Winebar (CLOSED)

Wine bars tend to be most appealing on frigid winter nights, when you can hide from the weather in brick-walled, candlelit caves. Wine Bar is built for all seasons—it’s dark and sultry on the inside, but the windows open onto a front patio, one of the few spots in the East Village where you can polish off a bottle of rosé on the sidewalk. Unfortunately, the two rosés we tried were both subpar and weak on fruit. This isn’t a wine bar for wine snobs (one of our experts balked at the underdeveloped list), but it’s a civilized choice over nearby pubs and dives for a date. Chef Sean Olnowich has crafted a short list of rich dishes that are fun to share over a bottle: quality sheep’s-milk cheeses with quince, marcona almonds and olive oil–drenched bread; roasted quail; and crisp duck confit with Sicilian pistachios.