Never again !!!!!! Â Smallest oysters EVER and a total rip-off. Â Asked for a glass of the house chardonnay. Â One drop of wine; not even good wine . Figured it would be about $ 5 ; had a second. Â The wine was $14 each for that one tiny drop; they claimed they had already run my credit card and couldn't take it off. Â BS and stay far, far away !
Review Source:Great quiet seafood bar. Well quiet on Sundays at least. I come for the dollar oyster happy hour special. Deliciously fresh from Canada and the eastern bay. Just a friendly nice place with a beautiful dark french bistro style bar. Extensive wine selection and a few tasty beers. No hard alcohol but who needs it.
Review Source:Met up with some friends here for drinks and tapas. I have had much better. Everything I tasted was terrible. $10+ for a tiny- disgusting glass of wine was ridiculous. I've had better wine for much less from the supermarket. Do yourself a favor and go somewhere else. Â The place was dark, loud and the food and drinks were unpalatable. Only thing worse than the food and drinks was the dismal customer service.
Review Source:Came here for drinks, and stayed for hours. It's loud, but you can still carry on a decent conversation. It's intimate and warm, and has the liveliness you'd want in a wine bar. Nice wraparound bar.
Good food, too:
Avocado crab
Mac n cheese
Salmon tartar
Service is not the most attentive, but still lovely staff.
This quaint little winebar in the LES is casual and laidback, something like what you may stumble upon on a quiet street in a small European village. The people who work here are approachable and friendly as well, typically seen to be chatting up the patrons sitting at the circular, winding bar.
While I appreciate that they showcase many Spanish wines that are not usually highlighted at other wine bars around the city, I do feel that the selection is a little minimal for a "wine bar." While the Cheverny Blanc by the glass I had tasted crisp and quenched my thirst on a hot Sunday, it just wasn't particularly special. I was also a little bummed that they didn't have any happy hour specials on the wine, and the oysters on offer for a buck tasted mediocre. Â Ten Bells may be a nice spot to duck into if you're in the area and have some time to kill in the afternoon, but I wouldn't go out of my way to come here with so many other stellar spots in the city.
Been here a few times. This time will have been my last.
Service is attentive but rude. All menu offerings are available only on the chalkboard, even though there are about 23 menu items, at least five are in a foreign language. Be prepared for the tiniest tapas you have ever seen for this price (and of course this is in a bar, not a snotty tiny portion restaurant where the presentation is 'sublime')
And although this is a wine bar, all wine offerings are also only on the chalkboard, in all their illegible glory - I think that what is meant by this is that you should allow the waiter to order for you...I asked for an Italian wine and was told there was only French wines here. What? And at the price for a glass of this French swill, a tiny tasting glass was offered. Yes, a 4oz pour I believe.
One of the other reviews put their finger on it: This place hopes to create an illusion of exclusivity - no signage and surly service. I guess they figure if they can tap into your insecurities, that you can bring other people here and show you know what some of the items that are illegible to them, that you can reap some sense of reward.
In the words of Yelp, Meh. I've experienced better.
Ran into this place after having the Internet turned off at a coffee shop down the street. I was very presently surprised when I found this place. Good WiFi allowed me to finish working for the next hour, and how could I say no to the Happy Hour Oysters.
All in all a great end to a day working remote.
PS: This place got a bit busy after 19:30 on Thursday
On Saturday, my friend was in the mood for wine, so she picked to head here. Â Since the place is very small, and it was a Saturday night, it was rather crowded. Â I got there a little after 9pm, and I was able to find a random stool, but any later into the night, I would assume seating would become quite the commodity. Â Once another one of our friends joined us, we moved to the back room, which has one large communal table, which worked for us perfectly.
The place itself has a very chill vibe, with low indie music playing in the background. Â There is no set menu here. Â It is written on the wall, which can make it a bit hard to read when it is crowded. Â I ordered a chardonnay, and it was very good ($10). Â Since we had another stop after this place, that is all I got to try, but my friend ordered some food, and said it was unique, and tasty. Â I definitely would like to come back here again to try some of their food.
