Centro Vinoteca – NYC
74 Seventh Avenue South
New York , NY
(212) 367.7470
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VdV Rating: 3
Food: Wine Bar
PRO: Great space, good Italian wine selection, great bar stools…really!
CON: Not much, obviously heavy on Italian wines
OK, we cruised this spot (as some others ‘cruised’ me. I was looking pretty sharp) the other night in between other venues. In between 10 Downing and…WTF was it…whatever. But we saw Centro, it looked cool and we went right in. Scored the last two seats at the bar. How does that always happen? And they are comfy bar stools, kittens. Cushioned, with a curved 6″ or so back so you can kind of lean back, or at least not hunch over like most stools make ya. We love the details!
The lista di vino focuses on Italian wines, and is pretty rangy. No, not mangy. Sicilians (including my fave, Nero D’Avola), Sardinians, as well as your typical Tuscans and Piedmont types. And this is not just a wine bar, they serve a good selection of Italian dishes as well. Plus other bevvies beside wine…like Margy’s and Grey Goose Orange! Woo Hoo! If you don’t know much about wine, or at least Italian wine, they are knowledgable, friendly and don’t make ya feel like a douche for asking the difference between a Sangiovese and a Trebbiano.
This is a very inviting spot, with a great layout, white-painted brick, right on a corner with good lighting,. It’s small enough to be 
cozy yet large enough to handle a small crowd. And it’s not all bar either, a fair amount of the space is tables for dining. The room is broken up into two spaces, bar and restaurant, by the back of the bar which goes floor to ceiling. They have an open kitchen with a chalkboard hanging over it listing daily specials.
So we just drank and observed. No comment on the food as we only imbibed, although the limited menu looked great and the dishes we saw coming out of the kitchen looked (and smelled) good. We liked this spot and would grab a drink here again (and a snack) in a flash.
