Ayza Chocolate & Wine Bar

friendliest staff ever. When we arrived the man at the door greeted us immediately and our waitress was a total sweetheart. The manager came over to the table to recommend wines and the service was great throughout. We had delicious food too, a very great meal. I will definitely go back some time very soon.

Pros: staff,food,

Posted 11/18/09

Came here on a date The guy turned out to be a dud but the restaurant saved it. It?s in a weird location but I love the atmospher and the food?s really good too. We each did our own dinners but it would be a great place to share a bunch of things as well. I saw a couple tables doing that and can't wait to go back with someone I actually like, since it seems quite romantic

Posted 11/17/09

They have a fantastic selection of wine, but the food stands out even more in my opinion. And the staff is so ridiculously nice. Plus, it?s really romantic so it?s a great place to take a date - you can share some small plates and then do the whole chocolate thing.. I took a girl here the other night and I think she was rather impressed.

Pros: ambiance,food,staff

Posted 11/14/09

A self-proclaimed chocolate fanatic I was so excited to find a wine bar that combines chocolate with my other favorite thing - wine. Ayzy has delicious truffles from Jacque Torres, and paires them with great wines. All this and great food to boot. Plus a really romantic date spot or great for a night out with the girrls - we love doing dinner here because we can share a bunch of stuff.

Pros: wine list,service,food

Posted 11/13/09

There aren't many places to do lunh in this area, but Ayza sure beats all the cafeteria style places around. They are friendly and fast and the food is excellent. I love their BBQ panini and could eat it everyday if you let me, though sometimes i just like to do a big bowl of soup too.

Pros: food,quick

Posted 11/09/09

I went for the first time last Friday night and it was packed. I wasn't excited about waiting for a table but it ended up being worth it. We stood at the bar (people were eating dinner there too) and had some drinks and then they managed to seat us pretty quickly. The wine list is great and the menu has a little bit of everything. We had a great dinner and then we had some amazing crepe something or other though it looked more like a cake than a crepe, for dessert. It was the waitress recommendation and a good one!

Posted 11/06/09

I love their hummus and their trufle pizza and they have great soups that change seasonally. I come with friends and we get a bunch of things to share for dinner tapas style. THen we'll do flights and everyone shares the wine too. THe wine list is great and everything we've had we love. Staff is super friendly and knowledsgable and atmosphere is cool yet relaxed. I love the Monday jazz thing they have going on too.

Pros: staff,ambiance,food and wine

Posted 11/03/09

We only had cosmo's and raspberry chocolate martinis. w/ the the truffles..
I am still Craving their chocolateraspberry martinis,
you have to try them! and they are not to strong, but
oh, to die for!!!

Pros: choc. raspberry martinis

Cons: ?

Posted 11/03/09

It?s in sort of a strange neighborhood so when my friend told me where to meet her I wasn't all that excited, but then I got there and realized how cool the space is. Really modern and sleek.The wine was great and we had this mushroom pita thing and some hummus and both really blew us away. The staff is very nice and the chocolates are great. For dinner my friend had the chicken which was a little o the dry side but my pasta was amazing. I'll definitely by going back.

Posted 10/30/09

Ok, at the risk of sounding pathetic, I'm going to admite that I come here for dinner around once a week, sometimes even more. I am addicted to their truffle pizza, and I love the seasonal soups. Plus, it's just a great atmosphere. It started with stopping in for a glass of wine every now and then, but the smells always get to me, and so it always ends up becoming more. Not the worst habit to have I guess..

Pros: ambiance,truffle pizza

Posted 10/28/09

Gorgeous wine bar in Murray Hill. Love going on Monday nights for light dinner and live music. Don't find deals like that in most places in the city, especially not with a sleek atmosphere like this one. We had such a great time and the food was awesome too. Very nice patio - get there while the weather is still nice enough to enjoy it

Pros: live music,food,service,wine

Posted 10/25/09

Excellent food, great wine, yummy chocolate. I was with my mom and she loved it, though the music was a little loud. They turned it down but then at one point it seemed to go right back up again. No matter, though - we both really enjoyed our dinners and I'd certainly go back there.