If you are looking for a quaint place in the LES, then this place (if you can find it - they don't have a sign outside) is a good choice.
I love this spot! Â I cannot wait to come back to NYC and visit this place again. Â Great atmosphere, seductive lighting, homey crowd, amazing wine and scrumptious food. Â Their mac'n'cheese is delectably creamy :) Â
Service can be kind of spotty, but I could sit here for hours and not complain!
I came here around Christmastime, and I just remember sitting by a huge wreath that made the bar smell like the holidays. Â Amazing.
Love the oysters at this cozy, tucked-away tapas restaurant! Fresh, briny and above all--cheap: Ordered a dozen for about $15. Food was delicious and simple: chorizo empanadas and papas bravas were the definition of comfort food. Slightly higher-brow stuff: the pulpo a la fiera and the smoky salmon tartar let Ten Bells show off its mastery of seafood.
Honestly, after a while you end up dropping a chunk of change because you feel like sampling everything that's available. Every dish was a tiny tasting adventure.
The wine list is a little bit overwhelming, and you have to be up close to the wall to read the selections written in chalk. But hey, they serve some beer here, too.
What I love about tapas in general, though, is the fact that you're basically getting tasting flights instead of a huge meal: Conversation becomes the centerpiece of your experience and not just the food.
Cute room and vibe; gives illusion you're an insider with lack of any signage, cool.
Surprising that a wine bar wouldn't have a Bordeaux option btg.
And if you're going to charge $12/glass do you have to pour it into a cheap mini?
Most importantly, so long as you weigh less than 105 lbs and are on a diet, you probably won't need to grab a slice on your way home.  Assuming you have any  money left.
Went here on a hot date and even though I do not know what will happen with that girl, I do know I will be back here. Â There are two rooms so it is spacious enough with its popularity. Â The main room you circulate around the bar and is more communal. Â The atmosphere is dark and romantic.
The wine list is expansive with a number of varietals. Â Sherry is very popular here. Â Bottles are slightly pricey. Â The wine we had was very good indeed. Â
Oysters were excellent. Â A bold statement is coming. Â They were the best oysters I have ever had and I am an oyster fiend. Â
The waiters were great. Â Hefty dudes that are on point when you need another glass of wine.
Don't walk past this place, literally and figuratively, Even though its impossible to find with the whole no sign anywhere in sight to help you know where it is.
My rating is based on the overall experience as opposed to just the food and service
Came here with GF and her friends for her bday here.
Upon entering, you are greeted by dim lighting, a bar and a good amount of high and low seating and tables. You are also greeted by an awesome smell of cooked cheese, which I can breath in all day (fat kid at heart)
They have tons of wine to choose from and some awesome tapas.
Tapas (Ranked on scale 1-5)
Churizo Empenada: 3.5 stars, flaky, well seasoned, and good to the last bite
Mac & Cheese: (least favorite) 2.5 stars, this is a hard one to pull off in a Tapas place, but this one was not to bad, I like mine a lot more gooey and cheesy and more flavor.
Grilled Cheese: 5 stars, Cheesy awesomeness
Cheese and Pursciutto combo platter: 5 Stars: The Brie, Blue Cheese and Goat were all top notch and the meat was fresh
Also I hear the oysters here are awesome too, will have to come back to try
The crowd here was nice and diverse and most importantly not pretentious or annoying, and the manager let us make a reservation for 15 people on a busy night, which was also pretty sweet
Interesting small wine bar that attempts to be (and largely succeeds in being) the "hidden gem" type of place. Â Fairly large selection of wines and tapas written out on blackboards, with enough seating for a few small groups and maybe a dozen or so people at the bar.
The food was overall pretty decent, and this coming from somebody who isn't a huge fan of tapas-style food. The rabbit samosa (possibly a seasonal specialty?) was pretty savory, and the crab guacamole was surprisingly good. The other dishes we had were all alright, but definitely don't expect to leave full unless you're willing to shovel out a lot of money.
