There’s no shortage of things to do in here in the Fort Bragg/Fayetteville North Carolina area.
This was proven again last week when I attended a girls evening thanks to the Fayetteville Visitors Center at the Wine Cafe in historic downtown Fayetteville. What I already love about downtown Fayetteville is the eclectic mix of modern, trendy, nostalgic shops and eateries that makeup the Hay St area. Add in brick sidewalks, cobblestone streets, and a Wine Cafe and you have a clear winner!
The Wine Cafe located at 108 Hay St is a shining gem in the area owned by retired military spouse Angela Malave. Angela says she fell in love with the people in the area and wanted to start a business. While sitting in her backyard sipping wine one evening with her husband it hit her like a lightbulb that she wanted to sell things from different areas and wine was what she wanted to sell. Angela went full throttle opening her coffee shop (The Coffee Cup) and The Wine Cafe right next door.
Enter into this wine oasis with it’s sophisticated decor and atmosphere. The walls are lined with high quality locally sourced wines. This line up of wines also includes self service stations in which you can affordably taste different wines. You are issued a prepaid card and can pay more to get more. The great thing about self serve is you can control how much you want. Move to the back of the cafe and you are greeted by a beautiful sitting here, and a tasting room where private events and wine tasting classes are held.
The day I visited I took a wine tasting trip around the world that included wines from Oregon and South Africa. The owner Angela is super savvy and knowledgable on wines and taught us tips on how to properly sip the wine so that you can truly taste the flavors, how to tell if a wine is aged, and what foods pair well with different wines. Appetizers included everything from a veggie pasta skewer to an amazing Shrimp Ceviche. We rounded things off with the most amazing key lime macaroons.
While sipping we were also treated to much needed back massages from another local gem called “The Sanctuary Spa at Cedar Creek” nestled in the DoubleTree Hotel here in Fayetteville. They are amazing for couples massages and even a girls day at the spa.
After a wonderful evening evening of wine and appetizers we ended the evening on a sweet note with an array of cupcakes, cookies and macaroons from another local gem “The Sweet Palette“. Everything they made was SOOOO GOOD, but the winner of the evening was their chocolate cupcake with a cayenne spiced chocolate icing. It paired really well with a dessert wine. That didn’t stop me from gobbling down two of their beautiful super chewy buttery cookies.
Speaking of things to do, The Wine Cafe has a list of upcoming events to celebrate the month of love. In addition to special events you will want to be sure to always watch their FB page as they always do fun specials like 5 wines at $5 where you can pour $5 or less glasses of wine. You will also find events with live music pretty frequently.
The Wine Cafe honestly is the perfect meet up spot for a girls night, a date night, or even to bring friends when they come in town. If you are looking to put together a small FRG gathering, Retirement Party or any kind of intimate event –this would be the place. The Wine Cafe staff will put together an amazing spread to match your selection of wines and have all you leaving as newfound wine connoisseurs.
Visit the Wine Cafe website here and don’t forget to like them on FB and IG.