Another cart I use has a "catalog only" field. When set to "yes" users can view products, but the add to cart field is removed from all products.
 
This was extremely helpful when we had to take the site down for a fraud problem, but wanted to keep the pages accessible for customers and search engines.
 
I really can't believe Viart doesn't have something like this - this product is so far ahead of its competition in so many areas.

Have you tried appearance options in the Products Settings:
 
Hide 'Add to Cart' button:
- on products list page
- on product details page

tks monk just what we needed :)