Pandemic nostalgia? NYC bar opens 'wine windows' in nod to Covid laws

• Please Tell Me in Brooklyn will serve wine-to-go through a hole-in-the-wall
• It follows a trend set in Italy where the historic custom returned during Covid
• New York also legalized take out alcohol during the pandemic to keep bars afloat 

There aren’t many things we enjoyed about the pandemic.

But the relaxation of outdoor drinking rules might be one of the few.

And now a trendy New York bar has opened up with a built-in ‘wine window’, where punters can order alcohol-to-go in a nod to Covid era liquor laws.

Please Tell Me in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, has borrowed the concept from Tuscany, where ‘buchette del vinos’ were used in the 1630s when the plague was rife.

The ‘hole in the wall’ wine windows began reappearing in Italy during the pandemic to ensure customers observed social distancing.

Please Tell Me in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, will serve wine-to-go through a hole-in-the-wall

It has borrowed the concept from Tuscany, where ‘wine windows’, known as buchettes del vino, were used in the 1630s during when the plague was rife, before returning during Covid

Please Tell Me owners Austin Woolridge (left) and Eric Griego (right) are part-time DJs

But the move proved popular and the windows stayed open, inspiring the New York bar to follow suit.

Owners Eric Griego and Austin Woolridge took over the establishment in one of Brooklyn’s most popular neighborhoods last fall, with the wine window officially opening this week.

It will introduce new world wines to patrons, including Merlots from Mexico, Syrahs from Japan and Whites from Slovenia.

Prices will range from $9 a glass for house wines to between $10 and $15 for organic wines.

To avoid breaking New York’s open-carry laws, beverages, including beers, will be served in seal cups alongside small sandwiches.

Alcohol-to-go sales in the city were legalized during the pandemic to help bars and restaurants stay afloat when indoor mingling was outlawed.

Griego and Woolridge are both part-time DJs – and music is also central to their ethos.

Alcohol-to-go sales in New York were legalized during the pandemic to help bars and restaurants stay afloat

Punters cram into Please Tell Me for Winyl Wednesdays, when DJs spin everything from hip-hop and Amapiano, to UK Grime and Nigerian Pop

Despite the pint size venue – the 500 square-foot establishment has 28 seats inside and 16 outside – punters cram in for Winyl Wednesdays, when the bar blares out everything from hip-hop and Amapiano, to UK Grime and Nigerian Pop.

Woolridge told DailyMail.com he wanted to open a place where he could play otherwise unheard of tracks because he was ‘bored’ of all the other bars in New York spinning out tired classics.

The wine window will be open on Wednesday nights from 5pm – 10pm in addition to Saturdays and Sundays during brunch (weather permitting) to coincide with the opening of Please Tell Me’s outdoor seating.

But customers may have to take advantage of its offerings while they still can.

New York’s drinks to-go program is due to expire next April, although the food and wine industry are lobbying to extend the window.

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