Venice on the Woonasquatucket, Done Right
Downcity · Providence · Italian · Visit Website ↗
Reviewed by the RagingWine Tasting Desk · April 18, 2026
RagingWine reviewed Bacaro’s wine list and gave it The Reliable — RagingWine’s Vibe-Check rating. How RagingWine reviews wine lists →
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Wingman Metrics
The wine list at Bacaro lands exactly where you'd expect from a serious Italian restaurant in a candlelit brick basement — heavy on the boot, with Veneto, Piedmont, and Tuscany carrying most of the weight. It's a list built to flatter the menu rather than show off, and for a night of salumi and cicchetti, that's not a bad thing. The $$$-tier pricing signals this is not a casual Tuesday wine run.
The list runs 100–150 bottles deep with a clear editorial vision: Northern Italy is the star, and the producers lean toward the classics. Amarone della Valpolicella, Barolo, and Brunello di Montalcino are all present, which tells you the kitchen and the cellar are speaking the same language. What's less clear is whether there's any adventurous detour into lesser-known Italian regions — no mention of Etna, Campania, or Friuli suggests this is a safe, crowd-pleasing northern Italian lineup rather than a tour of the whole country. For the price point, you'd hope for a few curveballs, but the fundamentals are solid.
The by-the-glass program runs 12–18 options, which is respectable for a restaurant of this size and style. Prosecco almost certainly anchors the opening pour, which is the right call when you're serving Venetian tapas. Whether there's meaningful rotation or any skin-contact or orange wine poking through is unknown, but the range suggests enough options to drink well start to finish without committing to a bottle.
Prosecco — N/A
As an aperitivo anchor alongside the cicchetti and salumi boards, Prosecco by the glass is almost certainly the smartest entry point on this list — it's the right wine for the format and keeps your spend honest before you commit to a heavier red.
Amarone della Valpolicella
Most people at a casual Italian spot walk past the big reds, but Amarone at a place like Bacaro is worth the splurge — it's a concentrated, serious wine that earns its price tag in ways that a generic Chianti simply doesn't.
Barolo
Barolo on a restaurant list at this price tier almost always carries a punishing markup, and unless you know exactly which producer and vintage you're getting, you're likely paying $90–$130 for a bottle you could find at retail for $40–$60. Order it if you see a specific producer and vintage you recognize; otherwise, it's an expensive leap of faith.
Brunello di Montalcino + Mixed salumi
The savory, cured intensity of a salumi board needs a wine with enough structure and tannin to hold its own — Brunello's firm backbone and earthy character meet the fat and salt of the meats without getting swallowed up.
The Bottom Line
Bacaro is a reliable wine destination for anyone who wants a serious Italian list in a genuinely atmospheric Providence setting — just go in knowing the markup is real and come with a specific bottle in mind if you're ordering off the deep end. For a date night with cicchetti and a nice Veneto red, it absolutely delivers.
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Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
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Acceptable
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Crowd Pleasers
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Crowd Pleasers
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Deep & Eclectic
Steep
Varietal Specific
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Solid Range
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Set & Forget
Proper
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Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
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Crowd Pleasers
Fair
Basic Stemmed
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Set & Forget
Acceptable
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Solid Range
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
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