Happy Wine and Gourmet

• Cuisine(s): Tapas, Wine Bar
  Hours: Daily 9am-9pm
  Price: $$ $, $$
• Payment Types: All Major Credit Cards
  Attire: Casual
  Features: Delivery, Patio/Sidewalk Dining
• Serving: Breakfast, Dinner, Lunch
  Reservations: Accepted, Not Necessary
  Parking: Lot Available

Description

Happy Wine and Gourmet is more wine shop than anything else (and the bottle and case prices are among the lowest), but it's also part wine bar, where you can sit down and enjoy your wine with tapas and sandwiches at tables made from casks, crates, and a door-size plank of wood propped up by barrels at each end. A generous pour of the wine du jour is just $2.50, an inarguably great deal if you're imbibing by the glass, but most patrons prefer to pluck a bottle from the shelves and shell out a token $2 corkage fee. The sandwiches here feature fresh baguettes with a choice of seven fillings, including ham, turkey, prosciutto, and grilled chicken. A dish of olive oil-and-garlic-marinated white anchovy fillets (boquerones) stands out, the slender fish delicately delicious, the leftover oil an absorbing sop for rounds of baguette. A passable paella is also available, though many folks seem to opt for chorizo y queso, a plate of spicy sausage and cubes of imported Swiss cheese. Lingering over a bottle of wine is especially rewarding come 4:00 p.m. Saturdays, when a group of Cuban musicians picks up instruments and turns the place into some sort of Bueno Vino Social Club. That's when the party really begins.