Bella Vino

I finally was smart and planned ahead to make a reservation at Bella Vino on St. Charles Main Street. The weekends are normally packed, but thanks to the holiday weekend, we really didn't have too much trouble getting in and Bella Vino has a patio area to expand on to.

I had been wanting to try this new restaurant since Main Street is not that far away and was especially excited that it is a wine bar. Unfortunately, I still compare every restaurant to my all time favorite restaurant Vivian's Vineyard, and it's impossible to compete with that.

Not only is Bella Vino a wine bar, but they mostly serve tapas and flatbreads. This usually works out in my favor in order to try a lot of dishes. Between the three of us, I got to try as many salads. My Seared Tuna Stemperata was perfectly cooked, and the Fried Asparagus and Specialty Kale Caesar were both a little sweet since they contained some kind of orange.

Seared Tuna Stemperata

Fried Asparagus Salad

Specialty Kale Caeser Salad

I immediately went with one of my favorite Italian dishes, Chicken Spedini, but was surprised that it came breaded and there were only two pieces.

Chicken Spedini

The Cajun Pan Seared Tilapia came in a delicious garlic shrimp sauce and was a much heartier meal.

Cajun Pan Seared Tilapia

While we probably could have stopped at just a few dishes, we boldly ordered a couple more dishes: House Cured Duck Prosciutto and the Crab Stuffed Mushroom Caps.

The mushrooms more of an appetizer size, while the pizza was a good amount for sharing and probably my favorite dish. The prosciutto was well balanced with the gorgonzola and caramelized onions.

As for the wines, I was thrilled to see a Riesling from the Rheingau, I had trouble finding a crisp, dry white whine. There were plenty of big, bold reds, but I was hoping to see a little bit of a longer list.

Resources:

Bella Vino = http://bellavinowinebarstl.com/

Photos by Patience Scanlon