Pros: wine list,service,food

Cons: loud music

Posted 10/07/09

I came here on a first date with this guy and it was actually the best part of the date! I ended up not liking the guy, but found a new great wine bar so it wasn't all a wash. It was crowded when we got there and it was a little chilly, but the waitress said that when the weather is nice the patio's great. She was a real sweetheart and I had more fun talking to her than my date. Anyway, they've got great food, and then there are the chocolates, which are just so great. I had a yummy saladand and we shared some cheese (which was amusing because the guy complained about all of them and how small it was). The server gave us great recommendations about everything. We had a couple glases of the wines by the glass, which were quite good but my date was one of those wine snobs and he complained that it wasn?t quite right but I thought it was fabulous. After dinner we had chocolate martinis (I needed the extra alcohol!) which were truly delicious, and the chocolates that went along with them -- holed the phone! I wanted dessert but the dude didn't so I'll be going back without the stick in the mud!

Posted 10/02/09

I'm a bit obsessed. I dream about wine and chocolate - I think I may have dreamed this place long before it was ever in existence. But them it goes beyond my dreams. I just feel uopn it one cday walking around the neighborhood and had to stop in immediately even though I wasn't at all hungry. I had a glass of wine and these to-die-for handmade chocolates. Then I just had to have a little food. They have a great selection of cheeses (all from Murray?s which makes them even better) and I had this gazpacho which was just light and fresh and delicous. and then I had more chocolates. I'm a glutton, I know. but I couldn't help it. The staff is really friendly, and the rest of the food is great. I love sitting out on the patio.I feel like I could eat there every day and never get sick of it.

Pros: FOOD,wine

Posted 09/30/09

I had gazpacho again, and a mini panini - the veggie is quite good. The people are really nice too, though the one at lunch was a little less friendly -- she seemed a little stressed though -- theywere packed and of course most people are in a rush. Anyway, I'm a big big fan!

Posted 09/28/09

My freind took me there for my birthday and I really liked it. I just love the whole wine and chocolate concept. Of course they have cheese too -- from Murray's so you know it has to be good, but wine and cheese is played out so the idea of the wine and chocolate is great. It?s the type of place where you go and you just enjoy several courses.

Pros: wine list,food,pr

Cons: slow service

Posted 09/25/09

All I can say is thank you Ayza. Thank you for being amazing and a great wine bar in a city of lot of wine bars that all start looking the same You are not the same. You are a little bit of everything. There are small plates that bounce from Asian shrimp dumplings to the most delicious hummus I've ever tasted. And it doesn't matter because the focus is on the wine. The wine and the chocolate, which is phenomenal BTW. I'm not usually a fan of sweet wines, but they have this white port that's so good -- and the whole thing is just luxe and lovely -- it's cool but friendly and the outdoor patio is a key -- and amazing spect since lots of wine bars are a bit sitfiling. I will definitely be back here again and again.

Pros: wine list,service,food

Posted 09/24/09

The whole wine and chocolate concept is really a great one. It?s what drew me in, but what will keep me coming back is the romantic atmosphere and the real comfortable feel. I love the outdoor patio and the swanky inside. The waitress messed up our order but she was able to fix it really quickly and the owner came over to apologize for it and offer us a free dessert. It was nice that they went to all that trouble and made the screwup really seem like nothing. The food was excellent though they wouldn?t let me change my sandwich which I found a little annoying

Posted 09/22/09

The staff are very friendly, though our waitress was a little slow. I think she might have been new, because every time we asked a question she hesitated, and often had to go back and ask the kitchen. (My friend has diet restrications and has to be careful about what she eats). The food was very good, though -- my friend had the gazpacho which we both became obsessed with and I had the BBQ panini which was also delicious. We got the handmade chocolates for dessert because the manager (who stopped by and checked on us, which was nice) said they were new and they were really good.

