On Friday night, I went to Aria at 117 Perry St in the West Village and I was delightfully surprised. After turning the corner onto Perry St, I came across some scaffolding that was covered with willow branches and lights, creating a cute wintry archway on the sidewalk. I then realized that Aria was hidden right behind this lovely little display.
The interior of Aria looks like a barn than was converted into a trendy wine bar. It has a wooden ceiling, complete with beams, original brick walls, and wide plank wooden floors. Little alcoves of seating are in each of the large windows, which I thought was quaint, and the large table in the center of the room with family style seating only adds to the farmstead feel. It combined this coziness with some modern elements like a white tiled bar and techno lounge music. It was the perfect mix of rustic, charming, trendy, and lively.
Most of the wines were Italian, with a small selection being from Spain, Germany, Argentina, and South Africa. Given the atmosphere, I was expecting the wines to start at $11 a glass or more, but I was quite pleased to see that glasses were between $6 and $12, which is incredibly well priced for the city. Bottles of these same wines, plus several that were not available by the glass, started at $35 and the most expensive was $98. Each wine had a brief description (in a very small font) of the flavors you could expect. The font was actually so small that it took me a few minutes to even notice that the descriptions were there. Or maybe I just need new glasses.
I ordered the 2011 Familia Cassone Malbec for a whopping $7. It was from Argentina, but the menu noted that it was a Spanish vine. Curious why they might have used vines from Spain, I researched the wine later, but couldn’t find any information regarding the vines used. Perhaps it was a menu typo? The wine was served in a juice glass rather than stemware, which is a first for any wine bar I’ve been to. Unfortunately, the stout glass prevented me from being able to get a good whiff of the wine, so all I could gather from its aroma was a little bit of strawberry. I took a sip and found that the wine was quite tasty! It had flavors of anise, black currant, and pomegranate and was nicely balanced. This Malbec was as enjoyable as it was inexpensive, although I definitely would suggest that they serve the wine in something a little less unusual.
The staff were all very nice and stopped by my table just often enough. The waiter came by as I was one sip away from finishing my glass and he asked if I would like a refill. Given the spectacular prices, I happily obliged.
Aria seemed to be a very popular place, as it was nearly full by 6pm. The crowd included groups of girlfriends, couples, and even a few solo drinkers, such as myself. It’s a great pre-dinner spot and the music will make you want to go out and rage for the rest of the night, so it’s a good thing Aria is located so close to the Meatpacking District.
Aria is a really, really fantastic wine bar with a cozy, but fun atmosphere and has quickly become one of my favorite wine bars in the city. The great service and their selection of affordable, tasty wines make this place all the more better. I give Aria a rating of 4.8 out of 5 glasses.
The prettiest scaffolding in NYC
The window seating
My oversized shotglass of wine
Getting busy!