Vino Levantino

Just what this neighborhood has needed! Quality healthful food, discerning choices of wines; warm and welcoming atmosphere, real people, good service — do not miss this gem!

GREAT neighborhood bar with good wine selection, tasty food and friendly staff.

We dined at Vino Levantino tonight. It was great from the proverbial soup to nuts. Three of us shared & thoroughly enjoyed appetizers & main courses (Middle-​Eastern cuisine tonight — read the menu). The service was spot on. The ambience was cool. This establishment deserves to be a go-​to UWS joint. Bravo to the owners & staff!

Don’t totally get it.
I’ve been there twice and the ambiance is super cozy and pleasant, I’ll give you that. The portions, however, are way small for the price and the taste is average. Plus it takes a loonnnggg time for the food to come, though the waiters are nice. Overall not bad, just not great. You can get a lot better for the money elsewhere in the neighborhood. It would be a great place for a date, though, since it has plenty of options for different tastes and it’s quiet and intimate. Just not sure it’s a huge culinary adventure.

Changed from 3 to 1 star after I saw that they overcharged my credit card. Thanks to my credit card company they handled this issue. Be alert!

Tasty happy hour. Select wines discounted. Ordered two apps half-​priced: fingerling potatoes with an aioli dipping sauce and eggplant crostini. Both delicious! Main courses were good too. Grilled chicken kabobs given thumbs up! An added treat was the complimentary baklava served as as a second year anniversary thank you. Yum!

It is not bad but it’s definitely not a 4.5 star rating. I am guessing the good reviews are driven by the wine rater than the food. The food is overpriced for the size. We had the burekas and the Swiss chard salad, both good but both the size of appetizers/​side salad. The hummus was underwhelming and it comes with just enough pita bread to eat half of it, the extra pita is $ 1, no big deal just weird to get charged for it. I ordered the hot spiced wine and it was room temperature. Nice atmosphere, otherwise nothing to write home about.

** brunch review **
Jen S. recommended Levantino for a low-​key and tasty brunch, and she was right on the money. The restaurant was pretty empty for Saturday brunch, which was relieving. (No wait!) The menu was on the smaller side and had equal sweet and savory items. I opted for the basic eggs ($ 9), but they came with perfect potatoes and a really nice salad, which included light dressing and beets. I could even eat that salad alone and be satisfied.
Jen also got the Malawach, which had a great green sauce of sorts (sechug). She got an extra hard boiled egg, too, which was good for the surface area of the puffed pastry. Anyway, it was unique and delicious. Eat it as you wish!
Also I want to call out the really nice, chill nature of the people working here. They were attentive, funny, and pleasant. Their demeanor really stood out to me.
I would definitely come back for brunch, and I’d love to come try their dinner.

Hidden UWS gem. Lovely atmosphere, warm staff. I almost didn’t want to write this long overdue review (been coming here for over a year) because I fear it becoming overcrowded. Super excited they now have a full bar in addition to their delicious wines.

My fiancée and I had the absolute worst dining experience of our lives at Vino Levantino thanks to the owner horrific Haim. We were completely baffled by the absolutely rude and unprofessional behavior of this small man. He’s clearly incompetent and I truly feel sorry for the staff that have to deal with him on a daily basis because I can only imagine that he’s a nightmare to work for.
Ok, so with all of that as the prelude, let me tell you about the night that my fiancée and I walked into Vino Levantino and met heinous Haim. It was a quiet evening with just a few diners enjoying their glasses of wine. We were seated at a table near the front. We perused the wine list and I settled on a red wine while my fiancée decided to have a glass of sparkling wine. Our server was perfectly nice and amiable and asked whether we wanted any food. We thought it would be nice to have something to munch on while we had our wine so we ordered the chickpea appetizer. This is where it gets interesting…
Our server brought out my glass of red wine immediately. She also explained that they had just run out of the sparkling wine that my fiancée ordered but they were getting another bottle from storage and her wine would be out momentarily. No problem we said. Some time passed and our chickpea appetizer came out. We started to munch on the food and it was tasty. Unfortunately, my fiancée didn’t have her glass of wine yet so we asked our server again. She apologized and said she would check on it. More time passed. Meanwhile I was sipping on my red wine and was nearly finished. Not a huge deal, but when you go out to a wine bar with a date it’s nice to drink together. That’s kind of the point. More time passed. At this point I had finished my glass of wine and we had also finished our appetizer. Our server came over again and apologized again. She said she didn’t know what the delay was with the person who was getting the bottle from storage. Over 30 minutes had passed, so we were understandably annoyed. We asked for the wine list again so that my fiancée could choose something else but at that moment the other server finally came back with the sparkling wine bottle we had originally ordered. Ok, great. About time. I ordered a second glass of wine so that my fiancée would not have to drink alone and the server finally brought over the glass of sparking wine for my fiancée. As any good server with some sense of customer service would do, our server graciously said that her glass of wine was on the house because she felt terrible about the delay. We said thank you and went back to our conversation.
This is where horrific Haim comes in. We noticed him speaking to our server and then he walked over to our table. We expected him to apologize for the delay once again. Instead he raised his voice menacingly and asked us why we were demanding a free glass of champagne. Huh? We were puzzled and caught completely off guard. We explained the situation (see above) and noted that we didn’t ask for a free glass of wine. Rather our server graciously offered us a complimentary glass of wine due to the long delay and we accepted. He said ok and then went to go speak to the server again.
My fiancée and I sat our tables absolutely flabbergasted. What just happened?! Did the owner of Vino Levantino just yell at us for no reason? Our server came over again and whispered to us that the owner didn’t have much experience in the restaurant industry and he really didn’t know how to run a bar or restaurant. She said he had no concept of what good customer service was and apologized to us for him. We said we understood but asked for the check anyway.
Horrible Haim brought over the check and there was no complimentary glass of wine. I explained again that the server told us that the wine was free due to the delay and asked why we had been charged. Horrendous Haim then began yelling at us again stating that he was the owner and only he decided who would get free wine. Hold up Haim. Are you joking? (no). Are you clueless (yes). At this point, the server came over again. She was visibly upset and embarrassed. She apologized and told Haim that she was going to pay for the wine herself because she felt so bad. At this point, my fiancée started crying because she was so upset at horrendous Haim’s unprofessional behavior. This got me upset because you never want to see your loved one crying in public, so I told him he should apologize to my fiancée for making her cry. He refused and said it was our fault. Wow. Who does this guy think he is? Screw it. He’s not worth it. We paid our server in full, made sure to tip her generously since none of this was her fault and she tried her best to make things right, and advised her she should quit and then walked out.
Heed my advice Unilocalers and stay away from Vino Levantino or else you too may be a victim of horrible Haim and his heinous and horrific behavior.

