Wine & Roses Wine Bar & Cafe

Manhattan upper west side - In my endless search for a great wine bar in NYC, I'm on the subway...oops I'm on the E, not the A or C that I want and end up in Queens.
OK after backtracking I finally end up at 72nd street exit in search of Wine & Roses Wine Bar & Cafe. A wine bar offering 24 wines by the glass, 100 by the bottle, but alas only 25 seats and someone is having a birthday party.

Need to grab a bite so a block north is Cafe Frida featuring contemporary Mexican. Nice place very authentic, but we'll be the judge after tasting the salsa and chips. Try the chile experience featuring several different chiles - roasted tomatillo & serrano, chipotle, chile de arbol, chile mulato, Xni pe habernero and smoked pasilla. Add in the Camarones Quesadilla with a Pacifica you're all set...the wine will have to wait a few minutes.

On the way back there is finally room at Wine & Roses and so we belly up to the bar to get a look at the menu. Like a lot of NY wine bars there are a lot of French, Spain and Chile choices, but very few from California. The choices are not a "Wow" and therefore I don't even remember the brand. Too bad I don't want to make that bad choice again.

But aside from the lack of California choices this looks like a great wine bar. I really liked the fact that the owner handed me a menu over the bar when just walking in the front door. The service and decor was top notch.

Plus guys - there were 3-4 girls for every guy in there. A little wine knowledge would go a long way in having a good evening.

It's a repeat, only because of the service and the promise that the wine list changes all the time.

Wine & Roses Wine Bar & Cafe - 286 Columbus Ave (212) 579- 9463
Take the A or C subway north to 72nd street one block west.

-Brian