Locker wars – new NYC wine bars
My locker is bigger than your locker. Maybe not. But it is more expensive!
Yes, that might just be the exchange between chef-preneurs Alain Ducasse and Daniel Boulud. As mentioned on this site in March, the wine-y Bar Boulud will be charging $1,250 a month for a three cubic foot locker in the bar. Patrons can store their wine there and uncork at will with dinner.
Not to be outdone, NY mag reports that Ducasse will be opening a wine bar this fall, and “he has enlisted David Rockwell to install such oeno-geeky touches as temperature-controlled armoires and 50 private wine lockers.” Sadly, they did not reveal the price of the lockers. But I doubt he will be outdone by Boulud! One to watch this fall.
More wine bar openings, after the jump. No word on whether they too will join the towel-snapping chefs in the locker room festivities.
Adour Alain Ducasse at the St. Regis New York. 2 E. 55th St., at Fifth Ave. November.
Bar Boulud. 1900 Broadway, nr. 64th St.; 212-595-0303. November.
Nizza. 630 Ninth Ave., nr. 45th St.; 212-956-1800. September.
Bacaro. 136 Division St., nr. Ludlow St. October.
Solex. 103 First Ave., nr. 7th St. October.
Bridge Vineyards Urban Winery. 20 Broadway, nr. Kent Ave., Williamsburg, Brooklyn; 718-384-2800. October.
Terroir. 413 E. 12th St., nr. First Ave. November.
via NY mag
On August 31st, 2007 at 9:51 am ,JB wrote:
here’s to making wine (or Manhattan, even) accessible to the masses…
On August 31st, 2007 at 10:45 am ,Jack wrote:
$1250/mo. for 3 cubic feet? Holy Wine Tariff, Batman!
On August 31st, 2007 at 11:50 am ,Corey wrote:
Oddly enough, it’s not as outrageous as it might seem at first blush. I imagine that if one regularly patronizes such restaurants and orders expensive bottles of wine at dinner, the cost of the locker is cheaper than the obscene mark-ups on wine.
On August 31st, 2007 at 12:30 pm ,JB wrote:
You can get a 20 case wine locker in the heart of LA for less than $400 a year. A YEAR! Then, you can take your wine to your favorite restaurant, pay corkage fees every night, and you won’t come close to the $15K a year in storage costs at Boulud. However, they might not be so excited to seat a regular BYO party…
On August 31st, 2007 at 12:46 pm ,mikeyrad wrote:
Can anyone recommend a professional wine storage facility in NYC? I’m looking for a place that has reasonable rates and will store two or three mixed cases. I’m beginning to think that it’s far cheaper to rent some space than to buy a EuroCave. Thanks in advance.
On August 31st, 2007 at 1:14 pm ,JB wrote:
2 or 3 cases? You don’t need a eurocave. You can get a good 36 bottle wine fridge for under $500 and you’ll own it outright. check out beveragefactory which is an online vendor.
On August 31st, 2007 at 2:13 pm ,mikeyrad wrote:
JB, true enough, three or so cases is one thing, but my collection is growing faster than my consumption rate 🙂
On August 31st, 2007 at 4:14 pm ,Dr. Vino wrote:
Ack! I should have called this post “storage wars”!
More when I get to a normal sized keyboard…
On August 31st, 2007 at 10:59 pm ,grayman wrote:
You might want to look at the Manhattan Wine Company. I’m thinking of starting to store with them.
On September 3rd, 2007 at 10:58 pm ,Dr. Vino wrote:
Hi Mikeyrad-
Glad you are getting into wine! I’m not really up on the best storage places in NYC–perhaps I will do some poking around too. But, yes, 36 cases may not really be worth it to get storage especially since many places use a “consignment” model and charge for each time you go to retrieve…
Here’s a list of some facilities to get your calls rolling:
http://www.wine-searcher.com/storage.lml
Cheers,