The Eastside BloNo

The wine list at The Eastside BloNo stops you cold the moment you see the by-the-glass prices — we're talking $2 to $3.25 a pour, in a sit-down restaurant, in 2024. Either something is deeply wrong or this place genuinely does not want you to drink water. Turns out it's the latter, and that's a very good thing.

Fifty-eight labels is a respectable count for a mid-sized New American spot, and the list leans into a pan-European whites-forward approach that's more considered than the prices would suggest. You've got a Gruner Veltliner and a Verdejo Monte Blanco sitting next to a Riesling from Killerman's Run — that's not a grocery store wine buyer at work, that's someone who at least read a few wine books. The reds are leaner: Malbec, Merlot, a couple of blends including Col di Sasso and Sella Antica, a Grenache called Painted Scars, and a Zinfandel labeled Juvenile. There are real gaps — no Rhône, no serious Burgundy, no Italian reds beyond the blends — but for Bloomington, Illinois, this list punches above its weight class.

Sixteen options by the glass is generous, and the spread covers whites, rosé, and reds without defaulting entirely to Chardonnay and Cab. The Gruner Veltliner at $2.50 and the Grenache Painted Scars at $3 are the standouts — both are wines you wouldn't expect to see on a BTG list at any price, let alone at a price that barely covers the cost of a parking meter. Rotation doesn't appear to be a priority here, but when the baseline is this good, that's forgivable.