NEW HOURS // WEEKLY BRUNCH

With our third anniversary approaching and with new restaurants opening up all around us, we here at Secco got a little reflective. “Who are we? What do we do well? What can we do without?”

So, we concluded our terrible twos with a series of adjustments designed to whittle Secco down to its essence and make it a lean, mean wine-slinging machine. In March, we revamped our wine program; in April we reworked our menu. Now we’re doing the same with our daily operations. Beginning next week, Secco will adjust its hours, ditch lunch and double down on brunch.

SECCO’S NEW HOURS
Monday through Friday: 3PM – midnight
Saturday and Sunday: 11AM – midnight

Weekday’s we’ll open at 3PMwith our full dinner menu available.
Drawing on the popularity of our monthly Beer Brunch, Secco will now serve brunch EVERY Saturday and Sunday from 11-3PM! Secco’s weekly brunch kicks off on Saturday, May 18, 2013; menus and more info coming soon.

-Matt

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Italian Wine & Cheese Pairing Class — Tuesday, April 30, 2013 ($45)

A bunch of fellow Italophiles, exciting wines from all over Italy and delicious cheeses made from everything from goat to buffalo milk. What’s not to love? Owner Julia Battaglini (of Tuscan descent) will guide you through a wine-tasting tour from North to South, and resident Cheese Punk Nicole Lang (with her own, Napolitana heritage) will help you expertly match them to a variety of traditional formaggio. Viva Italia!

The Italian Wine & Cheese Pairing class takes place on Tuesday, April 30, 2013 from 6:30-8pm at The Room at Secco (2931 W. Cary St). Tickets are $45 and include food, drink and loads of information. Email nicole@seccowinebar.com and reserve your spot today!

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APRIL BEER BRUNCH @ SECCO WINE BAR
Sunday, April 28, 2013

Brunch Menu (available 11AM-3PM)

house-made doughnut with lamplighter icing, almonds & cocoa nibs

smoked chorizo sausage on a toasted split-top bun with onions, peppers & cheesy scrambled eggs, served with a green salad

tempura soft shell crab benedict on buttermilk biscuits with Thai red curry hollandaise & grilled bok choy

smoked poblano pepper stuffed with “undirty” rice, over black beans with avocado cream, queso fresco, charred lime & eggs

pork sausage gravy & fried eggs over herbed buttermilk biscuits

chocolate chip pancakes with tart cherry compote, maple syrup & whipped butter, served with bacon and potatoes
(vegetarian version available)

veal meatballs with roasted mushrooms, fregula, tomato sauce & fried eggs

chilled turnip soup with basil, radish & evoo croutons

salad of mixed greens, shaved fennel, grilled green beans, goat cheese, hard cooked egg & olive brine vinaigrette

egg salad on fresh dill bread with cornichons & red onion, served with a green salad

…The complete list of beers remains TBD….

The fine print: This is not a ticketed event, all items are served a la carte. As is the norm, seating will be done on a first come/first served basis, with reservations being taken only for parties of five to eight (info@seccowinebar.com or 804.353.0670). Please keep in mind the size of our establishment  – the smaller your party, the more quickly we can accommodate you.

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SPRING RESTAURANT WEEK at SECCO WINE BAR
April 22 – 28, 2013, 5pm – 10pm daily
$25.13 per person, exclusive of tax and tip; 10% donated to FEEDMORE charities
$5 off all wine by-the-bottle for RW diners

First Course — Build Your Own Cheese and/or Cured Meat Plate (Pick Two)

brillat savarin (FR) creamy, rich butter-bomb

p’tite Basque (FR) semi-soft, sweet & smooth

jamon serrano (SP) 17-month salt-cured ham

wild boar salame (VA) applewood-smoked, cured with garlic & sangiovese

Second Course — Small Plates (Pick Two)

gnocchi sardi, asparagus, green garlic butter, dukkah breadcrumbs

bacon wrapped monkfish, English peas, shimeji mushrooms, tarragon sauce

soft boiled eggs, marinated Spanish white anchovies, potato crisps, fresh herbs

turnip & idiazabal croquettes, ramp mayo

sauteed squid, pan roasted artichokes, mint pesto, crushed hazelnuts

spicy lamb sausage, tomato-berbere jam, brown buttered barley & scallion

Third Course – Desserts (Pick One)

Ricotta tart with strawberries in vin cotto

vanilla flan with bourbon caramel, macerated dried cherries, smoked walnuts & basil

espresso-salted caramel gelato

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Next month Secco Wine Bar will turn three years old. THREE! In restaurant years, that’s like mid-thirties.

Accordingly, it’s often around this point in a restaurant’s life span where things start to run on auto-pilot. You have your menu, your method of operations–now do it that way until you die or you pay someone else to do it for you. Set it and forget it.

Well apparently, that plan doesn’t jive for a group of masochists tirelessly creative individuals like us at Secco. Hot on the heels of announcing our entirely new way of doing wine, Chef Tim and company are following suit with a brand new food menu. The antipasti, small plates, cheese and charcuterie you know and love are now supplemented with an expanded selection of house-made pastas and a few larger plates.

Feast your eyes on the menu HERE, and check out pics of some new dishes below. No licking the screen please.

manilla clams, cava, white beans, green garlic, smoked paprika

cocoa pasta, bacon, chicken livers, peanuts & cilantro

grass-fed beef burger, house dill pickles, fried egg, herb mayo

Cheers,

Matt

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Unless you’ve been living under a rock (and by that I mean “not following us on twitter”) you’ve probably seen this video.

