Ara

Love this place! So sad it closed down.
Cute little place with a bar and stools in the front and additional seating in the back. I’ve been here a couple of times and drinks were well made, especially the coffee martini, so good! It doesn’t get too crazy crowded here and that’s why I loved it.
I’m hoping the owner will open up another bar. He was always at the front bar and treated us well.

Venue was great, although I wish it was busier when I went, which was on a Friday night around 7PM. I liked the cozy seating in the back but we just sat by the bar. I felt that the lighting was a little bit too bright, but great happy hour! This is a great place to catch up with a friend for sure. It’s in the middle of Meat Packing so I feel like there are so many other venues to check out that you might just miss this bar since it feels like a coffee shop (well it is a coffee shop) so come by whether you need an alcoholic drink or a caffeinated beverage.

Stopped by after dinner with some friends. Place has bar area and large sitting area in the back with some tables. There was only one bartender working the whole place and he was really nice. He couldn’t see into the back area so I had to keep going to the bar to let him know we needed something. Lychee bellini was pretty good. Pretty quiet for a saturday night crowd.

Great spot. Very friendly staff.

Great place! We were simply looking for a place to spend our last night (Sunday) in NY and stumbled upon this place. Their manager Eric was great and we had a blast. We will definitely return when we’re back in town!

Vibe is chill, good music and a great place to meet with friends or take a date.

Cosy, intimate setting for a wine bar which is exactly what you want. Nice chill, relaxing place.

Amazing setting. Romantic enough for a date night yet the perfect spot for a night to catch up with your girlfriends. Ambient feel with very comfortable seating. The staff was very friendly. My friends and I ordered the tiger stripe cocktail, which was AMAZING! I never really enjoyed coffee mixed with liquor but this was a great idea. Perfect end to any workday!

I visited this place right before it closed and accidentally left my card at the bar. Figuring they would charge it and toss it at the end of the night, I just ordered a new card and called to have them do so. However, it seems like an employee was interested in taking advantage of the situation and charged nearly $ 500 on everything from food to cigarettes. That is identity theft… I’m glad these scumbags are closed. The only reason I wish they were open is so I could confront them in person.

Great ambiance and has really fun drinks.
The couches and tables are intimate and cosy and is definitely a fun place for a post dinner drink.

Small awesome hidden gem, perfect for groups of two…
Cute spot! I love the cozy atmosphere! I came w a friend before any one else arrived, and it was so relaxing to curl up in the pillows and enjoy a glass.
Would not expect from meatpacking, but what a gem!

I came here for some wine before heading to Buddakan for dinner. I had a perfectly pleasant time, it’s a nice little wine bar, however there was nothing that really stood out as amazing to me.
We were seated quickly — service was a little slow, but it was busy, so completely understandable.
We ordered a bottle of Cab for $ 45, which wasn’t the cheapest bottle on the menu, but close. It was very mediocre — I know that a $ 45 bottle isn’t particularly nice, but I guess I expected something better than what we got.
The atmosphere was fine — it was dark and a bit romantic with smaller tables. There was just nothing that wow-​ed me, so I don’t think we’ll be back with so many other options nearby.

Cute little place … Music is fine, enough room to sit, not overly noisy
For a wine bar their selection of while isn’t that extensive and for future reference — please stock up on your food supplies so that when that midnight crowd arrives and wants cheese with their wine — you don’t tell them «sorry, we have no more food for tonight» … Just saying …

I didn’t understand this place. Nothing to make you happy.
The beer selection was very poor, I think that generally they are highly overpriced ($ 12 for a small Jameson, $ 15 for a simple cocktail), the service and atmosphere were nothing special, actually mellow and not happy and rather dull and boring. My friends suggested we meet there but there was no reason, as none of us lives around the corner and I was asking myself how come you go there unless it’s raining hard and you are outside and must go somewhere.
So if you read this review probably you have choice, so make a good choice and go somewhere else.

Disclaimer: I came here with 13 or so people, which made the experience that much «worse» because the place is so small. I also apologize to the other guests there because I swear, we killed the calming ambiance that was there before we intruded…
This review is based on a large group. I think if I came here on a date or a double date, it would be completely different. But considering that I did come here with a large party, I’ll first say that this place was not really big enough to accommodate us. The room with the seats and couches is pretty small, maybe designed to fit around 20 people comfortably. Our tiny two tables were intruding into other people’s territories. I felt really bad for the couple sitting next to us.
We ordered three bottles total, the Cono Sur Cabernet, La Capra Pinotage, and something else. I don’t even remember which one I drank (I think the Pinotage), but not being a wine expert, I can’t really tell you if it was good or not. The staff was making it pretty clear that they didn’t want us there, though they weren’t particularly rude to us. We WERE clogging up the room, so I guess it’s understandable.
So the low and dirty: don’t go with a large party, but consider it a nice, cute date spot.

Intimate, cozy and comfy. :)
I’m not a fan of wine, unfortunately, so when a friend suggested we go to this wine bar, I was pretty hesitant. Since it was his birthday, I had no choice but to agree. This place has a pretty awesome location, in the heart of the meatpacking district and isn’t a long walk from the cool restaurants in the area.
Good service, good wine, and the prices aren’t so bad. I feel like there’s no reason for this place to get less than 5 stars.

It’s caught between two much larger restaurants, so we walked right by it the first time. But this is the perfect wine bar — small, cozy, and classy with comfy couches in the back. Great place for a quiet drink.

I agree with Gamal H.: Ara is a comfy, non-​pretentious wine bar in an area filled with clubs and posh restaurants. A small selection of both wine and food, but a quality selection and definitely worth the visit if you’re into a chill place to sit back and sip for a while. I had two glasses of a sweet and full-​bodied Port and shared the Mediterranean plate, which consisted of bread, hummus, artichoke hearts, olives, and sun-​dried tomatoes… yum. Those tomatoes were absolutely spectacular!
I also loved the waiter we had – I didn’t catch his name, but he was an Asian man with longish hair. He gave me the recommendation for the Port and was really funny and quick with our orders. The restaurant wasn’t that full because it was a late Tuesday night, but he was alone and had a bar full of customers so I really appreciated his attention to us all the way in the back.
Anyway, the prices were pretty average of a NY wine bar, maybe even a little cheaper. I’d come back if I was in the area for sure.

Small, Cute, Intimate
This place can be hard to miss right between Bills Burger and Dos Caminos. Reasonably priced wine and beers.
I bypassed the bar and went to the back with the comfy pillows in the dimly lit room. I like the idea of the wine bar, but more dimly lit lights would have been more my speed.
I had two glasses of champagne, but next time I will order a bottle instead, because it will be more cost-​worthy.

Love it! Such a fun cozy place to catch up with friends. Plush benches and pillows. Good but limited wine selection. Each bottle of red ranges from $ 42 – 52.
There is a coat rack or 2 to hang your jackets.