as amazing as it was talked up to be. I really feel like we came on a miss night, although a Saturday evening at a wine bar sounds like the perfect time for me, I am definitely willing to give it another shot.

Very fun atmosphere — the pizza cones are as good as advertised — the calamari was lame but the shrimp with risotto and rice balls were fabulous!

So this was located right down the street from the hotel that I was staying at and didn’t look like much but had the advantage of being open late night so we went there for an 11:00 dinner. The selection of small portioned entrees were amazing and the service was quick. We shared a flatbread pizza and some zucchini rollatini. Both were equally good and they had a great selection of wine and even beer too!

Pros:
–Food– very delicious minus the rice balls, the sauce tasted funny (re: old), but the waitress claims the sauce was made that day, I sent it back regardless & I may have only done that twice in my life. The cheese was quite stinky in my eggplant penne but it tasted REALLY good. I know none of this sounds right, but just trust me. Now the pizza cone I ordered was the best thing all night. I had mine w/​pesto & onions. It’s $ 3.50 w/​just cheese and sauce and $ 0.25 for each additional topping. I think that’s a little too penny pitching on the restaurants part, they could just serve a few w/​diff topping combos @ a flat rate. My friend ordered the crabcake & arugula salad and it was REALLY good. Not too much breading at all. Everything was small tapas portions. Order 2 – 3 plates and you’ll be fine.
–Complimentary valet parking
–We ordered the prosecco & it definitely wasn’t needed, I could have just went there for the food and been happy, but seeing as how it was a wine bar I felt the internal pressure to conform.
–Atmosphere– perfect girls night location for lots of wine and good convo
Cons:
–Payment process– I came w/​2 friends and of course we were separating the checks, but the waitress gave us our checks all together. When we asked for separate checks she told us «you have to ask for that in the beginning,» then when we itemized the receipt she acted as if it wasn’t doable. They ended up doing that for us, but it was sloppy on her part, she should have asked us about payment beforehand if that were the case. She knew it was our first time there.
–The restaurants are connected (2 restaurants w/​similar names owned by the same people), but not really connected. Weirdest thing ever. I’m not sure if 1 is specifically for the wine bar and the other has the same food or what. I need to read the reviews for the other location. We walked into the other restaurant 1^st and learned from the hostess that we were in the wrong spot.
–Our waitress was giving me mixed vibes, one minute she was really friendly, the next she barely have us attention, and then she was short w/​us. It was very odd and we were there for 2.5hrs, so it was enough time to get a good vibe from her.
–Again, why are servers assuming I’m drinking Moscato!!!
Overall, it still deserves a 5 for the pizza cone, complimentary parking, and for being a nice hidden gem in Fairfax.

Took a friend here for lunch, and it was not crowded at all. The waiters were very polite and had excellent recommendations for wine (there was a whole wall display of many bottles so we were indecisive). We took our waiter’s recommendation for some white wine (forgot the name but it tasted great), and we ordered their pizza cones!
Their pizza cones were loaded with toppings and the cheese melted perfectly on the edges of the cone. The pricing for them was reasonable given the size of it too! One of my favorite local pizzas by far and I don’t understand how I haven’t heard of this place before! I rave about this to my friends all the time now.

Can’t say enough good things about this gem! We went for happy hour but the regular menu looks both delish and reasonably priced. We are definitely going back to try their risotto. Remember this is Italian tapas so ordering a few things is perfect for dinner.
Now for the happy hour — fantastic prices, fantastic food and yummy wine! You can get good wine for $ 3.75 a glass. We almost had one of everything from the happy hour food menu and those we didn’t try this time, we will next time.
We got a few things:
— a pizza cone with sausage and onion — never had or heard of one before this and now I’m hooked! It’s very cheesy, in the very best way and easier to eat than pizza slices.
— the calamari — I wish there were tentacles and less rings but it was still perfectly breaded and light.
— bruschetta — one of the better I’ve had and comes with a slice of melted mozz on top of each piece of toast (4).
— pasta formaggio — decadent and you can taste the truffle oil!
— Last were homemade chips — a good snack, very light and not greasy at all, a little bland though. Should add some seasonings to them and they’d be great.
The service was great, made us feel like part of the family. Very fast and attentive. I can’t wait to make this our weekly date night place!
The atmosphere is great too. We sat at one of the tables in the back near the wine wall. Good lighting for a wine bar. Not too noisy, was pretty busy but got a table easily. Parking was packed but they offered complimentary valet (went on a Friday night) — not sure if this is a normal thing or not.