Wondering home from a friend’s house near 103^rd, I had done some online research for a place with excellent tuna tartare (as I am kind of an addict). Vino Levantino came up in the search and I was drawn to the small, cozy size of the restaurant and the really intriguing menu (a variety of cultural plates but not so far off the map that it would be foreign to my fiancée, who is a meat and potatoes kind of gal).
The vibe the minute you step in is fantastic. We cozied up to the bar and on this Halloween night, all were decked out. There are a series of small 2 and 4 top tables as well. Candlelight everywhere.
The Malbec and the Chard by the glass were spot on (I am a wine educator and so this part is crucial) and we shared the tuna tartare. DE-​LISH. Great size and loved the combination (did not skimp on the tuna). We almost ordered a second but realized we needed to get going. I was also eyeing many other things on the menu – so much looked amazing.
Their happy hour is fantastic. Again, the vibe is really chill, classy, but not stuffy. We will most definitely be back to this hidden gem!!!

The good:
Great wine list, good food, relaxed atmosphere. Great for dates or a calm night out.
The bad:
I know it’s a wine bar but I still would like at least one beer on tap.
The ugly:
Hopefully not your date

My friend and I stopped by for an early dinner and discovered that it was still happy hour! Score! A handful of the wines and apps were half off, so we opted for four different mezze plates/​salads. The fatoush salad, fingerling potatoes and hummus were all great (though nothing to write home about). I’d pass on the eggplant crostini — just a giant slice of grilled eggplant on each piece of bread — mushy and and meh.
The ambiance was super cute (a great date spot) and the service was friendly. Definitely seems like a «neighborhood spot». Overall, the experience was good, but not something I’d necessarily make a trip for. That said, since I live in the neighborhood, I will definitely be back.

Nice «happy hour» deals. Our bottle of Malbec fell under the «happy hour» pricing and was great.
Fried calamari were delicious (even though I am not normally a fan) — batter was sparingly thin (a good thing for me) and flavorful. The marinated eggplant crostini were very good. Olives came in a dish the size of a thimble — simply too small for $ 7.
Also, a nice pleasant crowd. We sat outiside, but the inside was very appealing as well.
Staff (esp. Andy!) were relaxed, friendly, funny, accommodating and not pushy at all.
Definitely recommend and will come back myself!

