The restaurateur Ariel Arce—the mind behind Tokyo Record Bar and Air's Champagne Parlor —will open a new spot in SoHo tonight (Monday, March 4th), this time catered to wine aficionados. The idea, as the site puts it, is that "wine should be fucking fun."
The cozy Niche Niche will feature two tastings a night, one at 6 p.m. and the other at 8 p.m. The wine tasting, which costs $40, will feature four wines curated by the likes of writers, sommeliers, winemakers, and more crafting the ever-changing list.
For an additional $40, people can sit down for a meal, culled from a "family-style" menu from Chef Zach Fabian (of Tokyo Record Bar) that's paired with the wine selected for that particular seating. “The whole point of this is to connect people to the people that either make the wines or sell the wines or love wines,” as Arce told Grub Street. “I have no interest in opening anything that’s not experiential. Hopefully you’ll come and sit at this table and you’ll get to know the person next to you. Hopefully you’ll sit at the bar and get to know the chefs.”
There are only 25 seats, which you can nab through a reservation or by trying your luck with a walk-in. At 10 p.m., the bar will open up to everyone, and will offer wine as well as snacks. Around April, Arce will open yet another operation, this time the live music space Special Club, downstairs in the same building as Eater notes.
Arce and her father co-designed and built the space collectively. They say the Niche Niche vibe is meant to inspire "the intimate, personal and fun atmosphere of having friends over for a dinner party." Given that there's a collage of dog photos on the bathroom wall and floofy chairs to lounge on, we'd say that sounds about right.
Dog collage in the bathroom. (Courtesy of Niche Niche)
Niche Niche is located at 43 Macdougal Street, at King, in the West Village.
