Viviani, who lives in the Chicago area now but grew up in Florence, Italy, started working in a bakery when he was 11. He started his job not so much from a love of food but because his family needed the money. But labor developed into a passion. Now 28 years later, he’s amassed a food empire with two California vineyards, several cookbooks, stints on several "Top Chef" shows, restaurants, including two in Chicago — Siena Tavern and Prime & Provisions — and his Mercado eateries in Chicago, Tempe, Arizona, and Benton Harbor, Michigan.