A great Wine Bar; Riposo 46

Sadly there are not a lot of wine bars in Manhattan, at least not enough of them as far as I am concerned, and
its pretty hard to have a bad wine bar, though sadly I have been to few that definitely sucked (more on that in another post). The one downside to the majority of the ones I have been to in Manhattan is that they are usually small, and in some cases, downright tiny. This is the case (not sucky, just small) with my favorite Hell's Kitchen Wine Bar; Riposo 46 (note: as of the writing of this post, the web site was down).

Riposo 46 is a tiny little thing of a place, located on 9th Avenue between 46th and 47th Street. This is my favorite wine bar when I can get a seat, as there are about half a dozen bar seats and only 3 bar tables, with the crown jewel table being the one facing the street in front of large folding doors/windows that are usually open to the street, making it as close to dining outside on 9th Avenue as you would likely want to get. There are several stools along the wall with a drink shelf, however the place is narrow, and for me this is not an option(I don't like being that cramped), however, it is likely more than suitable for most normal people, me not being one of them.

My usual drink of choice is Prosecco, which I either order by the glass or by the bottle, depending on what kind of mood I'm in, or how drunk I want to get. However, they have a good solid wine list with about two dozen bottles available by the glass, which is unusual for a smaller place. I have sampled a few different whites, and most were quite good, and from my perspective, the prices reasonable, at least relative to the Meat Packing District or Lower East Side.

The food is my favorite kind for drinking wine, and certainly what I expect to be standard (though sadly it isn't always) at a decent wine bar; Charcuterie & Cured Meats, cheeses, and grilled flatbread pizza's. Having literally eaten every item on the menu, I can confirm that it is all delicious, prepared and presented well, good portion sizes, and reasonably priced. Specifically worth noting is the flatbread pizza, which is unique in its shape (square) and presentation, I believe it is the real traditional Sicilian style (though don't quote me on that, as I actually have no idea) and which also happens to taste incredible, a surprise to me for a pizza served in a Wine Bar.

The service is always pleasant, friendly and quick, without the servers hovering or rushing you out the door to turn over the table. As full disclosure, I tend to spend quite a bit of money when I am there, so I can't say how it would be if two people occupied a table for an hour and only each had a glass of wine, as if it were my place, I would probably try to get you out the door too, though I doubt from my 6 or 8 visits that this would happen here.

There is one downside from my perspective, the size; its very, very small. However, the downside is also an upside; its cozy and intimate. The net effect of the size is getting a table during normal peak NYC hours is very difficult, as there are only 3. I have on half a dozen occasions attempted to go in and not been able to get a table. It is worth repeating that I do not like to sit on the wall/drink rail, however, from my experience, unless I go around 5pm or after 11pm, I am not getting a table.

I wish I could have added more sarcastic wit, but there isn't anything bad to say about this place, and I hope to God that it stays open.

Overall I give Riposo 46 an A for food, wine, and service, as well as an A for the vibe. I give it a B fot being a little too small and being too popular, which of course is something I am sure the owners are not too upset about.