The Wine Loft - 3 Turkeys

We went up to Kalamazoo, MI to visit some friends this past weekend and they took us out for the night.  I'm not too familiar with the restaurant scene in Kzoo but when we entered The Wine Loft I felt as if I had entered a chic big city lounge.  They had a DJ spinning and a mix of high top tables and little nooks around the bar with couches and plush chairs.  All the nooks were separated by sheer champagne curtains.  Interestingly, everyone I was with commented on how "cool" the bathrooms were.  I don't know about you but there aren't a lot of places where I've taken such an interest in the bathroom decor.  Almost more than the decor in the bar area.

We quickly grabbed a cozy couch near the entrance.  Although it was well past 10 PM I was still famished.  The table opted for some Pumpkin Ravioli with Sage Butter and some Sliders.  The Ravioli lacked noticeable pumpkin flavor and the Sage Butter was really just pure butter.  It was overall too oily for my tastes.  The sliders were OK - the meat bordered on the overcooked side but the buns were perfectly grilled.

To go with our light fare we asked our waitress for some suggestions.  She recommended the Three Thieves Cabernet (California) which we thought sounded delicious.  However, she returned minutes later to tell us they were out - seems like a popular selection.  As we perused the remaining selections we came across one called Hullabaloo.  Although the waitress didn't seem too thrilled with our selection we stuck with it - we are heading to the music festival this summer in Louisville with the same nomer!  Check it out - HullabaLOU.

The wine turned out to be pretty good - much better than the waitress led us to believe.  When she tried to take the bottle away I asked to keep it so I could snap a photo and slipped that I was a blogger.  I couldn't believe I slipped that out - I hate that.  Then she kept making comments about me blogging and when she brought us extra water she said, "Blog It!"  At first I was a bit embarrassed but then I couldn't figure her out.  I wasn't sure if she was being rude or being overly friendly so I would blog about it.  Guess I'll never know.

Good note for us local Cincinnatians - there is a Wine Loft location in Dayton.  I'd be willing to check it out if there is a similar atmosphere.  The food just didn't impress me at the Kzoo location but it could have been just that location.  The menu had an interesting selection which included a few varieties of Ravioli, Lamb Wellington, and seafood cakes.  

The DJ definitely added to the mood of the bar until he started to pack things up at 12:30 AM.  A solid hour before last call.  Needless to say we headed to the next bar on the list where things were sure to stay lively for the next couple hours.  Right as we were heading out we spotted the Mayor of KZoo - from the sounds of it he likes to get out and enjoy the local restaurants.

Score: 30 points

Ambiance (4), Tastiness of Dishes (4), Menu (3), Drink Selection (4), Cost (5), Accessibility (3), Service (4), Location (3)