by Kristen Wile

Biblio is offering a new tasting menu. Kristen Wile/UP

Biblio is kicking off a tasting menu option this week, offering a more traditional dining experience for guests. Until now, the restaurant has acted in reverse of the traditional paired meal, asking guests to select wines from Biblio’s collection first. The kitchen then prepares dishes to pair with those exact wines. However, for guests who don’t have a strong wine preference, the experience can be intimidating. 

“There’s two different ways that our guests come into Biblio,” Biblio chef/owner Sam Hart says. “One is that they know what kind of wine they love and they want to see what food we prepare with it. And some people want to learn more about wine, and they just know that the food is going to be solid. So with this, we’re fitting either section of our guests  — we’re either going to help you discover new stuff, or we’re going to help you discover more things that can go with your favorite wine.”

Biblio is the wine-focused sister concept to Counter-, the West Charlotte restaurant that earned Hart the title of James Beard Finalist for Best Chef: Southeast. It opened late last year, and shares a space with Counter- on East Morehead Street. The new tasting menu will feature five courses (plus an amuse and intermezzo) that change each week, and be available on a walk-in as well as reservation basis. Hart says their hope is to pour wines guests haven’t heard of or, in the case of the high end pairing, wines they haven’t tried.

“The goal is if you know more than one of the wines that we brought for you, then we didn’t do our job right,” Hart says. 

There are two pairing options: the Atlas pairing and the Storyteller pairing. The Atlas pairing costs $185, and highlights lesser known wines from around the world. The Storyteller pairing will feature more rare and vintage wines, with a cost of $350. 

The new menu was officially added Tuesday, July 18.