Library Wine Bar & Bistro

Very romantic setting, especially for Valentines Day. We had the portugese beef and a filet. Both were excellent. Lobster and crab soup had lots of chunks, perfect blend of spice. Service was spot on. Bonus was dancing downstairs after dinner which made the evening…

Went here at least once a week in the summer and the food is amazing. The first time I went we were seated in the dinning room. The acoustics were horrible and even though it wasn’t that crowded the sound was deafening. We asked to move to the patio and it was a much better place to sit and relax. I ordered the fig pizza and it was to die for. The drinks were a little expensive but we’re very tasty. We had the chocolate mousse for desert and it was so creamy and delicious. 4 stars only because the indoor acoustics will make you go deaf.

The décor here is definitely very nice. The atmosphere is definitely a bit on the loud side, but luckily we were seated upstairs where it was a little bit quieter. The menu offers a large variety of options, many of which are fairly healthy or would only need slight modifications to make that status.
I’m a huge fan of fancy salads so was excited to try the Beet Endive salad, which I made into a meal by adding Tuna Steak to it — although initially hesitant when they brought it out due to a lack of volume, it was delicious and perfect for someone my size. My parents ordered the Library salad, which they both praised. Although none of us ordered entrees, the meats were all cooked as desired and so I believe that to be a good indication that their other menu items will be of a decent quality.
My only qualm with the restaurant was the service. Our waitress was polite, but not what I would call friendly. Service was a little slow, and at one point our waitress outright ignored me. My water glass was empty so I was trying to make eye contact with her for awhile, finally achieved it and motioned for her; she quickly diverted her eyes and continued on to the other tables without stopping back at ours once she was done. Needless to say, every time I finished my glass it was quite awhile before anyone came by to refill it, which is a bit of a pet peeve of mine.
Overall I feel like the menu is intriguing enough where I would be willing to sacrifice a little bit on good service, and will definitely go back again to try some other items.

Fun for a night out! The wine is excellent since its house wine is Gouveia there wines are wonderful! Your better off getting a bottle since they charge $ 7-​$ 8 a glass but at $ 25 for the bottle 3 of us were satisfied. We got salads and entrees and were very impressed! My salad was fresh and wonderful and the Portuguese nachos and Mac and cheese are amazing! It was very busy and the staff was friendly and attentive! Relax have a delicious night with friends or a date!

I can’t wait to come back here. The ambiance is beautiful and the seafood crusted salmon is to die for! I dream about it. Also had the chocolate mousse for dessert. It was so rich and creamy. I will be back with my of my friends.

First of all, the place is GORGEOUS, but the excellence doesn’t stop there. We ate lunch in the bar yesterday and our server was Megan, who was also the bartender. She was attentive and knowledgeable and made us feel right at home.
We started with an Earl Grey infused cocktail… OMG. To die for! I feel like I’ve been looking for a place like this forever.
For lunch we tried two of there specials, one was a chicken-​bacon melt with avocado, cheddar, and chipotle mayo on focaccia bread. So Yummy!
The other was a marinated shrimp and broccoli sauté served over tasty mashed potatoes with a lemon buerre blanc. The portion was huge and it was amazing.
All in all it was a great experience and I can’t wait to go back and try out dinner!

I feel like anything that the Gouviea family creates is perfect! Their winery in Wallingford is such an awesome space with a great view and perfect for large or small groups. Their wine bar in the heart of Wallingford is just as lovely. There were some drawbacks though. Let me start with the things that I liked. The space is beautiful, rich in history and much of the character and features in the original building still remain. We were even able to walk through the rest of the building and saw the original stage that was upstairs. We stood there just imagining what it was like one hundred years ago as major decisions were made or plays were performed. The food was pretty tasty. The flavors were exquisite. I had the salmon with a pomegranate reduction and yummy potatoes and veggies. The salmon was cooked perfectly. We also had the calamari for an app and it was good, not excellent though. The wait staff was very accommodating. We were seated up in the loft and the table next to us had a few too many martinis so they were being loud and obnoxious. We asked if we could be moved and they found us a nice table in the corner. They do have patio seating too! I think having some heat lamps out there may be a nice touch in the chilly months.
The bad — the whole space is very loud. I think it is due to the fact that it is such an open space so the noise resonates a whole lot. It’s not the best place for a quiet intimate dinner. The prices are a bit on the expensive side. The menu isn’t very extensive either.
They do have brunch and I’d love to go back to try that!
Also, they have rooms that you can rent out for parties.

