Bin 26 Enoteca 26 Charles Street, Boston, MA 02114

"I was sure I struck out. I’m staying at a nearby hoteland the first several restaurants to Kia called had no reservations till much later in the evening. I was worried when Bin 26 had a table for me when I wanted it, but I needn’t have been. It was one of the great evenings I have ever spent in a restaurant. Most fine restaurants are pretentious and therefore, to be honest, somewhat vulgar. I have accepted that over the years as an unfortunate precondition of inspired cooking. But I never liked it. What made this evening? Sublime was the combination of a couple of dishes as good as any I’ve tasted in any of the renowned restaurants I’ve had occasion to visit, and yet a total absence of self-consciousness and pretension. I put myself in the hands of the manager, Nair, and asked him to do me the favor of ordering for me, both my food and my wine. He brought me a few slices of rare roast beef, with Parmesan cheese and arugula, as my starter, and half a portion of Talia with scallops as the first course. it didn’t seem to matter that I was eating in reverse order. The beef was both buttery and incredibly flavorful, the pasta dish was so accented by the slightly caramelized onions that I kept chasing the sauce with pieces of bread long after I had finished eating it. the wine was some secret stash from Burgundy. For an hour or more, Nedi and I chatted about restaurants we knew near and far and what kind of cooking we liked and what a meal means to us. As the time came to part, I felt that an old friend experienced in the kitchen adjust made me dinner. The bill came, and it seemed so ridiculously small, but I added half of it on top of a tip. I have noticed on the website a few negative reviews of this restaurant. They seem to be describing someplace other than the one where I was lucky enough to die this evening, so much so that I wondered whether those diners brought those problems with them rather than encountered them there. but then not every restaurant is for every appetite. This evening, this one was definitely for mine."

"Greta place overall. Our server didn’t provide a lot of details about the wine selection, we picked 4 different wines and were happy with that we got Hanger stake and salmon were great Overall great experience It is a bit too dark, so reading the menu was a challenge"

"Came here for dinner. Great wine selection! The food was quite tasty too. Overall great atmosphere as well."

"Atmosphere: pretty cozy and welcoming! Bar looked nice and the decor heavily features wine and wine labels. Service: at this price point, service should be great. We were a large party and service was slower than expected, even with 2 waiters. Food: Smelled great, looked decent, lacked seasoning. Overall, it was “good enough” but at $30-50 per person (without a drink), the food should be perfect. Portion sizes were decent. Wine and drinks: impressive wine list! Cocktails were like the food— good enough and some were even delicious. 3.5/5, wouldn’t be my first choice, especially when there are so many amazing Italian restaurants in Boston. Better than average but the relative cost of the food definitely brings it down."

"The food was good. However, the service was AWFUL. The lady at the entrance ignored us for a few minutes before letting us sit at a table. Then, most of the waiters were really not nice. Also, even if the food is good, the quantities are VERY VERY VERY small, it is WAY too expensive for what it is. 15$ for a tiny plate of spaghetti! It's pasta with only tomato sauce!! 16$ for 2 overcooked eggs, 2 tiny slices of bread and 3 slices of bacon???"