Cork Wine Bar and Market
Restaurant · U Street ·
Old World wines, New American small plates & market
Old World wines, New American small plates & market
"Furloughed workers are flocking in from 3 p.m. for European wines starting at $5 a glass and $7 avo toast or fries, and owner Diane Gross says business has been steady as people come early and order lots of wine." - Tierney Plumb
"Down the street, the increased policing is a turn-off for guests, with co-owner Khalid Pitts saying, "They're making their presence felt and not in a way that makes people feel safe." - Tierney Plumb
"The refreshed outdoor area has been reimagined as a pink-and-white wine garden accented with glowing Japanese lanterns and lush greenery, serving a seasonal rosé-focused drink menu (including frosé and frozen cocktails) alongside summer bites such as crab ricotta fritters and housemade gravlax with seeded focaccia, and it may host pop-ups from local hot-dog-and-soft-serve operators this season." - Emily Venezky
"Co-owned since 2007 by Khalid Pitts and Diane Gross—who are described as "openly liberal" and who "boldly sued the president during his first administration, claiming his fame and political stature gave his then-Trump International Hotel — a government-owned property along prominent Pennsylvania Avenue NW — an unfair competitive advantage with other businesses" (a federal judge later sided with Trump and dismissed the David-and-Goliath case)—this 14th Street NW wine bar and market gets the vast majority of its wine from Europe and also operates a second wine shop in Spring Valley. Customers were able to buy bottles, six-packs, and cases at a 10- to 15-percent discount last week, and Gross noted "Lots of neighborhood people and regulars stocked up so they could get deals before the tariffs hit." She warns those savings may not last: those pre-tariff discounts were "35-percent off what prices may eventually wind up at under the \"huge and destructive\" tariffs," says Gross. Asked how the new tariffs will affect the shop, Diane Gross responded in full: "95 percent of our wine is from Europe, so the impact of large tariffs would have been significant and game changing for us. We may have been forced to close. The 20 percent is certainly better, but certainly not good by any means — and the fact that it’s across the board means it affects all our wine and specialty food items from Italy and France especially. These are prices that already rose and really never came down after the first European tariffs in the first Trump administration." On suppliers and customers she said: "The bottom line is we work with small importers and distributors and small farmers in Europe, [so] there is not a lot of room to absorb these tariffs, especially for smaller businesses. Our margins are already quite small and at the same time consumers can’t handle more price increases. So we are going to have to get very creative because for us there is no option to pivot to selling something else — Old World is what we have done for over 17 years." On near-term pricing plans she said: "We are going to hold off on increasing prices as long as we can. There is a lot of wine here, many of our importers were able to stock up a bit so we should be able to carry on for a while without increases and then they have promised to help us and give us notice as prices rise so we can make decisions about offering the wines. Favorites are not going away but we are going to bring a rotating amount of new products in so that we can avoid price increases as long as possible. In the end if the tariffs stick, I expect wine prices to rise between 10 to 20 percent." On political action and industry impacts she said: "We have been talking to elected officials and the media about the tariffs and the implications for our business and also for American wines. No one wants these tariffs — higher prices hurt all wine consumption and perceptions of the cost of wine and that is a loser for everyone in the industry." She also emphasized community efforts: "The silver lining is that the community is rallying: Winemakers are helping distributors, who are helping restaurants and retailers, who in turn are doing what they can to delay or limit price increases." - Tierney Plumb
"A neighborhood wine bar that’s normally closed Mondays begins happy hour early on Tuesday from 1 p.m. to 7 p.m. (usually 4 p.m. to 6 p.m.), with select wines for $6–$8, French fries for $6, avocado toast for $7, and its every-Tuesday grilled cheese promo as an additional draw." - Tierney Plumb