I had the pork loin special with a glazed sauce… very tasty! Also had the Charcuteria board, great selection of cured meats.
Drinks were made well also! Ill be back this Friday!

I went to The Library Sunday morning for brunch. The place is very impressive inside, very big, has a nice luxurious feel. We sat at the patio outside. The waiter was very polite and attentive. We asked for bellinis to start, however per CT law, alcohol can not be served before 11am, and we were there at 10am.
I had crab egg Benedict with asparagus and home fries. The food was really good, but a little too bland for my taste, could use some salt which was not on the table. As soon as the clock hit 11am, the waiter brought us our drinks as instructed earlier ;)
I will definitely come back for dinners or happy hour, this is a very nice addition to our town.

I’ve been back twice since my original review. The second visit was out on the patio in Juneish and I again had the veggie panini. I ordered the red sangria and was a little disappointed — it tasted good but the fruit was chopped so small that I couldn’t tell what kind of fruit it was, and there was no ice in the sangria. My friend ordered a white sangria and there was no fruit at all. He ordered some sort of steak and when the waitress brought it out she apologized at how much sauce was on it (it was swimming)… I thought she should have asked the chef to replate it in order to have less sauce. Anyway — the food was still delicious and the waitress was really funny, and we took a long time hanging out on the patio without being pushed out, so I was still happy.
My third visit was just this past Friday (⁸⁄₇) and was part of an impromptu bar crawl, so we just stayed for one drink. I had the Widmer Bros Hefe Shandy and I don’t remember what my friend had, but the bartender was friendly. The bar was very busy for one bartender to handle and he seemed to be doing very well with it.
All in all, I still really enjoy coming here and would definitely recommend that anyone in the area checks it out.

Lackluster food in a chi chi environment. Perfect overpricing to impress a basic girl who likes pumpkin lattes.
Sat down at the bar and we were ignored. No eye contact, nothing, and I was trying. People next to us were served and we didn’t get acknowledged until the happy hour was over… A full 15 minutes. I wanted to ask the waitress to still extend happy hour prices, but my friend was paying as a birthday treat to me and she didn’t want me to make a fuss.
Local red wine was great (earning one star)
Décor and scene was lovely (earning a second star)
Food was lackluster. Our calamari was soggy as if it had been sitting waiting in the kitchen too long. Eggplant with Mozz came out a gummy mess as if frozen bits of it are microwaved and served. Spinach artichoke dip was yummy and satisfying pretty standard and hard to f-​up. I get trader joes frozen and microwave it to pretty similar results.
In general the space was beautifully done and I would suggest it for a corporate event, or wedding wherein the food needs to be mass produced, but for a sit down dining experience it’s pretty bad.

Serving some of the best Mediterranean & Portuguese food in New Haven county. Highly recommend coming for brunch or the bar at night. Lots of cougars at the bar at night, but hell — they have a piano in the lobby, they’re swanky.
Also, if you order Portuguese items, use the menu, if you order a ‘galhao’ the American waiters have no idea what that is, but its still damn good food. I really think the environment is one of the best in Wallingford.

Tapas was pretty good, but entres were awful. Some food was cold, others served at room temperature when they shouldn’t be. Portuguese steak was terrible meat and a sauce I pushed to the side. Service was also bad, slow delivery and a server with too many tables that checked us infrquently. Stay away.