Dolce Veloce is an AWESOME find!
I have been here twice now and I can say for certain it is going to become a bi-​weekly thing. For one, their happy hour specials are bomb! They go until 7 pm which is plenty of time to get there after work, and their appetizers/​small plates are almost half the price off the normal menu! Their service is fabulous, the entire wine bar is clean and cozy, their prices are moderate– and the happy hour prices are superb!- their food is served warm and artfully plated, no complaints whatsoever. (Maybe more parking. that seems to be an issue everywhere, ha!)
Also, their wine list is CRAZY extensive. Holy smokes, I could have studied it for hours.
I went here last night with one of my good friends and we had a great experience. We had a very attentive server, Trish– in fact, several different waiters/​waitresses checked on us throughout our visit to ask if we were done w/​our appetizer and if we wanted more wine– who was also kind enough to let my friend sample several of the reds before she made a decision. I started with a Prosecco and then moved to the Barbera D’Alba (red wine) and it was bomb. We shared the happy hour calamari & bruschetta– both to die for!
Dolce Veloce has gained another loyal customer; I definitely recommend this cozy wine bar for catching up with friends over a glass or 2 of the red stuff!

With all the previous good reviews, it’s hard to believe we went to the same place as our experience was far from stellar.
We went, unintentionally, during happy hour and sat at the bar. Husband and I were both quite hungry so we selected several different items from the menu which are all small plate dishes (think tapas). While very nicely presented, none of the food was anything special, most was flat out bland. (Food specifics to follow.)
AMBIANCE:
Nicely decorated, warm and quaint. Utterly ruined by the four televisions.
WINE:
We drank off the happy hour menu. I like red zinfandel and did enjoy their house version quite a lot. Husband had both the moltipuciano and Chianti, and was pleased with both. I also sampled their house cabernet and malbec, both of which were decent. All house wines seemed, to me, to be a good example of the type of wine without being any spectacular. Very drinkable, which is what a house wine should be, I think. My only complaint, really, ties directly into problems with service.
SERVICE:
Um… WTF. Husband’s main complaint was the two servers standing nearby having a personal conversation while we tried to get the bartender’s attention to order more wine. Both had helped at the bar briefly before, so it’s not like they were allowed back there to lend a hand, they just opted not to anymore. My complaint: okay, this is a WINE bar. When tasting wine, the class should be, at the very least, quickly rinsed out. My sample of malbec should absolutely NOT have been poured into the glass containing the last sip of zinfandel, and yet it was. The cab followed suit, with the bartender dumping the unwanted rest of the malbec but not rinsing the glass.
FOOD:
Pizza cone: we actually sent this back. Husband took a few bites, looked at me funny, and set it aside. I didn’t taste it as it didn’t look appealing to me; he said the crust had no taste at all and the inside was just a glob of (under seasoned) sauce and cheese.
Vegetariano «panini»: (Side note, if there’s only one, it’s a panino; this is a pet peeve of mine. I suppose since this one was cut in half, it could qualify as two, but still.) Bland bland bland. Top slice of bread, too thick and dry, bottom too thin and thus became soggy. Even a dash of salt or some garlic would have gone a long way.
Caprese salad: watery tomatoes, mozzarella had a riccotta-​like texture in the center.
Giardino: contrray to the menu, this was not served with «a variety» of breads, just one toasted-​cheesy kind of crustini-​ish stuff. Not bad, but nothing exciting. Again, no seasoning. Cracked pepper would have been nice and the dish needed more olives, IMO.
Arancini: the only non-​vegetarian dish we ordered (for me, husband is vegetarian) and I was utterly underwhelmed. I could see the meat mixed in with the risotto, but certainly couldn’t taste it. Nicely cooked rice, but bland breadcrumbs.
Rollatine di Zucchini: the best of the bunch, and actually fairly good. Simple, but tasty. Should have ordered more.
Torre di Mozzarella: this had the same roasted peppers and eggplant as in the other dishes and these, too, were under-​roasted. Better texture to the mozz than in the caprese, but still nothing special.
So, yeah, we won’t be coming back here.