The strange thing about our trip was that we asked the bartender to recommend us wines to try...and neither of us liked any of his three suggestions! I'm sure there were probably some wines on the list that we'd actually like, but it was a bit surprising that the waiter either has such different tastes or that he couldn't identify which ones of his wines were more likely to be crowd-pleasers...
All in all, this is a place that I'm glad I tried out, but I'm not sure I'd necessarily come back. I feel like I've been to both better tapas restaurants and better wine bars...though it's rare to find a decent combination of the two.
As long as you enter Ten Bells with reasonable expectations, you'll have a scrumptious meal. It's very informal, the menu is written on blackboards on the wall, the waiters are low-key and low-pressure (treat it like when you're waiting at a bar for a drink, make strong eye contact).
If you do that, you'll love the reasonable prices, the tapas style food and what brings me back... fresh fresh oysters. A solid 4 stars for 10 Bells.
Dolla dolla oysters yo! (well... $1.25 to be exact)
I've walked by this place many times and poked my head in and said I'd wanted to try it. Then one night a couple weeks ago my Homegirl and I needed a wine and tapas bar in the LES and this place kept coming up... low and behold when I showed up it was the same spot! 1) Be nice and 2) Yes, I am Blonde.
We came for the oyster happy hour - $1.25 oysters daily until 7pm. The oysters were lovely. We did a couple of glasses of Sauv Blanc to go with said oysters, which was also quite lovely. The bartender made some excellent recommendations (and had a very sexy accent to go with it!!). The space is dark, intimate, and sexy. You can sit along the U-shaped bar or in the back at small tables (the bar is where's it's at though, come early to grab a spot). In the warmer weather they open the big doors in front to give it a lovely Al Fresco feel.
We also snacked on a beet salad (my fav besides the oysters), arugula salad, and mac and cheese. All of which were quite tasty. Prices are also going to make you smile. I can see Ten Bells making a repeat performance again in my future!
I've been here a couple of times and have always had a decent experience. The staff is always very attentive and has great customer service. Â Ten Bells features their menu on the chalkboard wall which is pretty clever to reduce paper waste. Â One thing I like about Ten Bells is that you tell the waiter/manager/bartender what type of wine you're looking for and they'll run through a list of wine for you to choose from that best fits your taste. In a few of my experiences, they have chosen a great wine for me. Â Thanks!! Though the wine glasses should be bigger and wider for the wine to breathe. Â Personally I don't like to drink wine out of small and slimmer glasses. Â I'd like to just order the wine glasses for them. Â A wine experience is not complete without the right type of glass.
Another thing I like about Ten Bells is the bar that leads to you to two exits so you can sit on the left or right side of the place. Â Ten Bells is also cleverly decorated with mirrors on the walls to create the illusion of a bigger and wider space; and reflects outside sunlight throughout the bar. At night, they bring out tealights to illuminate the space to keep your experience an intimate one if you're on a date or a low-key but special one if you're out to hang out. Just wonderful.
Went with my friend and his girlfriend. The food was fine but the service was HORRIBLE. Find seats for yourself in this packed little bar? Okay. Get your own silverware and napkins? Sure.
But if I order half-a-dozen oysters, it shouldn't take 45 minutes and the party asking four times for someone to check on the crustaceans. Totally unacceptable. Same with the small plates. And the wine. I probably would have ordered more but I didn't want to wait around. Also they have a really interesting menu, its a shame no one took any time to explain it.
The best part of the whole experience was sitting next to cool travelers from Montreal.
Will never go back.
I heard so many great things about this place - the food photos look interesting, but when W, F and I came here....the worst decision I ever made when it came to food.
I like to try new places and this place has been on mind for awhile.
We got the following to share:
Tripe - disgusting. Gelatinous goo.
Pollock - the only thing that we could eat without making a face
Boquerones - I am not a fan of this and W definitely didn't even try to eat this, but I only ate this due to the omega-3 fatty acids.
Tuna stuffed piquillos - gross. This is what the waiter (he might have been the owner) recommended, but this was just disgusting and waste of money.
