Mountain Views News          Saturday, August 13, 2016

8

FOOD AND DRINK

Mountain Views-News Saturday, July 9, 2016 

VERTICAL WINE BAR

Many restaurants have built their reputation on their wine lists. Of course, Valentino’s in Santa Monica 
comes to mind. A little closer to home Bistro 45 and A/K/A Bistro have good ones. I can’t really put 
my finger on any restaurant that I could say has an exotic wine list but the Vertical Wine Bistro has 
a truly eclectic feel to it with 
their bar and dining room and, 
for you with late night energy, 
a weekend DJ. The wine list 
itself is impressive. If you remember a few years ago Vertical offered many flights of wine - basically 
a flight could be any liquors 
since they’re just samples. I 
remember trying a flight of 
Greek wines here, and I quickly 
opted for French. Just because 
I was born in Greece doesn’t 
mean I can endorse their 
wines. If you feel adventurous 
they offer a bottle of the 2008 
Genilini Robola for $55.

My intention this evening was 
to start at the bar and make 
my way to the dining area, but 
since it was happy hour I never 
made it that far. I have to say 
that the wine list is limitless 
and while Vertical’s reputation for fantastic wines is warranted, the prices scared this civil servant off a 
bit. If I had an expense account, however, the 1996 Taittinger “Blanc de Blanc at $257 would be in my 
cart. Wines tend to be subjective, but great food usually finds a unanimous verdict, so let’s stick with 
the “happy time” menu. Their Crispy Calamari ($9) was exceptional, as were the Truffle Shoe String 
fries ($8). My guest and I really enjoyed the Lobster Roll with Tarragon Dressing ($15), but we didn’t 
get to the burger sliders since I just had sliders last week at Cheesecake Factory!!! At first glance, the 
prices on their dinner entrees looked reasonable. Many of their wines by the glass seemed a bit pricey, 
but that may just mean I should stick to buying my wines at the local supermarket. 

Catch me on AM 830 KLAA Sundays at 2 PM and on PBS TV every Thursday night at 7:30 PM. www.
peterdills.com


TABLE FOR TWO by Peter Dills

thechefknows@yahoo.com


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