Ron Ciavolino pick's the top wine bars

Eleven Madison Park


Why he loves it: “It’s very sophisticated; very nice. You can get rosé champagne, one of my favorites—a great food wine. They have wonderful wines by the glass.”

Favorite dish? “[None] because it always changes. They’re nicely made things—a little too nouvelle-y. I don’t like those things, those big bowls with two little things at the bottom.”

Good date place? “It’s expensive, but I imagine it’s very charming for young well-heeled professionals. You walk through the restaurant and the bar is in its own encasement against the back wall. It’s a little more private. You can sit along it, and you meet interesting people at the bar there. It’s because of the convivial atmosphere, and I think it’s because of the bartender. They train them well; they know something about the wines that they’re pouring. Which is always important.”

Eleven Madison Park
11 Madison Ave. at 24th St.
212-889-0905
(:text by Alex Van Buren; photos by Jori Klein)