We were totally unhappy with our meal and not to mention the service was very inattentive.
The food came really slow, even though there were only 3 small sets of customers there.
Came here on Friday night for some eats.
Atmosphere: Very chill, cool lighting, nice long tables great for groups, was able to come in right away and not wait for a table
Service: Great service, very friendly waiters, awesome selection of wine & beer (Note *no hard alcohol) Â
Food: Mixed olives (very tasty), Empananas (awesome), Tripes gratinees (great, very fresh), beets salad (incredible), all the fishes were incredible, one w/brown sugar was to die for!!!
I've always thought that happiness resided in any place with solid $1 oysters. Well, it must have completely evaded the Ten Bells.
Why? Because there is no comprehensible reason for why a party of 8 should have to do any of the below:
- Ask for more lemons after being given 3 SLICES for 60 OYSTERS! ...can someone explain to me how to adequately allocate 3 lemons across 60 oysters?
- Ask repeatedly for the typical side of cocktail sauce only to be ignored or given a  a gruff "no" as a response before walking away
- Chase down the waiter to see if he had any other sauce to which the reply was a gruff "hot sauce"
- Be told to "take your phone off the table" ... am I at dinner with the in-laws?
- Ask for a wine recommendation and be given ONE choice that looks and tastes like Robitussin
- Sit through an entire meal without being asked if we needed anything else...all the while seeing the water stop by another table multiple times to chat
Long story short - for those not looking to just stand around the bar, the food is ok. But when you risk having to endure such blatantly disrespectful and deficient service why even bother? Especially when there are multiple more conveniently located, more appealingly decorated, more well AC'd oyster bars out there in the city for similar prices.
This is a solid choice for a casual but delicious dinner with  a couple friends or a date on a weekend night. No, it doesn't take reservations, but you probably won't need one. Just perch yourself by the bar or at one of the high tables in the back. The waitress who served us was not only adept at picking out wines we loved, she also is just awesome to talk to! My sister kept trying to get me to get her number so we could officially be friends.
The food was also delicious and extremely well-priced, especially with the upscale-ish ambiance of the place. This is a good summer place, since they throw up the front wall to the street to let the air in. It's not quite like being outside, but it's close!
I might make this my go-to for a good, affordable yet nice dinner.
I visited The Ten Bells for the first time last night, after reading about it and hearing some great things. It did not disappoint!
While I like drinking wine, I don't know very much about it and when faced with an extensive wine list, I invariably panic and order something from New York or California and hope for the best. Ten Bells specializes in French and Spanish wines, so I was totally at sea. Luckily, my server took my sad request for "Something white? Semi-dry?" and came back with a delicious French chardonnay. Moral of the story: Don't be afraid to ask questions, never worry about looking silly.
Definitely order some tapas. The steak tartare was delicious and the portion size was generous. While I know little about wine, I do know my meats, and this is raw meat done right. I also munched on some olives and bread while my companion took advantage of the before-7:00 oyster happy hour. Everything was tasty.
One thing to keep in mind: The bar area seems to get crowded quickly. Don't get ruffled if you have to share your table with another group. That just fits in with the energetic atmosphere.
Forget the wine list here, although very good and extensive, Â just ask for the house wine they are featuring that day/week and you're set!
The tapas menu is great as well.
Mut orders:
Boquerones
Tortilla Espanola
Pulpo Gallego
Tripes gratinees
Angulas salad with arugula
Papas bravas
Cheese and meat platter
I usually like to sit at the bar because it's so loud in there and easier to hear your dinner partner and the bartender/waiter for the specials as well...
Stumbled into the intriguing spot after having learned that nearby barrio chino was as usual filled up. Â At this point I was starving so since two bar seat spots were open at the ten bells we quickly grabbed them. Â There were many many options on the menu, and that made me happy! Â We needed some help deciding so we tried a few of the suggestions from the bartender. Â
**STARS**
The succulent oysters were so fresh. Â
Mushroom empanadas!!! Â So flakey and earthy -- delish! Â
Other notable things we tried that were wonderful included:
salmon tartar
meatballs
salami charcuterie
Most definitely will be back to try more delicious offerings!
