Culturally enriched dining takes on a new meaning with the opening of downtown Knoxville’s pan-Latin restaurant, Vida. Following its announcement last year, Vida opened its doors to the public on Jan. 12 inside the historic Holston Building at 531 S. Gay St.
Vida is the newest addition from Jim and Lori Klonaris, owners of Kefi and Cafe 4. This eclectic restaurant was created with the intention of bringing an elegant, adult-oriented dining experience to downtown Knoxville.
Vida features a modern and colorful theme, enriched with contemporary fixtures and original artwork throughout the restaurant. Shades of blue, meant to evoke sky and water, as well as other bright colors flow throughout the interior of the restaurant, creating a lively atmosphere.
The dining room includes a semi-circular bar and seating arrangements built for both comfort and intimate conversations. Much of the building’s original charm remains intact, including the original Art Deco touches in the interior as well as a lot of the original marble.
Vida’s menu features a unique mix of Latin tastes and textures infused with an Asian flare. Lori Klonaris spent more than six months creating the menu, which consists of recipes from seven Latin American countries.
Starters at Vida include things such as charred red salsa and smoked guacamole made tableside. Starters also include small plates such as house-made empanadas, panko fried shrimp, charred octopus, arepas and crispy potatoes topped with cotija and cilantro.
Larger dishes at Vida include grilled skewers with your choice of meat, barbacoa tacos, chicken tacos, pork belly tacos and four different types of ceviche made with fresh seafood.
Dishes made to share with the table include Peruvian roasted chicken and five-spice beef short ribs.
After dinner, Vida offers decadent desserts ranging from shortbread cookies with dulce de leche filling to guava filled fried wontons.
The overarching theme of the restaurant continues with traditional Latin cocktails such as the mojito, caipirinha, daiquiri and paloma. Customers are given the opportunity to add a housemade fruit nectar to one of these cocktails or turn them into a “lushie” (adult snow cone). Vida’s drink menu also offers handcrafted cocktails such as the Mexican Monk or Drunken Monkey for those looking for a unique taste.
Reservations at Vida are filling up fast so if you are looking to spend an evening at downtown Knoxville’s newest fine dining restaurant, it’s time to get your name on the list.
Carlyn Anderson 
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