Posted 09/18/09

It doesn't get much better than this. Wine AND chocolate? I'm sold -- it's like thi place was made with me in mind. Plus it's just this great space and the people are friendly and the food is great. They have this really cool space that's totally urban chic, with the steel and wood and all the wine showing upstairs.

Pros: food,service,ambiance

Posted 09/16/09

A friend had her birthday party there and it was the perfect place for a girls' night out. We drank a lot of wine and gabbed and ate a lot of yummy food and then we got to wash it all down with some delicious handmade chocolates! Could you say lovely night? I think sso. Plus we had almost the whole patio to ourselves. It wasn't the perfect night for patio sitting which meant that we were the only ones cray enough to do it -- and a few others, but we basically had it all. Which was lovely. The whole wine and chocolate concept is brilliant. The setting is cool but very romantic too (it's a great date spot). And did I mention there are handmade chocolates?

Posted 09/13/09

It?s the best wine bar in New York in my opinion. The only problem was that the music was really loud the night I was there, but they turned it down when we asked them too. Anyways the steak I got was really good though I would have liked to have more of it. My lady was happy and we really enjoyed ourselves. the wine list is great and the design is cool. We got this truffle pizza to start and it was great. I'd eat that as a meal if it were bigger. We had like a really long meal but they didn't rush us, and let us order in a bunch of courses which was cool It can get a little pricey though. When we go again we'll have to be more careful but the other night we went a little crazy with the ordering. All so good though. And of course the desserts are great. They've got these homemade chocolates that are really nce.

Posted 09/11/09

We sat outside and had drinks and it was fantastic. Great wine list, and we were even able to order a reasonably priced bottle of champagne to do a little toast. It?s great for a group because there are a ton of options for wine and food. The watiress was good about keeping track of everyone, even though there were 10 of us. We ordered several appetizers and loved them all. The only problem was that they were pretty small, but I guess it meant we got to try a lot.

Pros: wine list,service,food

Cons: small

Posted 09/10/09

A few months ago my friend picked this wine bar and we were hooked. Not we do Ayza more often than any other of the staple restaurants. It's just so Yummy! We always order a bottle of wine and start of with cheese and some appetiers, and by now we've tried just about everything on the menu. Their tet du moine cheese is amazing -- I think we are all addicted. and I love the caprese bites, but then there are these great desserts, that we're obsessed with.

Posted 09/09/09

I actually had two meals there in one night. We had dinner and then got a bottle of wine, then felt like eating again. The staff was super nice about how long we stayed, even joking with us by the end.We each had flights with dinner and chocolate martinis with dessert, and then we wanted more wine. (decadent, I know) They have this chocolate cake that is just tres tres chic and it required a bit of wine. Then half way through the bottle we decided a truffle pizza at another table smelled good, so we got that and the shrimp dumplings, both delish! I bet they were ready to see us go but they were so nice.

Posted 09/06/09

I've only been to Ayza once and already it's climb to the top of my list for go-to restaurants. I love that it's not just a wine bar bt a wine and chocolate bar. Only in New York, right? They?re always playing fun music, though I think they might just loop the CD! I love to sit outside with a glass of wine and a plate of cheese. Their menu is really diverse, and there are a lot of good options for me and I'm a vegetarian. I like that they have a little bit of everything.

Pros: food,ambiance,wine list

Posted 09/06/09

I love that they got the whole New York thing going on: Jacque Torres, Murray?s cheese, Lady M? three great NYC places and its great to draw on that. Then they add there own little spins, such as a divers menu with everything from Asian to French (though it's mostly Mediterranean). They've even got a BBQ panini (which is great BTW). The owners are Turkish and you can definitely sense their influence with things like hummus -- some of the best I've had . I live nearby so I like to stop in oir sometimes I'll order food for pick up on the way home from work.

