Dell'uva: my kind of wine barBy Molly Freedenberg
I like wine bars. Not only for the obvious reason -- good wine -- but because they tend to be small, intimate, and a bit quiet – the perfect place for an intimate conversation or romantic rendezvous. The thing about them, though, is they also often tend to be pretentious. Or stark. Or cold. Or all of the above. And this is too bad for someone like me, who enjoys the occasional dress-up affair but is more of a Pabst and jeans and easy laughter kind of girl.
Enter Dell’uva, a brand spanking new (as in, less than a month old) wine bar in North Beach. This place has the ambience of a nice coffee shop, the soundtrack of a good neighborhood bar (you might hear hip hop, indie rock, or reggae on any given night), and the visual stimulation of a sports bar (yes, there are TVs showing basketball and football - though I’m trying to convince the owners to host a Lost night when the season starts up again).
But the food and the wine don’t suffer for the more-casual-than-usual atmosphere. Quite the opposite. Dell’uva is conceived, owned, and run by two chefs who love wine and it shows – the wine list is extensive, impressive, and above all, affordable. And the tapas match on all accounts (at least, the cheese plate and caprese salad, both served with crisp garlic rounds) I tasted on a recent visit did). It also doesn’t hurt that co-owner Juri is quite easy on the eyes – or that he actually carried one of my favorite wines, a German Riesling Qba (which I can hardly ever find on a wine list).
If Dell’uva weren’t all the way in North Beach, it would definitely become a regular staple in my bar/restaurant rotation. But even so, if I ever need to schedule a business meeting or a no-pressure first date on the other side of town, this where I’m going. For sure.
Dell’uva
565 Green St, SF
94133
(415) 393-9930
www.delluvasf.com
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