Wine list...

[Randy Caparoso]

Bucko, I'm going to beg to differ a little bit. In my opinion, a great restaurant doesn't even need a wine list. The best meals in my life have been in tiny little places with only five, six, or even just one or two wines to offer. In the case of the latter, of course, you don't even need a list. Sometimes you don't even need a menu -- someone just walks over and tells you what they have. And since they've already put their heart and soul into it, it's very difficult indeed not too feel the same thing with every bite, and every sip. I'm talking, of course, about little neighborhood or country restaurants in places like Italy, France, and sometimes in your own backyard in the U.S.

The importance of wine lists in restaurants is overrated. I'd much rather have the single perfect wine with a series of vividly flavorful, freshly prepared dishes -- no list at all.

I'm fond of quoting Danny Meyer, proprietor of a number of great New York restaurants, including Union Square Cafe. He once said that to call his restaurants (which, by the way, tend to have fairly large, but thoughtfully selected, wine lists) great "wine destinations" is like calling Yankee stadium a great "mustard ballpark." In other words, no matter how wonderful, wine is no more than a condiment in a great dining experience. Food is the the name of the game -- the meat of the matter -- and atmosphere, the the company of friends and/or family, and the people who are cooking and serving you are what make it all happen. Wine just helps to enhance a successful meal. Sure, to bonafide wine lovers a wine list may play an exaggerated role. But for the vast majority of average consumers who think of wine simply as something to enjoy with food rather than as a thing in itself, wine is but a small, albeit essential, part. I should know, since buying and serving wine in restaurants has been my own profession for the past 25 years!

[This message has been edited by Randy Caparoso (edited 03-25-2000).]