Pros: food,w?ne

Posted 08/30/09

I love wine and I love chocolate, so it was only natural that I would love this place. And love I did! For one, The concept: brilliant, the design: lovely, the food: scrumptious! That's to sy nothing of the huge wine list, which is fab, and the chocolate, well, don?t even get me started on the chocolate. First, you've got Jaques Torres premier truffle maker - gorgeous and tasty little morsels. But now thyey have handmade truffles that are even more amazing, if that's possible I've been a couple times now, and each time is better than the last; cheese plates are a grat app, salads are refreshing, entrees llovely and the atmosphere is so hip and swank, for the area, and just in general. Love sitting outside with a cool wine in the summertime, though inside is equally cozy in the winter.

Posted 08/23/09

I?m newly obsessed with this place! Stopped in for a drink and liked it so much we stayed for dinner. Amazing Gazpaho, and my friend had the asparagus soup which was really nice as well (don't ask me why we both had soup - we were laughing about it! The white chocolate truffle was great -- so were all the rest, but that was my fave. It got packed whiel we were there And then the other day I went back for lunch and I think it's my new go to We sat outside and It was really nice ? the patio is great and they do a cheap fast lunch.

Posted 08/16/09

This is a great romantic place. I took a first date here and she loved it -- she's now my girlfriend and I swear the place had something to do with it. We jut loved it, and bonded over shared plates and chocolates, and lots and lots of wine. We started in at the bar because it was crowded and then they seated us insidel but we waned to sit outside and the waitress was super cool.

Pros: romantic,ambiance

Posted 08/14/09

I had to stop When I passed because the name called to me -- I loved the sound of a wine and chocolate bar. I just stopped for a glass of wine and tried a handmade chocolates, unbelievable. Then I went back a few days later and had an acutal dinner with a friend. My friend was so impressed by my find. We had a little corner table undr a red umbrella on the patio and our waitress was really nice and helped us pick out cheese and wine. We loved our wines and the cheeses the waitress picked were great, and served in the most stunning manner. The hummus was amazing, as was the gazpacho, and my friend had a really lovely salad too. The waitress said the desserts are great, so we tried this crepe concoction that was out of this world. I'll definitely be back.

Pros: service,food,wine and chocolate

Posted 08/12/09

It was a shame because the ambiance is really cool but the blaring music made it a little less so. And the service wasn't as great as I'd expected. It wasn't terrible, but our server was a little dull. She didn't seem to know much about the menu either. Still the food and the great wine list made up for everything else. I was there with some girlfriends and sicne there are only a few four entrees we were able to get one of each and share them all. The chicken was a little bit dry for my tastes, but the bass was awesome and the seafood pasta was great too. I think my favorite was the filet though. So much flavor and yet really pretty light. So I will definitely be going back. The chocolates were too small to split between four people but we ended up getting 2 of each of the ones we wanted which worked out wel. My personal favorite was the passion fruit one, but everyone seemed to like something different. The chocolate martinis are yummy as well.

Pros: food,romantic

Cons: service

Posted 08/09/09

I brought my gf for a date recently and we had a nice dinner. The cheese plate is a must order, but their hummus is great too. Pretty much you can?t go wrong with anything on the menu. Though when my gf and I were there we had the souffl? for dessert. It came out not heated all the way through, but we told the waitress and she immeditably took care of it. She was apologetcic and fixed the problem pretty quickly.

Pros: food,design,service

Posted 07/29/09

I have been coming to Ayza since it first opened up and absolutely love the place. There is an amazing staff, great food, great wine, great music, and the location is perfect. The best part about the place is their service. You will never find such an attentive staff. The owners are always there to greet you and treat everyone who comes like they are guests in their own home.

Pros: great food, wine, and service

Cons: none

Posted 06/30/09

Wow. Good service. Good wine. Good cheese. And chocolate? Did someone just plop heaven down in Herald Square? Absolutely unbelieveable. Then there is the ambiance, which is uber chic though the outside is really the place to be -- so fun for summer evenings. I loved everything I ate. We went for just a drink and ended up ordering some cheese at the bar. Then we were chatting with the bartender, who convinced us to try the white bean spread, and then we moved to a table and wound up getting dinner. My waitress so nice and knew so much about the menu. Our bill was massive but that was only because we ordered a lot. In fact, for what we got, it was cheap. They have this great Mediterranean salad and their filet is fabulous, done really really well. My friend had the seafood pasteravioli and loved that too. At dessert the waitress recommended the motlen cake but of course we wanted to try the chocolates too, so we did a little of both. I have to say the chocolates were good but the cake was probably the way to go! By the time we were ready to leave we'd been there so long they were treating us like family. So fun I can't wait to go back and try other tings on the menu.

