North Park, San Diego

About a year ago, my best friend brought me to a new wine bar in San Diego’s North Park neighborhood called Splash. I do enjoy drinking wine very much, so when my friend described Splash as being a “self-serve” wine bar, I was quite intrigued. The moment I walked into Splash, I knew I was experiencing something very new, different and oh so sexy.

The idea at Splash is deliciously simple. You purchase a card and you use it to buy one ounce (or more) pours at the station. We got there during happy hour, so we purchased a $25 card for $20. I wandered around the machines with my card in hand, excitedly eying the wine descriptions and prices. Splash offer three wine stations with one ounce pours ranging from about $0.80-$7. I think I might have even seen an $11 pour; that must have been quite the bottle! Love the splash you got? Just put your card in twice and you get a two ounce pour.

Delicious Wine

White wine drinkers and those who appreciate sweeter wines can find a similar setup on the left-hand side of the bar, as well as an olive oil tasting setup. Yum!

I found Splash to be a wonderfully laid back way to experiment with new wines. You don’t have the pesky problem regular wine bars present, in which you wait for minutes at a time for a small pour, and then you have to wait again. Instead, you can go up, get your wine and go back to enjoy some delectable appetizers and fun conversation.

Alas, the one self-serve wine bar we had here in Atlanta closed recently. For whatever reasons, the idea has been a touch slow to catch on, though you can find self-serve wine bars in larger cities like LA, New York and Las Vegas. I suspect that, while the enomatic system is a fantastic idea, it can get a tad pricey, and in this economy, that’s not for the best. In any case, here’s a toast to this idea catching on!

Photos: Allan Ferguson, paulaloe

Had enough of the brightness and bustle of the Las Vegas Strip? Looking for a nice local hangout to grab a nice glass of wine or meet up with friends who live in town? Head to the western suburbs, just a block shy of the official border of Summerlin to The Grape Street Cafe and Wine Bar. Tucked into a strip mall a few doors down from a Gold’s Gym, you’ll find a cozy hideaway with indoor and shaded outdoor seating.

Yes, you can grab a table and have dinner, but I’d recommend hanging out with the friendly staff at the bar. They have a number of lovely wine flights sorted by variety as well as at least 75 options by the glass on any given night.If you’re a real wino, be sure to stop by on Mondays to take advantage of their half-priced bottles.

No fancy-shmancy electronic machines pouring wines by the ounce. If you want something you like, talk to the bar staff and they’ll point you in the right direction without smugness or superior airs.

Your best bet is to decide if you’d like to try one of their amazing starters (the crab-stuffed shrimp go great with a nice glass of Pinot Grigio) and then work your wine selection from there. Even if you opt for a heavier Merlot with a lighter appetizer, you’ll hardly go wrong.

This oasis is quite a distance from the strip, so if you’re cabbing it, prep yourself for an expensive fare and make arrangements for a pickup before your driver departs (the taxi’s don’t troll Vegas suburbs and won’t stop when hailed). If you’ve got a rental car at your disposal, be sure to rochambeau for a designated driver. It’ll be a bit of a drive back. That said, it’ll be well worth the trip.

Image courtesy of Grape Street Cafe.

Tucked away in a Boca Park in Las Vegas

Over the course of the past few years, wine bars have become all the rage in Las Vegas. The days wine enthusiasts huddled in expensive restaurants have been replaced by family-owned and franchised bars and shops with reasonably-priced flights, automated pours and decent appetizer specials.

If you’re looking for a nice family-owned experience, head to the west side of Las Vegas. You’ll stop just short of Summerlin at a high-end strip mall known by locals as Boca Park. Tucked into the northwest corner of West Charleston and Rampart, you’ll find Nora’s Wine Bar and Osteria.

A lovely glass of sangria at the bar.

The decor follows the standard for it’s type: Italian-themed with plaster walls and rich wood details. Young uniformed wait staff bustle quickly, but quietly through the space gracefully delivering cheese plates and fragrant pours. You have a semi-open view to the kitchen, which can be a bit noisy at times. However, you may be willing to forgive the din when you taste what arrives at your table.

Personally, I prefer the bar to the table. It’s a more social space where you feel more comfortable asking your neighbor what he or she has tried and recommends. Sitting at the bar also allows you easier access to their Enomatic wine serving system in which you purchase a prepaid card. You’ll insert the card into one of the stations (with 10-12 bottles at each station), select the variety of wine and the volume of pour you’d like to try. The more you try, the more you buy.

While this novelty is a nice way to have a “do-it-yourself” tasting experience, it can get spendy. Also consider that your palate’s probably going to get pretty fried after the third or fourth variety you’ve consumed, because (unlike a regular tasting party), you’re probably not spitting out and cleaning your tongue between glasses. You’re more likely savoring each drop (as you should, in my opinion), and, depending on your tolerance level and volume of pour, having a really good time along the way.

Nora's Enomatic Wine System

One thing these Enomatic systems are good for is to taste from bottles that you’d never have the testicular fortitiude to purchase. I mean, how many of us can afford to drop $80 on a bottle because a snooty guy with a french accent in a wine shop said it was his “best.” Here you can try a $20 glass and figure out if it’s worth that kind of investment.

When it comes to Nora’s, I’d recommend hanging with the sommelier. Yes, he or she will probably be younger than many of the bottles they pour from, but Nora’s is either hiring well or training them well. They know their stuff and can usually steer you right. So, don’t be intimidated. Tell them the flavors you like. Don’t worry about using the “right wine words.” They get it. And if you don’t like what they suggested, don’t be afraid to tell them.  They won’t take it personally and want you to enjoy your experience that evening.

Pictures by Nancy Syzdek.

Thanks to my blogging life, I’ve met quite a few interesting people over the years. Those interesting people have a penchant for visiting Vegas. So, when they do, I get the calls, emails and DM’s on Twitter asking for the best kept secrets in Vegas. If they’re the drinking kind (and they usually are), I send them to Firefly Tapas Bar over on Paradise just north of Flamingo Rd. It’s a straight shot on your way out of McCarran Airport (making it a great place to whet your whistle on your way in or out of town) and only a few blocks east of the Las Vegas Strip (a fairly short, relatively cheap taxi ride).

The patio's the place to be at Firefly.

When they get there, I tell them to try the sangria – red, white, the seasonal specialty – they’re all good. I tell them to try the tapas. They can’t go wrong with bacon-wrapped dates, the tuna tartare, and banana-nutella sandwiches. If the weather’s great, get there well before 5 to get a prime seat on the patio. If they’re looking for a more intimate environ, head to the lounge spaces in the middle section. If they’re in pack mode, the staff is happy to accomodate large groups in the main seating area, just off the bar.

This is a popular spot for the successful thirty- and forty-something-set with discerning palates and the time to be leisurely about their apres-work repast. By 7 p.m., the place is humming, so you’ll have to bring up the tone of your conversations a bit, but you’ll have a great time.

The staff is great here. They’ll walk you through the tapas menu and give you some great suggestions. If something isn’t to your liking, they’ll whisk it off (and from your bill usually) and swap it out with a better match.

Overall, Firefly is a great treasure in the middle of town. The next time you’re in the neighborhood, buzz by for a glass and a plate or two.

[Image by Nancy Syzdek]