A Guide to NYC Restaurants Selling Their Wine Cellars, from Rare to Glou-Glou

When the state shut down restaurants and bars to dine-in customers in March, some of the city’s top restaurants and bars started selling off their robust wine cellars — turning into de facto retail shops in order to make ends meet. For some wine lovers, the pivot means access to unique bottles that aren’t often found in retail shops, while the more casual wine consumer may simply enjoy the act of interacting with a sommelier from a favorite restaurant before choosing a bottle to drink at home. Here’s a guide to restaurants now selling bottles of wine, from cult favorite natural wine bars to a Michelin-starred restaurant with a selection of rare options from Italy and France.

By the bottle, both natural and conventional

Manhattan

Wildair and Contra: These Lower East Side sister restaurants have teamed up to form “Contrair,” a takeout and delivery service, including a curated selection of fun natural wines in the $20 to $60 range. All orders are conducted through Caviar.

The Ten Bells: Wines are grouped according to color on this downtown natural wine bar’s brand new e-commerce website, where all wines are under $40 and customers are prompted to select marinated olives or a charcuterie board upon checkout. All deliveries are done internally by the Ten Bells staff and extend to most of Manhattan and parts of Brooklyn and Queens. Deliveries are free and same day, if the order is placed by 3 p.m. For the Lower East Side, deliveries can be made same day if the order is placed by 5 p.m.

Air’s Champagne Parlor and Niche Niche: The uber-cool, celebratory Village spots from Ariel Arce are offering their wine and Champagne lists for delivery to anywhere in NYC, with fees ranging depending on distance. Check Instagram (Air’s here, Niche Niche here) for discounts and specials. Olives, charcuterie, and caviar are all available as accompanying snacks, and those can’t decide can do “wine roulette” with Arce and her staff.

Del Frisco’s: National steakhouse chain Del Frisco’s is offering 50 percent off select wines, going up to $400. Call or email for options. Delivery available.

Boucherie: This multi-location lower Manhattan bistro’s selections include French and New World classics under $70. All bottles are 50 percent off regular prices and available for pickup and delivery.

Vinatería: This Harlem Spanish restaurant and wine bar is offering its full list of Old World treasures for 20 percent off. Call or order online for pickup or delivery.

Bareburger: Burgers, fries, and beer might be the go-tos at Bareburger, but this citywide chain is also offering a small selection of wines, all under $22.

Lucciola: Upper West Side Italian restaurant Lucciola is offering bottles from its cellars with discounts of 35 percent off or more. Call (347) 536-1335 or email info@lucciolanyc.com to get a delivery. It’s also offering pasta and wine combo deals, starting with a pasta and bottle of wine for $39, plus a $5.99 delivery fee.

Louise Palmberg/Eater NY

Brooklyn

June: Alongside a revamped menu of provisions and pantry staples, this Cobble Hill natural wine bar has added an impressive selection of half off bottles to Caviar, including crowd favorite labels like Gut Oggau and Valentina Passalacqua. Bottles are available for delivery, as well as pickup from June, which is now a fully stocked wine shop.

The Four Horsemen: Natural and rare wine powerhouse the Four Horsemen is selling wine straight from its cellar. Buy four wines and get a 4H black or natural wine tote for 50 percent off. All purchases are scheduled; no contact pickup only. To inquire about wine that is not yet online, email justin@fourhorsemenbk.com.

St. Anselm: Cozy Williamsburg steakhouse St, Anselm is offering wine on Caviar to pair with its nearly nightly rotating food menus. A few of the bottles available for sale can be seen on the restaurant’s Instagram.

Sauvage: Like the Ten Bells, this lower Greenpoint bistro has completely upended its business model in real time. Now Sauvage Wine & Spirits, the restaurant is now a fully online wine shop offering no-contact pickup and free delivery. Sister restaurant Maison Premiere is also offering cocktails to-go.

Roberta’s: DIY pizzas, pasta kits, and natural wine are all available for takeout and local delivery from this Bushwick favorite. Call (718) 417-1118 to place wine orders.

James: This Prospect Heights restaurant is selling classic pairings to accompany its provisions menu. All bottles for $25 and can be ordered for takeout or delivery.

Rucola: Boerum Hill neighborhood favorite Rucola is now operating as an on-site wine shop, with a curated selection of natural wines available for pickup and delivery on Caviar.

Pies ‘n’ Thighs: A limited selection of house wines are available online from this beloved Brooklyn comfort food spot.

