Just got back from dinner at Sparks with some of the Winebow salesmen. These guys work hard all year round and I don’t get to give them the thanks they deserve. 

In the days before home publishing it was difficult for restaurants to change their wine lists. Wines were priced based on the cost of the wine at the time of purchase, and they were not raised and lowered with the market. In the past 5-6 years this has all changed. The upside is that restaurants can change their menus seasonally, or even daily to keep up with food the chef finds at local farmers markets. The downside is that it becomes nearly impossible to “BEAT THE LIST”, that is, to find wines priced well under their actual value. Sparks is a restaurant where that still happens. That’s because they only print their menu every 12-18 months. The menu below is the front of a four page menu which measures about 15”w X 24”h. The next 3 pages are all wine! They have a tremendous selection (the steaks ain’t bad either!)