First they got themselves a coffee shop (La Taza), then a jazz club (Saxx), the Bridge/ Progressive Arts Institute, their own BBQ spot and now a neighborhood wine and cheese shop. Some call it Soho, some call them Bobos (Bourgeois Bohemians, that is)—but we just call them damn lucky for living within walking distance of all of life’s daily necessities—caffeine, cranky juice and a little culture. Yep, this week, Belmonters will get one more reason to rub our noses in their utter urban convenience. As of press time, Crush Wine Shop is scheduled to open Saturday, December 8. And what owner Paul Coleman tells us he wants most of all is to "feed off the energy of the neighborhood."
 Belmont stakes: Paul Coleman (right) and his wife, Nan, along with their business partner Greg Oxley, have upped the ante on the transformation of the Belmont neighborhood business section with the opening of their Crush Wine Shop. |
Coleman and his wife, Nan, (both investors in Orzo Kitchen and Wine Bar) are launching the wine and gourmet food retail shop with partner Greg Oxley (a transplant from Atlanta with 20 years in the wine biz) in a turn-of-the-century building across from La Taza on Hinton Avenue. With its cleaned-up, retro, glass store front, tin ceiling and tasting bar made from reclaimed wood, the place does seem to fit perfectly within Belmont’s refurbished vibe.
And in an apparent riff off of those rejuvenated yet rustic interiors, Coleman says, Crush’s wares will be gourmet but not overpriced (yep—you just read "not overpriced" and "Belmont" in the same article). Crush will hock wines from around the world, but will focus on a somewhat manageable $10-20 a bottle price range and will offer tastings in a "casual" manner and not in the "overly quiet and intimidating" way that you often encounter at wine bars and shops, says Coleman.
Coleman says that he and his partners want to take the "mystique" out of wine selection and that they’ll do that by offering wine and culinary classes and creating a friendly neighborhood shop sensibility where you can stop by and get your nightly bottle and fresh bread and cheese and, oh, maybe sample some imported chocolate and 25-year-old balsamic vinegar before you go. And he says Crush will up the casual factor with TVs playing educational stuff such as the Travel Channel and the Food Network. Because, really, who can feel intimidated when Paula Deen is up there yapping about deep-fried butter balls?
Well, if you have blue blood like us, all of this democratic wine accessibility seems just a little too proletarian, no? Not to fear—Oxley says there’ll be something for every taste and level of wine knowledge. "We’ll be like Baskin-Robbins, only with 300 flavors instead of 31," he says. He’s, of course, speaking of the number of bottle selections that Crush will have packed into its 1,000-square-foot space.
Of course that makes us think—if Belmonters ever get their own ice cream shop, they might as well declare statehood.
Drink smart
A glass of wine a day keeps the doctor away. That’s old news. But how about drinking a decadent martini to your health? Bashir’s Taverna—the Downtown Mall’s go-to place for falafel and belly dancing—now has an ABC license and a menu of antioxidant-adorned cocktails. "Other people focus on the alcohol, but we’re focusing on the additives," says owner Bashir Khelafa. He and his wife, Kathy, have branded their healthy cocktail concoctions "smartinis" and are mixing vitamin-packed wild berries and herbs and spices with the hard stuff so you can feel good about your buzz. Bashir says the healthy cocktail line is a project that has been two years in the making. Sheesh, we guess it takes a while to infuse some vitality in that vodka.
Worried that you’ll feel too much like a goody two-shoes for getting some salubrity with your liquor? Well, with names such as the Flamenco and the Turkish Delight, these cocktails sound just as sinful to us as the less free-radicalized fare. Still, if you prefer to live on the edge, Bashir’s also now offers Cosmopolitans and other classic cocktails.
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