Cellar 58

Well, I was going to try to make this my last post of 2012, but alas, procrastination is making it my first of 2013. Happy New Year! Cheers to procrastinating less.

On Friday, I went to Cellar 58 at 58 2^nd Ave in the East Village. It was a frigid walk from the subway, but the bar was warm and inviting. After I was greeted and seated, the bartender even shouted a hello to me. Very friendly!

The name doesn’t suggest it, but Cellar 58 features Italian wines. The menu listed wines from Italy first, then offered a small selection of wines from around the world. There was no bottle list provided, so either you have to ask for it or bottles are not an option here. Glasses of wine were $9 to $15, with the majority being right around $11. Not bad. I ordered the 2010 Negroamaro from Puglia, Italy. I had never heard of this grape variety before, so I had to do a little research. It’s grown only in Southern Italy and is considered one of Puglia’s best red wines. It had a flash of bay leaf at first sip, but it developed into an earthy and herbal flavor with a bing cherry finish. It smelled peppery and a little bit sweet, almost like a teriyaki. It was pretty unique and delicious.

The atmosphere at Cellar 58 is hard to describe. It’s laid back, but still maintains an air of sophistication, probably because of the nude murals on one of the walls. The room in the back of the bar looked really cool. All four walls, floor to ceiling, were covered with fully stocked wine racks and there was a large table in the center of the room, meant for a private party. It would feel like you were dining and drinking in my future someone’s personal cellar. Aside from that, the rest of the bar almost felt a little bit midtown-y and out of place in the East Village. I was expecting something a little more edgy and unique in this area. It just felt like something was missing that I couldn’t quite put my finger on. It doesn’t really seem like a destination, rather, it’s a place that you would probably wander by, look over the menu outside, then choose to go in. It seems a better fit for Hell's Kitchen than this neighborhood.

The service continued to be great – the waiter stopped by my table often, and when one of the other customers walked by my table nearly knocking over my glass of wine and successfully sending my napkin floating to the floor, another waiter quickly picked up the napkin and replaced it with a new one. They were on top of everything up until I finished my glass of wine. When I told them I was finished, it took a while for them to even consider asking me if I was ready for the check, so I sat there sipping on water for about 10 minutes. Perhaps the service comes to a screeching halt when they realize they won’t be getting a big tip from one glass of wine.

Cellar 58 has some good wines, but it still offered a pretty average wine bar experience. I give this place a rating of 3.4 out of 5 glasses.

Sorry, this was the best picture I could get of the cellar area in the back

If this doesn't shout "Italian wine bar", I don't know what does.

My glass of Negroamaro