$1.25 an oyster ain't bad but the little cups of wine for $10 a piece are overpriced and it quickly adds up. I didn't order any alcohol but even then I spent almost $30 on oysters and one empanada during happy hour. Our male server was strange, always unavailable whenever we needed him and when we placed our orders the look on his face made it seem like we were inconveniencing him. It took nearly 20 minutes to flag him down for our bill. I wouldn't recommend this place and I wouldn't come back.
*Sidenote: Our female server was cute and joined in on our conversation on Anthony Bourdain's NY episode. +1 star for being friendly and enjoying your job
2.5 stars
It is not like we were on a need to have not even another drop of wine. But you know, it was one of those nights. You shouldn't drink more but you don't wanna go home either. We were really close to The Ten Bells and that made the decision quite easy. Come on, isn't it one of those perfects spots? everyone love this place.
I was actually quite excited about coming back. Almost 2 years ago I went with my friend Chris there. It was the time when we were going on dates and it was another great one that night. But even so, I still remember how disappointed I was with the wine that the guy recommended us. A white form Portugal just because is close enough to Spain, my mother land, and he wanted to please me . And in fact the guy was friendly, kind and funny and we had a pleasant little chat about soccer. Who would have tell Spain would be the World cup champion several weeks later. Anyways, I drunk the wine nevertheless and focused on Chris, but it was a unfair representation of what Portuguese wines are and enough to hold me back from The Ten bells. Â
But you know, Yelp and other friends were talking about The Ten Bells in a way that made me curious about how I didn't like it at all. Because I have to say I wasn't a fan of the ambiance either. Damn light is fine, in fact it is perfect , but this place is just too dark and not having a paper menu but just write it down on the chalk boards over the walls with the sentences crowded as sardines on can, does not make things favorable to the experience.
I went back with 3 friends a couple of weeks ago. Choosing the wine was a challenge. We tried 5 different ones and didn't like any but just decided go with the last one because we had to order something. In fact, our first server seems like got tired after the 4th try and another one came at the end to deal with us. The wine wasn't good. It wasn't good at all. We order a plate with cheese and cured meat and it was nothing special but rather average or less.
Since I haven't really try the food I think it wouldn't be fair just go on the 2 stars that I think of them. Also, The Ten Bells offer organic wines which may not been made for all palates and mine it is not particularly fan of those. So I don't think I will be coming back under my own initiative. Even so, I have to say I liked 2 things: they accept credit card now. And second, I could verify that no matter how much you drink before, your palate can still distinguish. You know, the general thought that a bad wine can taste good after several good ones ... well, maybe the said is not true after all. Because if it is true .. go figure
After a great dinner (that consisted mostly of great wine), we decided to continue or fun and drinking by stopping at Ten Bells.
Ambiance and service were great. Â I wouldn't have expected the place to be a wine bar though... Â The atmosphere projected more of a regular bar, but hey, every place has its own character and this place definitely had it.
BUT, for a wine bar, this wine really didn't stack up. Â Considering that we had drank so much already, I wouldn't think I would've noticed much of a difference, but I did.
Bottom line, the wine wasn't satisfying at all.
Now that I've read the other reviews, I'll probably come back for the clams/happy hour just to see if it was just a fluke (or a bad selection of wine) being that the place seems to consistently be a 4.
There is no visible sign or street address! Â Look for the dark wine bar on the south side of the street, with two entrances between #s 145 and 149.
The waiters/bartenders are very knowledgeable about wine- always a huge plus for me. Â This sounds simple but so often it is lacking these days.
I came in with a group on a Tuesday evening and they sat us in a room in the back- it was a little secluded from the rest of the restaurant but spacious. Â The downside to this room- it had no windows or ventilation and was extremely hot.
We got two bottles of red wine- both were delicious. Â Huge, well thought out wine list!
Recommend for a date spot.
Contrary to a couple other reviews, credit cards are accepted.
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