Pros: food,desert;service

Posted 06/27/09

All I can say is thank you Ayza. Thank you for being amazing and a great wine bar in a city of lot of wine bars that all start looking the same You are not the same. You are a little bit of everything. There are small plates that bounce from Asian shrimp dumplings to the most delicious hummus I've ever tasted. And it doesn't matter because the focus is on the wine. The wine and the chocolate, which is phenomenal BTW. I'm not usually a fan of sweet wines, but they have this white port that's so good -- and the whole thing is just luxe and lovely -- it's cool but friendly and the outdoor patio is a key -- and amazing spect since lots of wine bars are a bit sitfiling. I will definitely be back here again and again.

Posted 05/28/09

I?m newly obsessed with this place. I discovered it walking to the subway from work one day and was intrigued by the name at first. I stopped in just to see and ended up deciding to stay for a glass of wine, The gal behind the bar was super sweet and chatty and a glass turned into trying an appetizer -- this white bean spread that she recommended, saying it was new on the menu. And then that was so good I decided to try one of their salads too. I got this goat cheese salad that was simply dlish. They brulee the goat cheese so its crispy and sweet and just unbelievable. Anyways, then of course I had to try the chochlates too -- they have Jacques Torres but they also do handmade chocolates, which are to die for, so basically my "stop in to get a menu" turned into a whole evening. But such a good one. Now I want to go back and take my girlfriend. It's got a really romantic vibe and I know she's going to love it. I think it's going to be my ne go to place.

Posted 05/20/09

Romantic dining at a good price is so hard to find in New York, but this wine bar seems really resonably priced for all that it offers. I wouldn't call Ayza cheap, but it's certainly not expensive either, espeically given the atmosphers, excellent service, and fantastic food. I came here with coworkers one night and liked it so much that when I took a date a couple weeks later. She loved it, the whole wine/chocolate combo, and it was a nice night so we got to sit outside on the patio, which is nice as well. It's a pretty romantic place, and the fact that there are so many small plates for sharing helps up the romantic ante as well. We shared this white bean spread that was phenomenal and so unique and then we had shrimp dumplings too -- I'd go back just for them. The only drawback was that they wouldn't let me make a reservation so we had to wait a while, but that meant a glass of wine at the bar to get the night going, which was actually a really nice extra. In all a very nice experience.

Pros: price,food

Posted 05/11/09

Here's a thought: if you're going to have a restaurant, have some of the food on the menu. They were out of the panini I wanted and when I ordered another they were out of that too. Finally on try three I got something they had, but then they were out of the chocolates I wanted too. Not a great way to run a restaurant. The service was ok, but th waitress was a little dense and got all fidgety about not having anything. I know it's not her fault, but she acted so strange about it.

Pros: food,chocolate

Cons: waitress

Posted 05/05/09

I started a new job and was hating my neighborhood, but one day a coworker took me here for lunch and I liked it a lot. The food is good and pretty inexpensive and the service at lunch is really quick. In the evenings it's a bit of a different crowd, definitely trying to be cooler than it should given the location, but in all, I think it's nice and I like the vibe. And the food, of course is very good. I like the fixed price lunch because you get a little bit of everything an it's reasonably priced. The paninis are great, though it's annoying that they won't let you alter them at all. I don't like mayo so there are only a few sandwiches I can get. I guess it has to do with a speed thing though.

