Alex Piatt, 32, helms the kitchens at Sonoma Restaurant Group (SRG) as Executive Chef of Aria
Tuscan Grill and Cicchetti in Uptown Charlotte. He joined Aria in 2015 as Chef de Cuisine and
assumed the top role there in January 2018. He most recently spearheaded menu development at Cicchetti, a Venetian-style wine bar and small plates concept that opened in October 2019.

Prior to joining SRG, Alex honed his cooking and kitchen management skills at McCormick & Schmick’s restaurants in Charlotte and Raleigh, NC, from 2010 to 2015, rising through the ranks to become Executive Chef of the Raleigh location.

Alex is a 2010 graduate of Johnson & Wales University in Charlotte with a B.S. in Culinary Arts and Food Service Management. Alex oversees the Aria and Cicchetti kitchens and staff, as well as the restaurant group’s on- and off-site catering operation, which includes the exclusive catering service for the adjoining Founders Hall venue in the Bank of America Corporate Center.

When not running some of Charlotte’s busiest kitchens, the Apex, NC, native enjoys attending sporting events, particularly the Charlotte Hornets and Carolina Panthers. He also thrives on expanding his culinary knowledge and learning new skills pertinent to his role, such as making fresh pasta, hand-tossing pizza, and perfecting authentic Venetian cicchetti. His wife, Lauran, also works in the local restaurant industry; the couple welcomed their first child in 2019.