By Brian Ries
Like to eat at SideBern's but scared of the prices (or the SoHo social scene)? Now you can eat the food for free in the comfort of your own home! All you need to do is buy a bottle — or a dozen bottles — of wine.
Starting Wednesday, Oct. 3, Bern's Fine Wines and Spirits will be offering single serving takeout meals cooked in the SideBern's kitchen for just $19.91. The fare will be a bit homier than the standard world-spanning cuisine of Jeannie Pierola, like chili con carne with avocado salad and cornbread, or chicken thighs with potato purée and chocolate mousse.
How do you get the fancy potluck for free? There's a sliding discount based on how much you spend on wine. Take home a few bottles of everyday wine for around $50 and you'll save $4 on dinner; spend $100 and save $9, or $150 and save $14. Buy a special $200 grand cru Burgundy that perfectly matches your plastic container of short ribs and polenta and Bern's will throw the meal in for free.
Enjoying a $200 bottle of wine, a box of takeout and a TiVo'd episode of Top Chef in your underwear? That's what I do every Wednesday night!
This article appears in Sep 26 – Oct 2, 2007.