AIDA Bistro & Wine Bar

We held my Mom’s surprise 75^th Birthday Party at Aida’s and it was a perfect evening! With the help of the owner, Joe, we pulled it together quickly without a hitch. The private room was perfect and the food and service were terrific! I would certainly recommend Aida’s to anyone searching for a party spot with great food, atmosphere and hospitality! Thank you to all the Staff!

This is my favorite restaurant in the Columbia area. I love being able to order a few 3 oz. pours to sample more than one wine. The food is delicious. And they’re completely simpatico with those of us who are gluten free. I’ve eaten here at least a dozen times and the servers are always warm, charming, and knowledgeable.

Aida Bistro organized my sister’s Baby Shower, and my expectations were greatly exceeded. Having multiple siblings, there have been quite a few bridal and baby showers, and Aida went above and beyond and easily became one of my favorite venues we have worked with for the event. The food is beyond delicious (Chicken Parm is amazing), and our guests raved about the Crabcake Sandwich. Beautiful bar upon entering the restaurant. Friendly staff. Cannot wait to go back. Do yourself a favor, and try out Aida if you haven’t yet.

Farm-​to-​table concept restaurant with a good selection of wine and home-​made fresh pasta (three times a week). The foods are delicious and well flavored. I really enjoyed eggplant parmigiana, lobster pasta, and even the good old spaghetti with three meatballs. The pasta and the marinara sauce stole the show.
Seafood cioppino was not big but filled with fresh mussels, clams, salmon, and succulent shrimps and grilled slices of bread. They were able to accommodate my daughter’s request to change the marinara to creamy Alfredo sauce instead.
They offer a private room for 40 with a big screen TV for presentation. If the weather permits the adjacent outdoor patio can be used as well. I guess it is good for dinner rehearsal, birthday party or bridal shower. The service is great. For dinner, I would suggest they put white table cloth on and fill up the wine room to the ceiling. I don’t care what kind but it will look better than half filled for sure.

The wine was great! I told them what I was liked and they gave me a delicious glass! The list was extensive. As for the food YUM! There shrimp far diovolo was probably the best I’ve ever had, and I’ve ordered that a lot! My boyfriend ordered the porkchop and said it was the best porkchop he’s ever had. the waiter was nice and knowledgeable. I’d definitely recommend this place!

A solid choice when my rock climbing partner and I felt more like relaxing than continuing to climb at earth treks on this particular evening.
So, every time I leave Earth Treks, I stare at Aida while waiting for the light to change. And every time, I think, I should go there someday. Well, it finally happened, and it was a nice warm night so my friend and I sat out on the patio (and also got eaten alive my mosquitos). They have a nice wine selection, from which I picked an albarino and my friend picked a pinot grigio, both very tasty. It does bother me when I recognize a wine that I have purchased and the restaurant is charging for a glass what I would pay for a bottle, but oh well, that’s the nature of wine bars.
Our food came out pretty quick, I had calamari and arancini. The calamari was delicious and super nicely cooked. The arancini were ok, not very flavorful and I had a hard time finding the prosciutto that was supposed to be in them. Both were pretty expensive for appetizers/​small plates. My friend had a veggie flat bread which she enjoyed.
Our server was nice, the setting was nice, I just wasn’t ecstatic about any of it. I will probably be back because it is so convenient but if it weren’t convenient, I probably wouldn’t seek it out.

Farm to table. Not too expensive. Very quaint and intimate. Super clean. Delicious food! Great meeting spot for a date or just catching up with friends! Modern bar area. Love this place!

My husband and I had our rehearsal dinner at Aida Bistro. All of our guests raved about the food. The combination of great food, great staff, and great atmosphere, is really one that is hard to beat! I will definitely be coming back to this neighborhood gem, and will be recommending all of my Columbia friends to go there. We could not have been happier with how our event turned out, and it will always be a part of our memories, for what we like to call the best weekend ever.

I was pretty confused the first time I came here because it’s tucked away in the middle of a business park, but this place is a great find! Plus wine on tap: is there anything more you could want from life?!
The drinks are great. The service is good. I’ve only been here for happy hour, but I’ve had nearly every happy hour dish they offer and each one of them has been spot on. I especially love the rock shrimp, the calamari, the burrata, and the sweet potato fries. The aiolis here are delicious and really take everything from good to fantastic.
The atmosphere is pretty upscale, especially because the crowd is definitely older than you would get at a bar and a lot of people come in business attire, but I definitely recommend stopping by for happy hour if you’re looking for a place to grab drinks (and some delicious food) with a friend.