Ops: Bushwick neighborhood pizza restaurant Ops is offering a staff-curated selection of natural wines with purchase of house bread, as well as an option to add on a bag of flour or two. While the Caviar page doesn’t specify labels — only colors — customers are encouraged to input their preferences (eg: dry, funky, light, etc.).

Bar Tabac: This energetic Cobble Hill bar has a small selection of affordable wines available through Grubhub.

Al Di La: Bottles are 25 percent off at this Park Slope Northern Italian restaurant. The 20-plus year family owned Al Di La is offering pickup at the Carroll Street wine bar and cafe as well as delivery via Caviar.

Parkside: This Prospect Lefferts Gardens pizza restaurant has $15 bottles available for pickup and delivery. While on the Caviar page, don’t miss the lineup of to-go cocktails inspired by a certain Tiger King.

Hotel Delmano: The Williamsburg natural wine destination is selling its wine list at 50 percent off each weekend from 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays. Onsite pickup only. The updated list can be downloaded from Hotel Delmano’s website.

Queens

Keuka Kafe: One of the city’s greatest steals is this package deal from Forest Hills wine bar Keuka Kafe, which includes an appetizer, pizza, and bottle of wine for just $33. Delivery and pickup options are available on Instagram.

Sayra’s Wine Bar: Rockaway Beach’s first and only wine bar offers a selection of tapas-appropriate pairings, now at 5 percent off for six bottles and 10 percent off for a case. Call 1 (347) 727-7730‬ for takeout and delivery.

Gary He/Eater

Bottles, plus packages and subscriptions

Compagnie: Beyond offering 25 percent off bottles — with the exception of rare and auction labels — this French-heavy Soho wine bar has curated packages aplenty, ranging from $195 six-packs of “Supernatural” wines to a $3,995 “blue-chip collector” pack. More recently, Compagnie has broadened its selection to include more affordable $95 four-packs as well as a $75 CSA food and wine pack. Scheduled pickup and deliveries are available.

Rhodora: Fort Greene’s zero waste natural wine bar is offering 50 percent off regular bottle prices, available on Caviar for pickup and delivery. Rhodora has also launched a weekly wine club with two levels: the “starter pack,” which includes three wines at $60 a week, and the “wine college pack,” which includes three higher end wines, honing in on a specific producer, region, or grape for $120 a week.

Amelie Wine Bar: Bottles are 50 precent off from this pair of Upper West Side and West Village wine bars, where the classics reign supreme. Flight packages of three bottles selected by Amelie’s somms and grouped by themes such as “Dry, Oaky Red Wine” and “Mineral Whites” are available on Caviar for $60 to $70.

Hart’s: Sister restaurants Hart’s (Bed-Stuy), Cervo’s (LES), and the Fly (Bed-Stuy) are offering one-day sales on provisions, roasted chickens, wine, and batched cocktails. The team is opening up the Hart’s web store, which includes some very cool natural wines, sherries, and six-bottle wine packages, every Friday at noon, with contactless pickup available every Sunday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. The Fly and Cervo’s have their own one-day sales with pickups, with the online store at the Fly going live on Monday (with pickups on Wednesdays) and the store at Cervo’s going live on Thursday (with pickups on Saturday).

Casey Kelbaugh/Eater

Rare and high-end

Marea: Complementing a menu of lobster, burrata, and braised short ribs, this Michelin-starred Columbus Circle restaurant is offering a selection of rare and reserve Italian and French bottles for up to 25 precent off the list price.

L’Antagoniste: This Bed-Stuy French farm-to-table restaurant is offering a broad range of bottles to accompany its family dinner specials and a la carte menu. Wines are mostly classic French varietals with a few new world selections sprinkled in and range dramatically in price—from $20 bordeauxs to rare “Go Crazy” selections, including a $1,650 Romanée pinot noir. Pickup only.

Grape and Grain: East Village wine bar Grape and Grain might be a sustainable sushi pop-up now, but its entirely domestic selection of wines is still very much available online. Selections include a California Pet Nat, Riesling from the Finger Lakes, and even a couple of Texas wines.

Minetta Tavern: A New York classic and Washington Square Park mainstay, this member of the Keith McNally restaurant family is offering a small pickup menu of bottles ranging in price from $35 to $180. Delivery is also available through Caviar.

• Some of NYC’s Top Restaurant Wine Lists Are Turning Into Bottle Shops — for Now [ENY]

This list, originally published on Tuesday, April 7, 20202 at 10:08 a.m., has been updated to reflect new options and information.

Leah Rosenzweig writes about wine, cultural history, and books in Brooklyn, New York.