Vino Italian Tapas and Wine Bar

Menu was limited but the appetizer and pasta we ate was good.  Service was a bit slow.  They overcharged us on our wine but I had them reconcile the bill.  This shouldn't really happen at a reputable place.

Pasta and Wine! YUMMMMMMMMM :3

We heard about their happy hour specials so we came down to check it out. Unfortunately the bar was packed, so there wasn't enough seats for us. Then again there was four of us, hoping for four seats at the bar was a bit much I guess! LOL, anyway - to get happy hour prices you only can sit at the bar.  -- So we decided to just order off the regular menu.  

The waitress said we could pick any table we wanted. So we found an area we felt comfortable in. First impression of the restaurant - very dark, romantic like feel to it. When we were there they didn't have any music playing so it made it a little awkward with silence. After an hour the music finally came on.

Vino has a great selection of wines, from the glass and to order by the bottle. During our meal we went through different whites and reds. All delicious. Some wines worked better then others depending what we were eating. <a href="http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/vino-italian-tapas-and-wine-bar-honolulu?select=s_VLvqrRdw0jQG5lq97p-g#s_VLvqrRdw0jQG5lq97p-g">http://www.yelp.com/biz_…</a>

THE GRUB!!
"Burrata" Housemade Mozzarella --  $13 When I first read this off the menu I was like mehhhhhhhhh doesn't sound that great. But since it was highly recommended, we just HAD to try it. I was super happy we did! It was yummy and I would definitely recommend everyone to try it.   <a href="http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/vino-italian-tapas-and-wine-bar-honolulu?select=c_8Kf-DaGPpSqWozM7srPA#N8ZEfTNrlZ8csIjXpjSsWg">http://www.yelp.com/biz_…</a>

Cheese & Salumi Platter -- $13 saLUmi? That's an interesting way to say salami? LOL Definietly had to try it just because they call it salumi. Who doesn't love wine, cheese and meat!  <a href="http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/vino-italian-tapas-and-wine-bar-honolulu?select=zmJNTbANiOQIxa9GbxdlqQ#zmJNTbANiOQIxa9GbxdlqQ">http://www.yelp.com/biz_…</a>

Twin Bridges Waialua Asparagus Milanese -- $17 This dish was good. I haven't had asparagus in a very long time so I enjoyed this a lot. The asparagus is topped with one egg over easy and some mushrooms. The waiter even cuts it for you! Which is super helpful for sharing, other wise your stuck with long huge pieces. <a href="http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/vino-italian-tapas-and-wine-bar-honolulu?select=c_8Kf-DaGPpSqWozM7srPA#c_8Kf-DaGPpSqWozM7srPA">http://www.yelp.com/biz_…</a>

Pan Seared Hudson Valley Foie Gras -- $19 I honestly don't care for Foie Gras in general. This one was decent, more on the sweeter side because of the raspberry syrup drizzle.  <a href="http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/vino-italian-tapas-and-wine-bar-honolulu?select=C6SUL46O7gl5D5D6yNqp4w#C6SUL46O7gl5D5D6yNqp4w">http://www.yelp.com/biz_…</a>

Big Isand Smoked Pork -- $18 This pasta was good. I enjoyed it and I loved how it came with an egg on top! I love eggs :D Haha. However the photo doesn't make it look that great cause the waiter mixed everything together before I was able to get a photo of it T_T   <a href="http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/vino-italian-tapas-and-wine-bar-honolulu?select=5g0baFUP4IT-9CVEO5fzIg#5g0baFUP4IT-9CVEO5fzIg">http://www.yelp.com/biz_…</a>

Ligurian Style "Trofie" Pasta -- $15 I cant believe they HAND make and roll this pasta. That looks like a lot of work!! Another thing that makes this pasta interesting is that it is eggless. So it makes the pasta more dense and chewy, but still good.  <a href="http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/vino-italian-tapas-and-wine-bar-honolulu?select=vZzBc3dokyDE8suDC4fM9w#vZzBc3dokyDE8suDC4fM9w">http://www.yelp.com/biz_…</a>

Crispy Shrimp that was on special. I thought the shrimp was good. It comes with shell on. The shrimp as crispy but lying on top of some sauce, which tasted great. However I felt the sauce should be on the side because if you let the shrimp sit too long, it would get all soggy and loose its crispy-ness.  <a href="http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/vino-italian-tapas-and-wine-bar-honolulu?select=bT_JDI5qkqpo3R-kzXfJtQ#bT_JDI5qkqpo3R-kzXfJtQ">http://www.yelp.com/biz_…</a>

Red Wine Braised Lamb Shank -- $23 I thought the lamb tasted good, however it was a little dryyyy <a href="http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/vino-italian-tapas-and-wine-bar-honolulu?select=oPbggtmLXkO5Ph3kgcW2Mw#oPbggtmLXkO5Ph3kgcW2Mw">http://www.yelp.com/biz_…</a>

Apple Tart - FANTASTIC :3 <a href="http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/vino-italian-tapas-and-wine-bar-honolulu?select=c_8Kf-DaGPpSqWozM7srPA#slXISP8cF_KtRKenYWdXbg">http://www.yelp.com/biz_…</a>

Chocolate Ice Cream <a href="http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/vino-italian-tapas-and-wine-bar-honolulu?select=2_SVoA625ZhnUVdLrqJgbg#2_SVoA625ZhnUVdLrqJgbg">http://www.yelp.com/biz_…</a>

OVERALL: My overall experience here was good.  Our waitress for the night was a little slow and not very attentive. When we were there, it wasn't busy so I feel like there wasn't any excuse for making us wait and having to flag you down to order more glasses of wine. Aside from that, I love the selection of wines and the fact I had the opportunity to try so many different dishes. I definitely would like to come back and try more things of course.

I've Now been to Vino twice and won't be going back unless I can snag a bar seat for happy hour. The prices are a little steep to make this a regular for me.

The first time I went was for a romantic celebration dinner with my fiance we each had a few glasses of wine, the kcc farmers market salad (changes with what's available), pizza of the day, and the kabocha ravioli. The salad was yummy, sweet beets and local greens. Pizza of the day was some version of a margarita with a very thin and friday crispy crust...average. The kabocha ravioli was AH-mazing! Three lil ravioli in a pool of oil and light drizzles of pesto with a sprinkle of parmesan cheese and toasted almonds. And three juicy prawns. Inside the soft pillows was a puree of the kabocha and sweet potato which went with the salty oil perfectly. I savored each tiny bite. The Only qualms I had were that there were only three (tear), and they were swimming in a flash flood of oil. The chefs could be a little kinder to my arteries...and my diet for that matter.

The second time I tried an oyster with ponzu sauce, reordered my beloved raviolis (they were better the first time), and had some awesome wine (a great white- not too dry, don't remember the name)! The highlight of my second visit was being able to sample wine before I ordered a glass and getting a glimpse of master sommelier Chuck Furuya hosting a wine dinner the next table over.