F&F: Aria Wine Bar

August 3rd, 2010 by Dick Johnson

PX This presents THE F&F REVIEW

Hey, sorry we couldn’t make it to "Friends&Family," we were out of town/ had to work/ not invited. We’re really glad we finally managed to come by, though— it’s so nice to see you!
What’s that? You would still like us to take the time to fill out the F&F survey, because you’d love to take advantage of all our vast experience, knowledge, insight, and expertise as long as we’re already here? Because you invited 75 people to F&F, and afterward all you got was 41 "Congrats[es]!" 22 "Awesome[s]!" 3 "Ciao[s]!" and 9 "Best of luck[s]!" ?
Of course, we’d be honored. Oh ha, yesss, we’ll be honest— brutally honest even, ha ha! After all, that’s what friends & family are for!
No no please, don’t send anything more, we’re stuffed, we can’t breathe, you’ll have to roll us out of here, ha ha ha… !

 

Aria Wine Bar

What was your first impression?
Cute.

Please rate the Bar:
Fine. Spacious, welcoming, comfortable, clean. And the bartender is affable and enthusiastic enough, if not exactly meticulous.

Please rate the drinks/ cocktails/ wine:
Good. Decent assortment of wine, unless you take seriously into account the vintners "are all women" (their first names even appear on the list alongside the description of their offerings). Not quite sure how those women feel about their wines being served in rocks glasses, but I guess you’ll have to ask them. Drink prices by the glass are "tasting" size; bottle prices are fair-ish, all relatively square in the mid-range. A bit more diversity would have been nice (especially for a "wine bar"), but the good bones are there; maybe they’ll expand eventually.
The cocktail list (not on the menu but on the wall behind you) is all classics, but the execution is proficient.

Please rate the Dining Room:
Also cute. Imaginative and creative. Nice use of spare square footage. Cozy and casual but not cramped.

Please rate the BOH:
N/A; technically the BOH is in the FOH.
And uh, it’s… uh… "not a restaurant," remember? Definitely keep that in mind.

How was the staff?
Satisfactory. Both of them. Ha ha.

What did you eat?/ How was the food?
San Daniele with homemade breadsticks : OK. Personally, I’m not a particularly huge fan of the San Daniele, but it’s adequate enough. Great for nibbling/drinking.
Melanzane with Goat Cheese : Not bad. Is it made in a toaster oven? That would be kind of impressive I suppose.
Polpette : Uhh… yeah. This one needs a re-think. And they know why, come on now. If I say any more than that, I would need a consultation fee.
But just an illustration, I no longer have any confidence/interest in ordering the crab cakes or vegetable lasagna, both of which I had been considering. Next time (if there’s a next time), I’ll likely stick to the cheese and salumi.

What did you like?
The location. The ambience. And the wine (I tried four varietals) was pretty good.

What did you dislike?
Oi, those meatballs…

What was your last impression?
… and what’s with the music?

Would you come back?
Sigh. Maybe…

Thank you, and hope to see you soon!
Thanks and best of luck.

 

 

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