Pros: food,ambiance,fixed price lunch

Posted 05/04/09

I've never been too much of a chocolate person, but I do like wine, and now I think I like wine and chocolate together. It gives a whole different taste to it. Ayza has a good selection of wines by the glass and a large wine list, though I still wish they'd expand their wines by the bottle lists. I like pairing wine with the chocolate though I think their pairings are a little off. I know they have to offer sweet wines, but since they are a wine bar, they should have more non-sweet wines that pair with the chocolates. Sure, you can make it up youselfe but that's less fun. I like a nice spicey red (their Corvina is great) with the choc. Not everyone likes sweet wines -- in fact, in my experience few do, so they should know that since they know wines. Regardless though, it's a fun concept and it's given me a new appreciateion for chocalate. And BBQ, because their pulled pork sandwish is awesome.

Pros: chocolate and wine

Posted 05/03/09

The neighborhood is not so exciting, which makes it even nicer that this fabulous wine bar has graced its streets. It makes Herald Square a lot mre likeable to know that this is nearby. I'd venutre to call it one of New York City's best wine bars (given the amount of wine bars in New York that's a pretty huge thing to saw). Their outdoor seating is great because you don't feel like you're right on the street and it's got a great vibe. The oversized red umbrellas are fun though, and the steel tables are nice and fun. In terms of food, it's a sort of a fusion of all things, but mostly Mediterranean food. There are a few Asian dishes though -- the chicken skewers are fantastic! -- and pretty much everything on the menu is really good. I've been a few times and have tried a lot of the items -- the small appetizer portions make it easy to do a sharing sort of thing. The latest I've noticed is this white bean spread that I really really like. Then of course there are the chocolates, though I'd recommened going for one of the desserts instead. A lot of them come from Lady M and one is better than the next. The crepe cake and the tartufo are both high on my list. I just wish it were bigger there is always a wait now.

Pros: food

Posted 05/03/09

My friend and I had tix to a show at Madison Square Garden and were sick of the usual fare over there -- which is pretty limited to things like TGI Fridays. Anyways, he found this place on yelp and we figured we'd try it out. I was worried that it might be more of a chick bar, I mean, wine and chocolates? And sure enough, it was full of ladies -- we may have been the only dudes in the place, but that wasactually a-ok. The food was pretty solid, though I'd say it was a little on the pricey side, and the poritions, were kinda small. Anyway, it was good for a nice splurge, and we had paninis were wheren't that expensive. They have beer too so you're not limited to just wine. I took my gf back one night and she was over the moon. Romantic, chocolate... She couldn't have been happier. She's already planning a trip there with her girlfriends.

Pros: wine,romantic

Cons: small plates

Posted 05/01/09

My girlfriend suggested Ayza for my Birthday. We went there for a drink and to try out a nice wine bar in the city. We sat outdoors under the huge red umbrellas. It gave us a very private and tropical feel....
We had such great time sipping on our Kir Royales we didn't notice it began to drizzle... Ayza is a nice place to come with a date to have a glass of wine or to sample chocolate. The only downside.. I felt Ayza was a little pricey and the appertizers were not the best but it's a wine bar I can't expect anything more.
Most importantly, I enjoyed my Birthday and have no regrets going to Ayza.

Pros: outdoor seating

Cons: pricey, only one bathroom

Posted 04/30/09

I really dig the modern industruial chic feel of the place. As an architect, I can tell that they had a really great designer. IT's a smart use of space and all that, though as a large man, I have to say that I wasn't thrilled with the tiny benches. I had to trade places with my girlfriend and sit on the chair because I didn't feel like I could fit all that well -- doesn't make you want to eat too much. Eat I did, though. The food is sort of Mediteranean fusion with a little bit of everything. I had the filet and it was excellent, and not to overpriced by NYC standards either. Our waitrress was a sweetheart and really quick, but didn't seem to know too much about the wines. With such a huge wine list, though, who would? She did, however, suggest some crepe dessert that was phenomenal -- and I don't even really like dessert. We got flights of wine at first, and we ended up with a bottle of one of them -- I oridinarily would have picked a more expensive bottle but their wines by the glass are fantastic. The owner came by and talked to us for a bit -- I like it when they do that.

