The Best Natural Wine Bars in New York City

New York's natural wine scene has grown up. The first wave was about proving that cloudy, low-sulfur bottles from tiny growers could anchor a whole bar. The current wave is about whether a place is actually good: whether the list has a point of view, whether the food holds up, whether the staff will talk you out of the $140 bottle and into the $60 one that tastes better tonight.

This list is built on that second question. Some of these bars pour nothing but natural wine. Others, like Stars and Chambers, run broader lists where natural producers sit next to grand cru Burgundy. We included them because the people who care most about natural wine drink there. We left out a few famous names that have closed (Kindred in the East Village is gone, and Enoteca Saint VinSaint announced its closing in late 2025), and we skipped places we could not confirm are still pouring in 2026.

Everything here was checked against official sites, listings and 2025 to 2026 coverage. Prices move, lists change weekly, and the best move at every one of these bars is the same: tell the bartender what you like and let them pour.

Lower East Side and Chinatown

The densest natural wine zip code in the city. You can hit three of these on foot in an evening, and plenty of people do. Pair the crawl with our Lower East Side guide or the Chinatown guide if you want dinner first.

Wildair

Lower East Side · 142 Orchard St · $$$

The restaurant that taught a generation of New York cooks what a wine bar menu could be. The team behind Contra opened it with high-tops, communal tables and a list that wanders from Mexico to Hungary, and more than a decade in it still feels current. The beef tartare is the order people argue about, and the fried stuffed olives with a chilled red are the ideal first ten minutes.

Go for: Tartare, olives and a glass of something chilled at the bar. Know before you go: Walk-ins get seated most nights; dinner runs Tuesday to Sunday from 5:30pm.

The Ten Bells

Lower East Side · 247 Broome St · $$

Dark, loud, a little cramped, and open since 2008, which makes it the elder statesman on this list. The chalkboard runs deep into natural and biodynamic bottles from the usual French regions and from places you rarely see by the glass. The real reason regulars keep coming back is the happy hour.

Go for: $1 oysters and a $15 carafe before 7pm. Know before you go: It stays open until 1am Thursday to Saturday, which makes it a reliable last stop.

Le Dive

Lower East Side (Dimes Square) · 37 Canal St · $$

A French-accented natural wine bar at the point where Canal meets the Dimes Square crowd, with more seats on the plaza than inside. It is a scene, and it knows it. Come for a pour of skin contact, a plate of burrata or steak tartare, and a front-row view of downtown's current uniform.

Go for: Outdoor seats on a warm evening and a charcuterie board. Know before you go: No reservations, so waits can stretch on weekends. It runs late (until 2am on Saturdays).

Parcelle Chinatown

Chinatown · 135 Division St · $$$

The wine shop turned wine bar group's original room, with plush green couches, low light and a list of more than 500 selections that runs from natural producers to collectible Burgundy and Barolo. Bottle prices are sharp for the quality, and the full kitchen means you can settle in for dinner instead of snacking your way home.

Go for: A bottle you would not find elsewhere and a few plates on the couches. Know before you go: Closed Mondays; the kitchen closes at 11pm on weekends.

Lei

Chinatown · 15 Doyers St · $$$

Opened in mid-2025 on Doyers Street by restaurateur Annie Shi, Lei makes the case that wine and Chinese food belong together. The list runs past 25 pages, with Champagne, French growers, Greek bottles and wines from China itself. It calls itself wine first, but the sweet and sour short rib glazed with strawberry jam is reason enough to book.

Go for: The short rib, cumin lamb noodles and a grower Champagne. Know before you go: Reservations drop two weeks out at 9am; some walk-in seats are held.

East Village

Two very different bars a few blocks apart: one devoted to the oldest winemaking regions on earth, one built for people who read wine lists for fun. Our East Village guide covers where to go after.

Ruffian

East Village · 125 E 7th St · $$$

Ruffian has been on East 7th Street since 2016 and remains the most focused natural wine bar in Manhattan. The list leans hard into Eastern Europe and the Mediterranean: Austria, Slovenia, Georgia, Greece, with more than 35 orange wines. The mostly vegetarian food is cooked in front of you at the bar and changes with quarterly themes built around old winemaking cultures. It has held a Michelin Bib Gourmand every year since 2020.

Go for: A Georgian amber wine and whatever the current theme menu is. Know before you go: It is tiny, so book on Resy or come right at opening (4pm weekdays, 3pm weekends).

Stars

East Village · 139 E 12th St · $$$

Twelve stools around a U-shaped zinc counter, standing room behind, and a wine list of more than 1,000 bottles. Stars comes from the team behind Penny and Claud, and it is not a strict natural wine bar: you will find Selosse and Raveneau here. But 88 of those bottles are $88 or less, many from young producers, and that is where the natural wine crowd lives. The snacks are small on purpose.

Go for: A bottle from the under-$88 section and deviled eggs. Know before you go: Walk-in only, about 16 wines by the glass, and the stools go fast after 7pm.

Tribeca

Chambers

Tribeca · 94 Chambers St · $$$

The most serious wine list on this page, full stop. Master sommelier Pascaline Lepeltier oversees more than 2,000 selections, with a deep bench of natural and low-intervention growers, back vintages and a real commitment to value. Chambers is a full restaurant (and on The New York Times's 2026 list of the city's 100 best), but you can sit at the bar with a glass and a plate.

Go for: A glass from the by-the-glass list, which starts around $9, and a conversation with whoever is pouring. Know before you go: It was a 2026 James Beard finalist for its wine program, so book dinner in advance.

