Category Archive
The following is a list of all entries from the Wine bar category.
Date Night Dilemma? Head Over To Cellar 58
courtesy of cellar58.com
Night out with the girls? Night out with the guys and looking for girls? Date night? Then why not take a walk over to Cellar 58 for some romantic lighting, tasty wines and small plates. The best part? Affordable prices too.
Cellar 58 is a lovely wine bar that has been around for less than a year. Wine enthusiasts will have a ball here since they have a selection of over 150 wines from all over the world. Craving a merlot from Bulgaria, maybe a viognier from South Africa? You’ll find it here, and prices by the glass start at just $6. It’s great for all budgets. After sampling a red, white and sparkling white, I was pleasantly pleased with the quality of all the wines, especially when I got the check.
Stay away from their pizza. Think Ellio’s. However, their cheeses are quite delicious and are accompanied with delicious marmalade type sides to pair with them. The triple cream cheese melts in your mouth, as it should. Their blue is fantastic, not too strong and so flavorful still. The brie? Hi, I love you, want to spend the night with me? Cheese plates start at 3 for $9.90 and a fantastic assortment of 9 costs an extremely reasonable $23.90. The presentation is so much fun too.
If you are a fan of desserts, don’t leave without trying their napoleon. It’s messy, not too sweet and fantastic. So fantastic, we ordered a second one for the table. The flaky puff pastry has light whipped pastry cream oozing out from all sides and had me wondering if there was a way I could lick the plate clean without looking too trashy. Sadly, I didn’t find a way.
7 out of 10
Cellar 58
58 2nd Ave, New York NY10003
-Juice
Not Memorable, But Still Cute: Felice Wine Bar
courtesy felicewinebar.com
A friend of mine and I had some time before a baking lesson I was giving him and since we were starving, we decided to pop in somewhere and grab a quick bite to eat. We walked by Felice Wine Bar and it looked so cute we had to stop in. Wine bottles line the walls, sleek and innovative lighting fixtures hang from the ceilings and the back bar was just adorable. We ordered a bottle of white wine, at the waitress’s choosing. I wish I could remember what it was, but I’m not a huge wine drinker (I think my body is becoming allergic to it as I get older) and to me it just tasted ok, but don’t ask me to judge wine. I can’t talk about legs and grapes, I can only tell you if I like it or not.
I went with the pappardelle with veal ragu and my friend ordered the pan seared filet mignon with rosemary potatoes. My pasta was disappointing. I love, love pappardelle. LOVE it! I can eat it all day long. While there was nothing wrong with my pasta, I had just expected it to taste better. I expected there to be more to the dish, flavor wise, but I basically polished off my bowl simply because I was hungry. It’s not a dish I would order again if I were to go back. I understand that just, this was a simple dish with a simple sauce, so why should I expect so much out of it, but if you read my review of Scarpetta, you will see that I expect even more out of simple dishes because basic ingredients can taste so good! Mmmm, Scarpetta. My friend’s dish was pretty good though. Basic, but tasty. I always think that good steaks don’t need anything but salt and pepper, and this was the case with this steak. I wish I had ordered that instead of the pasta. Though, in my defense, I was thinking an Italian restaurant would have better pasta. Live and learn right?
Cute atmosphere, decent food.
6.5 out of 10
400 East 64th Street
New York, NY 10065-7868
(212) 593-2223
-Juice
A Cheese, Chocolate and Wine Bar? Oh My!
Courtesy of ayzanyc.com
This is one of those places, that while the prepared food isn’t worth eating, it’s still a fabulous venue to go to. Ayza is a brilliant concept. It is a chocolate, cheese and wine bar that also has a lunch and dinner menu. The problem is the lunch and dinner menu. My date and I ate the following dishes that night:
Asian steak tartare
Grilled octopus salad
Beef carpaccio
Pasta with basil, marinara and mozzarella
All were incredibly mediocre. Nothing was awful, but everything was just average if even. Even when I saw my pasta, the first thought that came to mind was Chef Boyardee. The steak tartare was a disappointment. The carpaccio had too much greens compared to the amount of parmesan that was shaved on, which led to the dish tasting under seasoned. The grilled octopus salad was good, but not really anything to write home about. I had to ask for salt and pepper as there was none on the table. I feel like restaurants who don’t offer condiments at the table are very confident about their food. In this case, Ayza should definitely take their confidence down a notch.
One more sad dish was the moist dark chocolate cake. I never ever send food back, but this needed to go back. A very bland dessert, I would have been happier with a Hostess cupcake. BUT! Onto the good parts of Ayza.
It would have been a fantastic experience if we didn’t have our dinner there. Our drinks were wonderful! My date had a pinot noir, I chose the ‘Is Paris Burning’ martini, made from Remy Martin VSOP and raspberry liquor. The cheeses were delicious and the chocolates from Jacques Torres are always a good choice. The bar itself is very tiny, but cute and they provide a heated outside area to sit in. I would definitely go back and order anything the kitchen doesn’t have to cook themselves.
One more puzzling thing…aside from the Jacque Torres chocolates there are actual desserts, like the cake I ordered. When the waitress saw how much I really didn’t like it, she suggested their best dessert, the 20 layer crepe cake. My first thought…as this is a chocolate bar…shouldn’t your best dessert contain chocolate?
6 out of 10
-Juice
Ayza Wine and Chocolate Bar
11 W 31st St, New York 10001
(Btwn 5th Ave & Broadway)
(212) 714-2992
Please Feed Me 