Pairings Wine Bar — Restaurant in England

A very mixed experience at Pairings York.

First of all, the positives. The food and drink was absolutely delicious. Particular highlights included: the gordal olives to start, the creamy Clara goat cheese, the gooey Bourgogne "Brie on steroids", and the Rest of the World premium wine flight. The decor is additionally charming with good space between dining tables.

Unfortunately, with 10 minutes to go on our table time and as we were eating the final mouthfuls of our desserts, the next booking arrived early. Rather than ask the new booking to take a seat at the bar and have some starting drinks, we were asked to move in order for the new booking to take our place, 10 minutes early. We had not been slow to eat or drink and had been ready to order on every occasion when the hostess had approached us. This was an extremely disappointing end to our evening and left us feeling like since we had already spent our money, we were no longer important. We had actually booked to go again with a larger party halfway through our meal as we were so impressed with the quality of the food which as mentioned earlier, was delicious, but due to this poor handling of the situation from the staff, we have now cancelled this and won't be returning.

Most items on the menu can be adapted to gluten free (or non-gluten) alternatives (bread and crackers). However, Pairings cannot guarantee there will be no cross contamination and given the nature of the food on offer and lack of available preparation space, I would not recommend this as safe for coeliacs, only for gluten...

Gosh this place is incredible. Coming here was a spare of the moment decision for me and my girlfriend but we definitely didn't regret it! The decor instantly impressed us, very sophisticated but still cosy and endearing. We were met by a lovely staff member, I sadly didn't catch his name but he was very attentive and you could recognise his genuine care for our experience. He guided us over to our cosy corner table with a beautiful teal chair surrounded by gorgeous wallpaper. Then he instantly asked us if we needed some water because of the heat outside, never had such caring service before! We didn't once have to ask for a refill either as the staff were so attentive they saw we had ran out and provided us a refill without even needing to ask. When It came to ordering there was just so much choice on the menu but thankfully our waiter was very patient with us. We finally decided on the deli board in which were able to customise and two wine flights. Every little attention to detail wasn't forgotten, from little tags explaining the wine to flowers on the deli board almost making a piece of art. Purely the experience is indescribable and we were in heaven. The playlist was also amazing... Fleetwood Mac, delicious food and wine can't get any better can it? The only minor issue we found that there just weren't enough crackers but we'll make sure to ask for extra on our next visit. I also highly recommend that other customers trying the truffle cheddar and the duck, my mouth's watering...

On 18th April 2022 I brought my Mum here for her birthday. We were seen to by Sam and I cannot recommend Pairings, or Sam, enough!

Firstly it looks gorgeous, homely, clean, cosy.

It's well worth the price - the wines are delicious, catered to your taste and dietary requirements and the wealth of knowledge is astounding!

We were seen to quickly, and Sam was above and beyond amazing! He genuinely made the day! His expertise is second to none, and he didn't seem to mind us asking a million questions! I honestly didn't realise how much artistry and science went into making wine! He's clearly passionate about all things wine, and it's exciting listening to someone speak about what they're passionate about! Professional and friendly, he didn't make us feel stupid for admitting we knew zilch about wine. We learnt loads (especially to give up a couple of particular brands I shan't mention here 😂). He even gave a great book and app recommendation to follow up on for future wine learning. He was even so lovely as to give my Mum a glass of bubbly when he found out it was her birthday. We left very merry and honestly had the best time! Bought a bottle of our favourite wine as well, of course, to take home!

Will 100% be back next time we're York-bound!

Thank you Sam for being so funny, friendly and brilliant! Thank you Pairings...