We walked in excited to try this neighborhood wine bar. We ordered our food and drinks almost immediately, and they came out pretty fast, except for my glass of champagne. 20 minutes in to waiting after finishing our food, and still no drink, I complained to my server. She apologized for the wait and said that the glass of champagne I ordered was going to be on the house. I appreciated the gesture and carried on. FINALLY, 30 minutes in to waiting I received my drink. I was momentarily happy but that was short lived.
The owner — Haim, walked up to us very confronting and asked us «why are you asking for a complementary glass of champagne!!!» SHOCKED, we explained we never asked for one, but the server offered due to having waited 30 minutes to get my drink while everyone else had finished their drinks and food. Then he said «ok» and walked away.
Seeing that we were a little taken a back, the server came and apologized for his rudeness, and said he is very hard to work with and he has no idea about the restaurant industry and that is the reason for his behavior.
Haim stopped by to make small talk, and we asked for the bill. When he brought the bill to us, however, he hadn’t deducted my $ 15 drink as promised, and instead had deducted a $ 5 chickpea appetizer. My fiancé was annoyed at the situation and questioned Haim why he did that? He was so rude about it and simply said because he «didn’t want to» and that he changed his mind!!! My fiancé being a lawyer, (and liking to make a point) contested his atrocious behavior– and things got pretty heated!
The server came and defended us, and said she was the one who offered to give the glass of champagne complimentary due to our long wait. Then he shouts at the server saying «It’s going to come from your pay check». We were appalled!
The server kept on insisting to us, «you guys don’t worry about it, I’ll cover the bill». I just got up to leave, very upset, but gave cash to the server so she wasn’t stuck paying the bill. However, I will NEVER EVER go to this SHIT HOLE again. Even though it is right in our neighborhood.
WORST CUSTOMER SERVICE I HAVE EVER EXPERIENCED IN A RESTAURANT. These things should never happen when you go to a seemingly decent place. An apology would have sufficed to resolve all this. But NO, things had to get UGLY!
UPDATE!!!
This man now bashes us further and LIES about what happened??? I am baffled.
WHY CAN YOU NOT OWN TO IT? You offered me the glass of bubbly because your server only brought it once I was done with my food and after I had asked for it multiple times. Instead of doing what you said you would, you charged us for it. $ 15 is really not much. But the way you spoke to us and dismissed us was what UPSET US.
This is not the man who you insulted that wrote this review but his fiancéé, who YOU brought to tears. You can see if we have ever spoken ill about any establishment before. We have never had such a HORRID experience. And mind you, we dine have dined at the best. So we do know how situations like this, if ever occurred, is handled.
You may claim to be good with customer service, but what counts is being good with your customers when YOU MESS UP. Still instead of apologizing for the bad experience you continue to be nasty. THIS SHOWS YOUR LACK OF CHARACTER.
Our friends in the neighborhood nor I would EVER patron your establishment again.

Beautiful décor and NO TV! I hate TV’s in places.
This place feels like an extension of a European café mixed with middle Eastern smells and awesome wine.

Lovely, simply lovely!
The space is super cozy, rustic, and just delightful. The service was very friendly and personable. And the food, YUM! I had the half-​roasted eggplant with ricotta and my friend ordered the meat/​rice stuffed tomato. Both were DELICIOUS! And there were so many other tempting items on the menu. Looking forward to going back to try more :).

Brunch
Started with a cappuccino which was nicely done. They had a brunch special called jachnun which is essentially fried rolled dough made with the same batter as malawach. It came with a tomato dip, a boiled egg and green skhug (peppery sauce that tasted very cardamom-​y). The jachnun was kind of tough to cut but the waiter brought me steak knife after seeing me struggling with it (I grew up eating with chopsticks so maybe it was partially my problem…) But boy did I love that dish.!! I only ate half and saved the other half to go for my friend who lives a block away. She loved it too! The texture is like a french crêpe/​baumkuchen but better. Even though it was fried, the dough was moist and dense and not greasy at all. It was subtly sweet and worked very well with the sauces. I don’t understand what the boiled egg does but apparently that’s how Yemenites eat! I also got the side salad which to my dismay had no greens, but I loved the avocado + chickpea + onion combination!
3 lovely people working there all came to me and checked to see if I liked the dishes. One of them explained to me what jachnun was and I promised him I would go back during happy hour/​dinner. CANT WAIT.

Another great spot for Mediterranean. Specifically Israeli/​Turkish. Great great Falafel! With the tahini.
I always get the bourekas, hummus, Baba Ganoush and leek patties.
Owner at the restaurant making sure everything is fine and always with a lovely mood.

So, I tend to have a love affairs with wine bars. They’re cozy and romantic and of course become all the more intimate after enjoying a few glasses of wine. Living on the Upper West Side, the world isn’t exactly my oyster when it comes to dining and drinking establishments. But when I want to stay close to home, I take to Unilocal and hope to find something that is at least adequate. This place has showed up on my searches a lot lately, so I finally went with a friend to see what all the fuss was about.
The fuss was warranted.
Whenever I go out mid-​week, my experience at places like this are far more pleasant (given that they’re all quite tiny). I went at 9pm on a Monday night and it was maybe 75% full. We easily found seats at the bar and were immediately greeted by a bright-​eyed, bushy-​tailed bartender who couldn’t have been older than 27 (don’t ask why I picked that age, I have no idea). He was an absolute delight the whole evening. My friend is the wine connoisseur of the two of us so he took the lead. We wanted a full-​bodied red and asked the bartender for his recommendations. He (the bartender — not my friend) noted two different reds that he thought met our criteria and gave us a very comprehensive (and accurate, as we later found out) description of each. The first bottle we tried was a Spanish wine (the name escapes me) and the second was a Bourdeaux. Both phenomenal. The Bourdeaux had this wonderful, smoky ending to it (keep in mind my wine vocabulary is limited so I kind of just improvise) — I’m considering making it an apartment staple.
As I expected, the whole experience was relaxing and intimate. I definitely want to go back for dinner given my love of Israeli food (and more importantly the reviews for the Israeli food at this particular place). It’s incredibly convenient for me so I have pretty much no excuse not to.