Pros: food,design,service

Cons: tiny benches

Posted 04/30/09

I have to say this place doesn't seem to live up to the hype. I mean, the food was ok, and the wine list was rather impressive, but we had to wait forever for a table, even though there were two tables open when we arrived and no one else waiting. Supposedly they were saving them for larger parties, but in the 2 hours we were there not parties arrived. The waitress was nice enough, but didn't seem to know anything about the wine, which seemed alarming given it's a wine bar. All she wanted to do was recommend the wines by the glass -- which seems silly since I was prepared to order something much more expensive. we had this hummus that was really good.

Pros: food

Cons: service

Posted 04/29/09

The neighborhood leaves a bit to be desired but the wine bar is one of New York City's best (and that's saying a lot since there are so many wine bars in New York). They have outdoor seating, and it's pretty cool because the sidewalk is huge so you don't feel like you're right on the street like at some cafes with outdoor seatin in New York. However, the caveat to that is that the people watching isn't as good as in a more exciting neighborhood. The oversized red umbrellas are fun though, and the food is fantastic. I can't figure out what the theme is: sort of a fusion of all things, but mostly Mediterranean food, I'd say. There are a few Asian dishes though (I highly ecommend the Asian Steak Tartare). I think it's pretty cool that they don't stick to one cuisine -- it's about the wine, really, and they do that very well. I do think, though, that their winescan get a bit pricey. I mean, they are good, but $17 for the Cabernet (which is, alas, my fave) is a bit hard to swallow. I found the chicken paillard to be dry , but everything else I've tried has been fantastic (and I've tried almost everything). They change certain things on the menu seasonally and right now my favorite thing is the Butternut Squash soup -- that's an easy thing to mess up, but Ayza does it well. Oddly enough, however, the chocolates just don't do it for me -- I feel like Jacuqes Torres is overrated :)

Pros: outdoor seating,menu

Posted 04/29/09

I started bringing out of town guests here. They think the whole wine and chocolate thing is "so New York" and I guess in a way it is. It's always fun to order small plates and share things too, but I do feel i's in a bit of an odd neighborhood. There just isn't much around. Anyway, I brought my parents and then a visiting friend and everyone really liked it. The wine list is good and the food is great, though my dad thought the portions were on the small side. But overall they have something that makes it stand out which is good. And despite the neighborhood the atmosphere in the bar is pretty cool -- it just doesn't fit with the location. Oh well, I guess you can't indeed have it all. But Ayza does have most :)

Pros: food and wine

Posted 04/28/09

I'm way into this place. My gf has this thing about trying all the wine bars in New York, a habit that I usually make her do with her chick friends. Wine is not gennerally my thing. She went to this one one night with the gals and then came home and insisted that I must try it. After much cajoling I finally went and am glad I did. We actually stopped in for lunch one Saturday after running sme errands in Herald Square. Since I loathe Herald Square with every ounce of my being, I was not in the best of moods when we arrived, but it was a fairly nice day and they have outdoor seating so we sat outside and after a drink -- I admit it, I went for a beer-- and a tasty panini, I was feeling pretty good. I always think of wine bars as chi chi female, but they have a BBQ Pork Panini which seemed quintessentially male -- I know, it's the little things. Anyway, I liked it a lot, even if the service was a little slow. The waitress was nice, but I think she might have messed up the order or something because it seemed to take excessively long for a simple lunch to come out. It was cool though, since we were just enjoying sitting outside.

Posted 04/27/09

Perhaps my expectations were too high because of all the hype I'd heard, but I have to say I was a little disappointed. We did a girls' night out and were so excited about this new great wine/chocolate combo thing, but after waiting forever for a table we waited forever for a waitress, who utimately messed up our order and brought us first the wrong food and then cold food. When they finally got the food right, it was actually pretty goos, but by that time were were kind of over it. As for dessert, we ended up going with these chocolate martinis that were pretty rockin. My suggestion is head there for drinks but not for food.

Pros: wine list,ambience

Cons: service

Posted 04/27/09