My bad: I went to BTG wine bar last night to try their Farm to Glass Cocktail Contest Entry. Only after a confused encounter with a server did I realize the wine bar wasn’t participating in this year’s contest.
But there was an unexpected upside to this visit to my favorite bar which I will use to deflect embarrassment over my error: Sometime in the last few months, BTG has started offering an expanded menu. In the past, you could order food from Caffe Molise, right next door and also owned by Fred Moessinger, but somehow it was more than you wanted. Now there is a select menu just for BTG including pizza, mac and cheese and other wine-worthy food. We tried the eggplant meatballs in marinara
umami-rich, though somewhat lacking in texture. Maybe they should be fried like arancini? We also ordered focaccia with burrata, a delicious cold mushroom pate with baguette slices and a terrific hummus, smooth and creamy, with a swirl of basil oil.
There’s nothing like good noshes to extend bar time—we swirled and sipped through several flights and blew off cocktails in favor of wine for the evening.
