With Bar Birba, the For All Things Good Team Goes All Italian

1. Bar Birba leans more traditional than trendy.

Diaz designed Bar Birba with space — and an homage to the classics — in mind. “It’s got an old-school, minimalist Italian bistro vibe,” he says, citing the bar’s small tables, big French windows, and overall airy feel. Italian architect and interior designer, Ilaria Edera, helped Diaz select the space’s green-dominant color palette, as well as curate vintage Italian advertisements and magazine clippings for the walls. “A number of winery and amaro producers actually sent us some of their prints,” he adds.

Homage to tradition also carries over to the kitchen, where chef Jared Berrien embraces simple, well-executed recipes. “We aim to serve true Italian aperitivi, or tapas — that is, really minimalist, classic recipes that pair well with wine,” Diaz says. The kitchen program also focuses heavily on seasonality, and changes much of their offerings based on what produce local purveyors have available. “However,” says Diaz, “the polpette and arancini will never leave — they’re just classic.”

2. The wine list highlights lesser-known Italian grapes and producers.

Diaz and Edinger both come from decades-long wine backgrounds and prioritize bottle quality over producer popularity. They also align on philosophies surrounding winemaking, which means ensuring that humanity is valued over dogma. “​​I like to remember that these winemakers are farmers, so I prefer to be a little more open-minded about things,” he says, citing the use of minimal sulfur at bottling as the winemaker’s decision. Above all, Diaz and Edinger do their own research when it comes to the wines offered at Bar Birba, including tasting everything firsthand.

However, in terms of selections, Diaz is pretty firm about keeping the list 100% Italian. “I just think that there’s enough beautiful wine coming out of Italy, so we don’t have to go beyond that — we can do a deep dive into Italian wine here,” he says, adding that Birba’s bottle list is growing, and the goal is to have it become an encyclopedia for lesser-known Italian grapes and producers. Although the selections rotate regularly, Diaz cites Franco Terpin, Giuseppe Cipolla, and Il Cancelliere as staples on the list. “Terpin does a lot of skin-contact wines that are the cleanest-yet-funkiest wines you’ll ever have, and Cipolla makes some of the best Sicilian wines I’ve ever tasted,” he says.

3. Pairing everything together is half the fun.

“What’s fun about pizza is that it’s such a good medium to serve with wine, as every wine can pair with a pizza, depending on what you’re making,” says Diaz. For spicier pizzas, he reaches for something off-dry, and classic Lambruscos are one of his favorite picks for pairing with margherita pies.

Beyond pizza and wine, a variety of ever-changing aperitivi, including burrata with radicchio and balsamic, crudo al mare, and short rib ragu with polenta, round out the menu. For sipping alongside the snacks, the bar whips up house spritzes, along with custom libations; the Far l’Amore features espresso and Ramazzotti shaken over ice, while the house-batched Negroni Bianca offers something with a bit more punch. To keep things inclusive, a variety of non-alcoholic options are offered at all times; current picks include non-alcoholic Peroni, a zero-proof spritz, and Lurisia Aperitivo, made from Piedmontese wormwood.

4. The pizza-making has an eccentric side.

Diaz reveals that when Bar Birba first opened, he didn’t know how to make pizza very well. Initially, he stuck with a classic northern Italian style but as time went on, he and the kitchen shifted toward a more Roman-style pizza, featuring a very thin crust and a less doughy texture. “It’s a lot crunchier, crispier, and just really fun,” he says.

Bar Birba’s pizzas are personal-sized, and the majority of their pies come and go based on what’s seasonally available. However, one esoteric pizza has made a reputation for itself amongst Bar Birba’s regulars, regardless of its anti-Italian nature. “We’ve leaned away from tradition with the Don’t Tell Nonna, which is made with pepperoni, salsa bianca — AKA ranch dressing — and a sesame seed crust,” he says. “I hated this pizza in theory, then said this is the best pizza I’ve ever had. I ate it every day for probably two weeks straight!”

5. It’s a wine lovers’ destination, but community comes first.

Above all, Diaz says that Bar Birba is meant to be a place for the neighborhood, not just a destination for fans of natural wine (although those guests are most certainly welcome). “If you look at our menu, everything’s very reasonably priced,” he says, emphasizing that he and the team do everything they can to ensure that locals can enjoy the space regularly.

Similarly, the bar hosts a daily aperitivi hour from 5 to 7 p.m. “During this time, we give you a free aperitivi bite — usually an arancini or slice of pizza (we’ll make a few daily and cut them up) — with every drink purchase,” Diaz says. It’s a perfect spot for date night, ‘accidental’ dinner, or “the place to go when you don’t really know where you want to go out,” he says.

6. The name pays homage to the spirit of the bar itself.

The word “birba” translates to troublemaker in Italian and came from a documentary about Italian truffle hunters. “The film follows these old Italian men and their truffle hunting dogs; one of them is named Birba, and it’s just so cute,” Diaz says, explaining that the nickname resonated because of how the quick opening of the bar happened. “We were offered the space and signed the lease in two weeks, which felt sort of mischievous — like we’re the little troublemakers in the neighborhood,” he says.

Bar Birba is open daily from 5 p.m. to midnight Tuesday through Saturday and from 4 to 10 p.m. on Sunday.

Vicki Denig is a wine, food, and travel journalist based between New York and Paris. When not writing or traveling, she enjoys running, indoor cycling classes, and hanging out with friends on her rooftop. Follow her on Instagram. 

Ben Hon is a New York–based food photographer whose work highlights chefs, restaurants, and the culture of dining. His photography captures both the artistry of the plate and the people and stories that bring it to life, from NYC to abroad. Follow him on Instagram. Follow Resy, too.