I took my wife here tonight for her birthday. It was my first trip and I reserved the chef table to make it special. The staff and chef Chris definitely made this experience memorable!
Chef had a 6 course meal planned but was willing to alter anything as our mood desired throughout the evening, even letting us sample things we saw go by. The food was absolutely incredible with one dish that is by far the top pasta dish I have ever eaten. I am not a huge wine drinker but even the pairings selected seemed appropriate with each dish. As a surprise we got 5 small desserts any of which alone would have been a great ending.
We left completely fulfilled in both experience and hunger. I can’t wait to go back for dinner. Fantastic job chef Chris!

We came here again during restaurant week. What more can I say? Our waiter was awesome. I feel like he should be one of our best friends the way he conversed with us about wine and never made us feel uncomfortable about how we talked about our wine pairing ideas. Truly a Master Somm in the making… I’m not sure if our waiter hinted to the owner, or if he just has that Italian know-​how. Either way he stopped by our table and we had an amazing discussion with him about wine and his philosophy about kegging (not just in stainless steel) and then showed us his «cellar» and explained how it all works. I’m still floored by the idea that someone could so openly explain his business model and not be worried about competition. This restaurant has amazing chefs. Amazing owner. Amazing wines. Also that indescribable quality of a restaurant that you bow to and keep coming back for.

The wine? OH BABY!
The food? Oh… Kay…
When I heard that this place had wine on tap, I have to admit I was dubious. You just have to remember that you’re not drinking a 2005 Burgundy. Most of their tap selection (that I saw) are new world varietals, and several Maryland wines. Basically, if you’re a true wine snob (i.e. you didn’t have to google «good years for Burgundy» like I did), find another place to drink.
If you just like wine, or you’re in the early stages of wine snobbery, trying to taste a wide variety and have some help developing your palate, it’s a great place to go. DEFINITELY sit up at the bar, and talk to the bartender about what you like and don’t like. They’re good at picking things based on what you tell them and you can learn a lot from talking to them
Happy hour is the way to do this place (it’s a little pricier than its worth otherwise). Get some kind of happy hour dish so there’s something on your stomach for all the wine you’re going to drink, but I wouldn’t stay for dinner. There’s nothing particularly bad about the food, I just haven’t had anything particularly good, and it’s pretty pricey.

I love this place. Everyone is friendly and the meals Chef Chris creates are out of this world. Definitely try the tasting table.

The food and wine at AIDA is very good but the prices are really high for the small portions you receive. Our waitress was attentive but the timing could be better. Dinner orders were not taken until appetizers were completely finished which leaves a long delay between courses.
Luckily as a 4^th of July special, they had 20 oz. carafes for a nice selection of wines on sale for $ 20 (normally $ 30 to $ 40). They have happy hour specials only in the bar area which I find highly annoying at any establishment.
We started with the mussels — 12 small mussels, about an inch of sausage, a couple fingerling potatoes, with three thin slices of baguette croutons prepared well for around $ 10.
I had the AIDA carbonara which I ordered from the pasta section because I did not want a small plate. It was very flavorful with fresh pasta, some bacon, broccoli rabe and a perfectly poached egg which oozed rich yolk over the dish. My complaint is the dish was extremely small, literally the size of my fist! $ 21 for a humble ingredients dish, you would anticipate a decent amount of food. This dish was smaller than the small plate order of lobster & crab pasta someone else ordered at our table (also comes with shrimp but was special ordered without). I could have had seafood and more pasta for the same price.
The chocolate bread pudding I had was meh. My companions had the brûlée and panna cotta which they practically licked the dishes. Sadly, I picked the wrong item again.

I honestly don’t understand why people brag about this place. The food is bland, service is mediocre, and the prices are high. The only thing good. It’s location.

The food and wine selection was nice. Great selection of wine and I like that it was farm to table.
However, everything was incredibly slow. And the bartender who served us, he really didn’t seem to care. There were 2 of 6 bar tables occupied and 1 of 9 bar stools occupied and it took the restaurant roughly 45 minutes to get 2 small entrée plates. Also during this time, the dining area was about half way full.
We likely will move on to find another place that can be a little more speedy.