This creepy, mustachioed gent is not just a dancer of incredible grace and dexterity, he is also a messenger for a bold new regime here at Secco. As part of our ongoing effort to get Richmond to Drink Something Different, we are changing the way we do wine. For starters, we’ve scrapped our drink menus. Filling the void is a chalkboard wine list and our friendly and knowledgeable servers.

You see, our staff kinda rocks, and  we’re not the only ones saying that. Our happiest customers tend to be those who put themselves in our hands. And now, we’re writing that experience into the Secco DNA.

Furthermore, ditching the lists grants greater freedom and fluidity with what we stock. Translation: more new stuff, more weird stuff, more changes, more fun!

Cheers!

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Tuesday, March 26th 6:30-8pm: A Night in Barcelona ($50)

Icy cold Txakoli washing down tiny anchovies wrapped around salty almonds, fruity garnaxta rosat pairing perfectly with traditional Catalan pa ‘amb tomaquet (tomato-rubbed crusty bread), full-bodied Priorat matching up with spicy chorizo–did you just stumble into a Pintxos Bar in the Gothic quarter? No, just a Tuesday night in The Room at Secco Wine Bar.

Come (virtually) explore the coolest food city in the world (ok, tied with Paris) with us 6:30-8:00pm 3/26. We’ll taste classic Spanish bar snacks paired with an array of Catalunyan & Basque wines & cider. Part wine pairing and part travelogue, we’ll talk wine regions and foodways. Maybe even learn a little dialect for that wild taxi ride from the airport to the sketchy micro-hotel in Barcelonetta…Txin Txin! (The gentleman above is the iconic owner of Bar Pinotxo in the center of the Boqueria–my hero for making us eat oxtail & drink Estrella at 8am.)

Menu

octopus with smoked paprika and extra virgin olive oil

chorizo and potatoes with olive aioli

tortilla Espanola

gildas (olive, anchovy and pepper skewers)

ham and Idiazabal croquettes

fried cauliflower

The Night in Barcelona takes place on Tuesday, March 26, 2013 from 6:30-8pm at The Room at Secco (2931 W. Cary St). Tickets are $50 and include food, drink and loads of information. Email nicole@seccowinebar.com and reserve your spot today!

- Julia

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As you probably know, we’ve converted the old River City Cellars into a lovely private events space next door to Secco: “The Room.” In addition to being available for all sorts of small/medium-sized soirees*, it’s also perfect for classes. So we are thrilled to announce our new class schedule for the beginning of 2013…

Tuesday, April 16th 6:30-8:00pm: Meet the Cheesemaker ($55)
We have been die-hard fans of the folks at Caromont Farm  in Esmont, VA for years. Their cheeses are sublime and can be found in all the best restaurants & markets from NYC to Georgia. Come taste through a selection of these gems with wine, beer & cider pairings.  Cheeses available for sale after class–get ‘em straight from the source!

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Tuesday, March 19th 6:30-8pm: Aperitif & Cheese Pairing ($50)
Our very own Cheese Queen/Food Punk/Professional Bar Fly Nicole teams up with Jake Parrott of Haus Alpenz (importers extraordinaire of Dolin, Cocchi & Cardamaro–proper cocktail essentials) to teach you the fine art of beginning & ending meals. Learn how to make the Cardamaro Manhattan & the Secco Spritzer while experiencing wondrous cheese matches. You will be converted into a diehard vermouth fan, guaranteed!

The Aperitif & Cheese Pairing class takes place on Tuesday, March 19, 2013 from 6:30-8pm at The Room at Secco (2931 W. Cary St). Tickets are $50 and include food, drink and loads of information. Email nicole@seccowinebar.com and reserve your spot today!

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feBREWary BEER BRUNCH @ SECCO WINE BAR
Sunday, February 24, 2013

Brunch Menu (available 11AM-3PM)

coffee cake w/ molasses butter

roasted beets, mixed greens, whipped chèvre, orange vinaigrette, walnuts & smoked honey

celery root soup w/ lemon & chives (option to add fried egg)

grilled porchetta, egg & cheese on house made bun w/ tomato mustarda & house fries

apple, fennel, gruyere & whole grain mustard panino on sub rosa polenta bread w/ house fries

huevos rancheros w/ cilantro crema (option to add braised pork)

French toast w/ vanilla butter, maple syrup, pear compote, house bacon & hash browns

shrimp & scallop quiche w/ mixed green salad

veal meatballs w/ creamy herbed polenta, tomato sauce & fried egg

This month’s Beer Brunch will showcase a tap takeover by Roseland, VA’s Devil’s Backbone Brewery. Drafts will include DB’s Swartz Bier (a toasty, german-style black lager), Belgian Congo Pale Ale (an IPA brewed with a belgian yeast strain), and a special edition of DB’s Danzig Baltic porter spiked with local coffee.

The fine print: This is not a ticketed event, all items are served a la carte. As is the norm, seating will be done on a first come/first served basis, with reservations being taken only for parties of five to eight (info@seccowinebar.com or 804.353.0670). Please keep in mind the size of our establishment  – the smaller your party, the more quickly we can accommodate you.

PLEASE NOTE: Because the last Sunday in March is Easter, there will be no beer brunch next month.

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