Williamsburg

The Brooklyn epicenter, where a rock musician's wine bar set the template and a dozen imitators followed. See the Williamsburg guide for the rest of the neighborhood.

The Four Horsemen

Williamsburg · 295 Grand St · $$$

James Murphy's wine bar opened in 2015 and has since collected a Michelin star and a James Beard Award. The list runs past 800 natural bottles, and it bridges classic and experimental without making you feel stupid for asking. Chef Nick Curtola's small plates change often and are as good as the wine. Despite the reputation, most bottles sit under $100.

Go for: Several small plates and a bottle from the middle of the list. Know before you go: Reservations drop 30 days out at 7am; walk-ins can wait at the sister bar next door.

Sauced

Williamsburg · 331 Bedford Ave · $$

There is no wine list at Sauced. You tell the bartender what you like and they pour. It sounds precious, but in practice it feels like drinking at a friend's apartment, especially out back, where the garden fills with cushions, benches and strangers who become friends. Glasses start around $13 and bottles can be had for well under $50.

Go for: The backyard on a weekend afternoon. Know before you go: No reservations and not much seating; there is a louder sibling in the East Village with a DJ booth.

With Others

Williamsburg · 340 Bedford Ave · $$

A 25-seat room with slate walls, dim light and music kept at conversation level. The list favors small, natural-minded producers and indigenous grapes from France, Italy and the US, and the staff can explain every one of them. It also runs regular wine classes and hosts rotating chef residencies, so the food changes.

Go for: Two glasses, the apero trio of olives, marcona almonds and fennel crackers, and a cheese plate. Know before you go: It is ideal for a first date; see our date night guide if you want a full dinner after.

Fort Greene, Clinton Hill and Bed-Stuy

The strongest cluster in Brooklyn right now, with four very different bars within a short ride of each other.

Place des Fêtes

Clinton Hill · 212 Greene Ave · $$$

From the team behind Oxalis, this is where natural wine and serious cooking meet most comfortably in Brooklyn. The list centers on Spain and France, especially Catalonia and the southwest, with most glasses between about $15 and $20. The seafood-forward small plates are the draw: sardine toast over smoked butter, mussels in squid ink, flounder tartare.

Go for: Sardine toast and a Catalan white on the banquettes. Know before you go: Book on Resy, but walk-ins are welcome.

Entre Nous

Clinton Hill · 39 Clifton Pl · $$$

The Fradei team's wine bar feels like a Paris side street transplanted to Clifton Place. The list is long and low-intervention, and the menu keeps it simple with a raw bar, charcuterie and French small plates. Order the seafood plateau of oysters, shrimp and mussels and a bottle of Jura Chardonnay, then order more, because portions are small.

Go for: The seafood plateau, leeks vinaigrette and something from the Jura. Know before you go: Plan on several plates if you want it to count as dinner.

Rhodora

Fort Greene · 197 Adelphi St · $$

Billed as the country's first zero-waste wine bar: no trash cans, nothing sent to landfill, and a supply chain built around that promise. It would be a gimmick if the wine were not good, but the natural list is curated by owner Henry Rich (who also runs June), and the food runs to Basque-inspired seafood, local cheese, vegetables and bread.

Go for: A glass and a cheese plate on a weeknight. Know before you go: Open every day, walk-ins welcome, from 2pm on weekends.

Frog

Bedford-Stuyvesant · 358 Marcus Garvey Blvd · $$

A natural wine bar that behaves like a neighborhood dive, in the best way. There is a pool table inside, a big shaded backyard with communal tables, a live music room next door called Tadpole, and seasonal chef pop-ups. Orange wine is a strength, and bottles are priced for lingering, not flipping tables. Fans of our dive bar guide will feel at home.

Go for: A bottle of skin contact and a game of pool. Know before you go: The backyard is the move from spring through fall; the snacks are light, so eat first.

Cobble Hill and Gowanus

June

Cobble Hill · 231 Court St · $$

Brooklyn's first natural wine bar, opened in 2015, and still one of the most pleasant rooms on Court Street. The globe lights and wood give it a slightly carnivalesque glow, the bottle list is deep, and the kitchen turns out seasonal plates to match. It opens at 10am on weekends for brunch, which is a rare thing on this list.

Go for: A weekend brunch with a glass of pét-nat. Know before you go: Open until 1am on Fridays and Saturdays.

Liar Liar

Gowanus · 285 Nevins St · $$$

The team from Bad Luck Bar built a wine bar with neighborhood-bar instincts: Martinis, a Caesar, a fried chicken sandwich, and a bottle list long on grower Champagne, Burgundy and the Loire, natural without tipping into the aggressively funky. The steak frites au poivre with a bottle of red for $69 is one of the best deals in Brooklyn. Magnums sometimes get poured by the glass.

Go for: The $69 steak frites and bottle special. Know before you go: Walk-ins only, and the booths fill early on weekends.

How to use this list

Start with the room, not the wine. If you want to learn, go to Ruffian or With Others and ask questions. If you want to eat, book Place des Fêtes, Wildair or Lei. If you want a hang, take a bottle to the backyard at Frog or Sauced. If you want to spend under $30 and still drink well, hit The Ten Bells before 7pm.

At every bar here, the most useful sentence is "I like this, what's next to it?" Natural wine rewards curiosity, and the people pouring it almost always know more than the list does. If the night keeps going, our cocktail bar guide and late-night food guide pick up where these leave off.