Friends, Wine, and Warmth

Never one for shameless self-promotion, I do not inundate the inboxes of friends and family members with links to my blog every time I write a new post. Yet I do share posts that I am particularly pleased with from time to time, or those that I think someone would especially appreciate. What I especially appreciate, however, is anyone who takes the time to read my articles, and I take it as quite a compliment when one of my posts compels a reader to visit a restaurant, bar, museum, or other venue that I’ve written about—which is why I was especially excited when my friend Michele, after reading several recent posts, suggested that a group of us get together to visit a place I’ve written about, one that peaked her interest and, subsequently, that of a number of our friends.

The place was Vero, the wine bar on 2nd Avenue that I wrote a post on a few weeks ago. After a flurry of emails sent in an effort to coordinate the who, what, when, where, and how, our group of seven—five of whom had driven in from northern New Jersey—met at Vero on Saturday night.

Possibly the coldest night of the fall so far, Saturday did not provide the most enticing of weather for leaving one’s apartment—or fleeciest sweatpants. Lauren and I bundled up in preparation for the ten-minute walk to Vero—a walk that, once we were hit with a very wintry wind, we decided to forego in lieu of a cab. But we warmed up as soon as we walked through Vero’s front doors and were greeted by a very welcoming hostess who led us to the table I had called to reserve just a few hours earlier. We sat down, ordered glasses of wine, and were sufficiently thawed by the time the rest of the girls arrived a few minutes later.

As greetings and excited chatter bounced around the table, we ordered drinks and picked out an assortment of plates to share amongst ourselves. With seven of us, I was able to experience more of Vero’s menu than on my previous visit. Several of the girls ordered a flight, in which they were able to choose three wines to taste. Our very accommodating waiter kindly brought the flight selections out one at a time, as there wasn’t very much free space on our tabletop, and I was pleased to see that each glass, though smaller than a regular wine glass, held an ample amount of wine.

We all enjoyed at least one type of wine we had never tried before; for me, this was a Rioja, a crisp Spanish red with plum and dried cherry flavors. Something else I had never tried before, yet had heard a greal deal about, was Vero’s panini. I ordered one with prosciutto, figs, gorgonzola, and rosemary oil; and a few of the girls tried the prosciutto, buffalo mozzarella, and basil aioli combination. Warm, crisp, cheesy, and utterly delicious, they complemented our wine, as well as the meat, cheese, olive, and bruschetta platters we had ordered. More than enough food for the seven of us, our choices turned out to be perfect for sharing on a chilly almost-winter night.

Once we had gotten our fill of wine, cheese, and Vero’s warm and cozy atmosphere, we decided to venture out into the cold in search of a place for dessert. We walked just a few steps when my friend Sue pointed across the street.

“Kristen, didn’t you write about that place, too?” she asked, aiming her gloved hand at Hi-Life, the bar and restaurant just up 2nd Avenue from Vero—and another venue I had written about just a few months ago. “Let’s try that—it sounded good!” she added.

And so to Hi-Life we went, where we ordered an array of cold-weather drinks and desserts: Irish coffees, chocolate martinis, chocolate cake, vanilla and chocolate gelato truffles—all were heavenly. Having seated ourselves in a different configuration than at Vero in an attempt to catch up with everyone, we all enjoyed our desserts, our drinks, and our company.

After such a lovely evening—and probably because we were still somewhat stuffed from all we had consumed—we all felt just a little bit warmer on our way home.