Three Natural Wine Bars I Visited in New York Last Month
And why I loved each one.
As with many things in New York, the natural wine scene is top notch. This city is never short on cool, trendy, or just plain good food and drink, so I was excited to check out a few natural wine bars on my long weekend there in July.
I went to three very different natural wine bars in lower Manhattan. One I make time to visit every time I’m in the city, and the other two I visited for the first time. I loved them all for different reasons, and they all have very different atmospheres. Read on to find out why I loved them and be sure to add all three of these places to your next New York trip must-visits.
If you’ve been following my writing for a while, you won’t be surprised by this first bar: I’ve expressed my love for Skin Contact before. I love this natural wine bar so much that it earns coveted time on every NYC trip I take. In a city as vast as New York, visiting one place over and over is not something I usually make time to do. But I do think re-visiting one place every time you travel somewhere is special. It brings a sense of familiarity to a foreign place and makes you feel like you belong: I wrote more about that feeling here.
So, I knew I wanted to visit Skin Contact though I’ve been several times before. In many ways it’s a gold standard of natural wine bars to me. The wine list is vast. What magic do they wield to find that many different wines from small producers all over the world? And the descriptions of each wine! They range from funny and lighthearted to tempting to strangely specific tasting notes. When I go to Skin Contact, I take time to study the wine list.
The by-the-glass selections at Skin Contact are excellent! If you go alone or with someone who doesn’t want to split a bottle, you are in for a treat. The wines they offer by the glass are varied and interesting. However, if you can, go with someone who wants to share a bottle. It adds so much to the whole experience. You can read through the bottle list, see what everyone is feeling like drinking, try a new grape or winery, and choose a wine that’s interesting to everyone. There’s something unifying about everyone around the table drinking the same wine. I’ve noticed that even those around the table who aren’t really into wine will get caught up in the excitement of discussing the wine and what they’re tasting along with everyone else. What fun!
This time around, I followed my own advice and met up with a couple of friends who live in New York. We were all drawn to a bottle of Roussanne because of its description. Roussanne is a French grape I had only previously had in a blend— it’s rare to find a wine made with 100% Roussanne. The server smiled his approval at our choice mentioning that it’s an incredible wine.
It was. I’m still not over this wine. You can read more about it here.
As my friends and I sat in the cool, dark, cave-like environment of Skin Contact, we got lost in conversation. The city seems a million miles away when you’re cocooned away in this wine bar. It’s the perfect place to have a quiet conversation and discover a mind-blowing new natural wine.
As I stepped from the sweltering sidewalk into the dimly lit interior, I felt like I was stepping back through time into an old western saloon… but a classy one. My eyes adjusted and I took in the unpretentious interior of The Ten Bells, made all the more welcoming by the lighting. This natural wine bar has perfectly embraced the old storefront in the Lower East Side, celebrating the architecture while also crafting the perfect casual haunt. Cozy tables are tucked all around in unexpected corners. Mirrors make the space feel bigger and reflect the candles tenfold. The old tin ceiling accentuates the sense of timelessness. And the bar is ingeniously occupying the space under a stairwell: bartenders preside over their domain from the unique u-shaped bar. I was struck by the interior immediately.
The Ten Bells occupies a double store front. They open the doors wide when weather permits and the line between bar and outside world becomes blurred. It’s the easiest place to just pop into from the sidewalk; you’ll be greeted quickly by an accommodating bartender and encouraged to grab a seat wherever you like. I followed one of my favorite travel tactics and sat at the bar— it’s one of the best ways to meet people even if the only person you meet is the bartender. It was a hot July afternoon when I visited The Ten Bells, but the dark interior felt cool.
The chilled orange wine from Swick Wines in Oregon didn’t hurt either. This is the perfect refreshing, bright, acidic wine to enjoy chilled on a hot day. As soon as I saw this wine on their by-the-glass menu I knew I wanted it, but the wine list at The Ten Bells is extensive too. Featuring only low-intervention wines from small producers, the wine list boasts wines from countries far and wide. Slovakia, Czech Republic, Italy, South Africa… you name it, if it’s a wine-producing country chances are it’s on this list.
The Ten Bells is the perfect place to meet a friend, try an interesting wine you’ve never heard of, chat for a long time, and enjoy some snacks. Their kitchen offers tapas that perfectly enhance the taste of the wines. Plus, their happy hour is one of the best deals in the city: $1 oysters! This is exactly the kind of natural wine bar that I would become a regular at if I lived in New York.
I know you’ve traveled to New York, but if you suddenly want to feel like you’re in Paris, go to Le Dive. It’s as if a sidewalk cafe uprooted from Paris and plopped down in the middle of New York. Le Dive captures the essence of a French Tabac so well. Squint your eyes to blur out the grey concrete and red brick of New York, and your brain might just think you’re sitting at a table in France.
Le Dive has lots of seating from sidewalk tables to a tiny covered patio area lined with tables to a row of tables inside along the windows. They all share one thing in common: they’re oriented to the street, posed for prime people watching just like in Paris. Le Dive is a great place to grab a glass of natural wine solo. You can just sip that rosé while sitting at a one of those sidewalk tables and watch the city bustle past.
The dead giveaway that you’re still in New York and not Paris is the noise. Le Dive is buzzing. Trendy twenty-somethings all gather here to meet friends. The after-work crowd sinks into chairs to share drinks after a long day at the office. Couples on dates sit side-by-side pretending they’re in Paris. Everywhere you look, people from all walks of life are crowded around the tables at Le Dive, swilling natural wine and talking… so much talking! It’s not a quiet place; it’s a happening place.
The wine list at Le Dive is solid, not extensive. It’s exactly what I wanted in this environment. I didn’t want to peruse a lengthy wine list that required a lot of thought. I wanted to choose from a few great by-the-glass options. I was very happy with the rosé I chose, especially on the hot New York summer day that I visited. The food menu is a lovely nod to the French sidewalk cafe as well. You can’t go wrong if you decide to treat yourself to a dinner here or if you decide to share a few small plates with your friend.
Go to Le Dive and immerse yourself in the atmosphere, the unique feeling of being in two places at once. Paris and New York, two vastly different places combined in one natural wine bar.
If you’re headed to New York and you love natural wine, add these places to your list. The options for natural wine bars is ever-growing in the city, and these three are an excellent place to start as they’re all so different. They’re located close to one another, so you could even do a little natural wine bar crawl.
Let me know what you think if you head to one of these wine bars in NYC!