I came here for happy hour and found the place almost completely empty. I was here for a casual business meeting and it wasn’t for longer than an hour.
The happy hour menu was decent for a quaint bistro style place. They had beer, wine, and a lot of nicer appetizers. I got a craft beer and a full pint was only a few bucks. Ordered the calamari and it was done perfectly, nice and thin breading and the tartar homemade dipping sauce complimented it nicely. The kitchen made an extra flatbread from another order, and our server offered it to us free of charge. I feel that was a nice thing you get from smaller places.
When I got there, they were quicker at asking me what I wanted, however, once the bar started getting crowded, it seemed as if the few servers in the place were only attending to them. They hardly came around, and when they finally did, we asked for the check. After waiting another 10 – 15 minutes and asking numerous times, we finally got the attention of the manager who brought it to us.
The place started off strong, but quickly dwindled as it seemed they couldn’t handle a busier time (if the bar being slightly crowded was considered busy).

I just can’t go four overall. Four for food, yes, absolutely. But overall, no.
The food is very, very good, and plated to perfection. Portions are spot-​on, and the combinations are interesting and well thought-​out.
But for the price? I expect better ambiance and certainly better service. Our server was nice, but sloppy (poured water all over the table and didn’t even notice) and SLOW. At first I thought maybe she was on her own, but no, there appeared to be a full staff on hand. It was 15 minutes before we had water and a half-​hour before our appetizer orders were taken. A 7:30 seating didn’t see us leave until after 10. I’m not saying I want to be rushed through my meal, but 2.5 hours for three courses is a lot.
And did I mention pricey? Because pricey.
If you can deal with mediocre service and bland décor and don’t mind paying for the food specifically and explicitly, then DO try it. Seriously. The duck on beet risotto was delish. The bronzini? We all but licked the plate. The caramel pot de crème? Creamy and delicious.

I think I came to Aida’s Bistro on an off night. The atmosphere just wasn’t there. Even though the service, the food, and the company was great, something was missing. The restaurant could really benefit if they paid attention to the smaller details — seating arrangements (the layout felt more like a Ledo’s than an upscale spot), lighting (very bright and fluorescent), the music (where was it? It was nearly silent in there), and the food presentation (my pasta was served sans garnishes, and even the table was lacking a centerpiece). With such a friendly waitstaff and talented chefs, this place could really be kicked up a notch if management made a few tweaks.
So onto the food … As a DC transplant and HoCo native, I have to say the menu was great and a nice addition to the Columbia food scene! Love that they focus on organic, «farm to table,» and seasonal dishes. You can tell they really put a lot of thought and consideration into each dish.
We had the butternut squash risotto balls, lamb ragu, eggplant parmesan, and braised short rib. The portion sizes were perfect, and everything tasted fresh. Following dinner, we ordered the apple pie, crème brûlée, and bread pudding. Again, everything was tasty — but there wasn’t anything super unique about the flavors or the presentation.
Our waiter (believe his name started with a T?) was so helpful and energetic. He made great suggestions for pur wine and main courses. I also appreciated that the owner/​manager, Mr. Barbera, checked in on us midway through our meal.
I hope to return to Aida’s next time I am in town, and that I have a more remarkable experience. I wouldn’t rave about it to friends quite yet, but I think it could become something great in due time!

Food
Calamari
Fried calamari and banana peppers served with a dipping sauce of I can’t remember what. It was decent. Nothing outstanding.
Salmon
Served with smoked tomato orzo and mushrooms. Salmon was cooked well. The orzo was ok… it had wayyyy too much cheese in it. Mushrooms were fine.
Spaghetti
Lobster, crab, clams and mussels in a tomato broth. Was pretty good, the seafood was delicious. I like my pasta al dente but this seemed a little under. The pasta is homemade though so thats always a plus.
Chocolate bread pudding
Cant ever go wrong with bread pudding! Come in half or full portion. Served with whipped cream.
Wine
We ordered a couple carafes of Baileyana Pinot Noir. This was probably the highlight of the evening! Ive been here a few times and the wine has always been outstanding.
Service
Pretty good overall. Our server was patient with us since we took forever trying to figure out what to eat. She never rushed us and our wine glasses were never empty.
My friend and I had alot to catch up on so we didnt realize the restaurant started clearing out and it closes at 11pm and our server didnt tell us. At 11:15 a different server came over and seemed kind of upset we hadn’t left yet. I had yet to sign my check and fill in a tip… she literally stood at the table while I filled it out. Kind of uneccessary I think. Had to knock off a star for that.
My first couple of times here the food was amazing, however during my last visit it was just ok. Maybe previous dinners here have set the bar really high but this time they get 3 stars.