Cuvee

So I dropped by Cuvee last night. WOW — has that place gone down hill!
— I am fairly certain our waiter was high. A friend of mine ordered a Martini, and they brought it over in a milk glass of some kind — so I went up to the bar and got — you know — a martini glass for the Martini
— Door to Bathroom busted with no handle, one toilet busted, tile coming up.
— Cracked tile and trim busted off all over the restaurant, curtains removed.
— Place had like 15 people in it — a far change from other Saturday nights there. Vinted down the street was packed.
— Wine menu changed. They got like 5 reds you can get by the glass — the rest you have to buy the entire bottle.
I fully expect them to go out of business in 6 months — Great job new owner!

Very disappointing. First the door kept shutting from the wind and the workers had no idea people were being locked out. One time I actually got up and let someone in. The interior décor is set up like a night club for late 20 – 30 year olds. A few high tops, seats at the bar and a bunch of couches and chairs with small tables. There were only 2 servers so service was slow. We ordered the arugula pizza and it was super salty and oily like it was over dressed. Something that was supposed to be light felt so heavy. The cheese sauce that came with the pretzels was grainy. The highlight was the sauce on the cheeseburger slides, a nice thousand island sauce. Drinks were ok lots of variety for hard liquor but only a few draft beers but it felt like the cocktails were overly sweet. Not going back.

A little wine bar with a big ego. Sub-​par drinks, food and clientele, not to mention wine list. There are a lot of nice places to go in west Hartford, don’t waisted your time with Cuvée. When this establishment first opened it was wonderful but it has dropped to a much lower level, which as I understand may be due to new ownership. What a shame

Nice menu. Great spot for happy hour if you like wine or specials after work. Not sure I would go for dinner but happy hour is great.

Cuvée is a great spot for date night or fun girls night out. We had the hot wings which was very good and not too spicy; lobster Mac n cheese but they ran out of lobster lol so it was just a plain Mac n cheese still was delicious though. I also had some kind of champagne martini and I’ll give that a thumbs up it was sooo good. Also after 10pm they have a DJ that plays house music but I would suggest that the DJ mix it up with a lil RnB overall great night at cuvée

Stopped by at 8pm on a Saturday night and I was surprised to see it so empty. We stood at the hostess stand for close to 5 minutes before someone told us to sit wherever we wanted. We have been sitting in the lounge for about a half hour and would have left except we haven’t seen our waitress to bring our check. There are only 18 customers in the place and we have counted 7 staff. 4 behind the bar have done nothing but play on their phones.
No music playing. No cocktail napkins with the drinks. The staff seems more interested in talking to themselves or a couple of friends who dropped by than taking care of customers.
I overheard the bartender tell a story to his friend about a customer from the prior night. The story ended with him calling the customer a mother f — -r. Yes, I heard that right. He told the story twice.
We ordered the lobster sliders and the meat and cheese platter. The sliders were good. The fries were cold. The meat platter was fine.
As I’m typing this, someone must have realized they forgot to turn the music on. 8:45 and its on now.
Despite the fact there are 4 bartenders behind the bar, the waitresses are making their own drinks while the bartenders stand around or play with their phones. One of them hasn’t taken his nose out of his phone since we got here.
I came here about 2 years ago and it was totally different. I should have checked recent reviews before coming back. This place is a total disappointment. There are plenty of great options in Blue Back Square. This isn’t one of them.

Under the new ownership, there have been some disappointing changes. The one positive is that they are doing a much-​needed revamp of the interior of the bar. What used to be plush became pretty run-​down over the last few years. I do hope the interior becomes more upscale. You can watch the transformation on the upcoming Real Housewives of NY season 8 because the owner is from that show. (Although by the time it airs, I assume the renovation will be complete.)
I used to like coming here for 50% off the entire menu during happy hour. That’s no longer an option. Only certain dishes and drinks are available for happy hour now.
Also very disappointing is that this former «champagne room» no longer offers multiple choices of sparkling wine. That was my favorite thing ABOUT this place. The lack of offerings is surprising in a time that sparkling wine and champagne cocktails are increasing in popularity. They only had one prosecco which I find too sweet. It would be nice if they offered a dry Spanish cava.
My favorites when coming here are always the West Hartford roll and the Garden martini. The martini is vodka with strawberry purée and basil and lemon.
The online menu is not up to date. It still shows the old menu and states that happy hour is 50% off everything.

I only go to Cuvee once or twice a year so I don’t know when they changed their happy hour… but I don’t love it. It’s hard to love ANYTHING that shifts from 50% off the entire menu to a meager selection of wines, draft beers and cocktails. Still, beyond the HH menu, I used to love Cuvee for their extensive champagne selection and wonderful list of bubbly cocktails. This is basically gone, hastily replaced with a short list of cocktails and martinis. It’s fine but I’m not impressed, nor do I feel like this has any champagne focus any longer.

The Owner of cuvee is prejudice he was working behind the bar obviously because he was short staffed… Or else he wouldn’t had been behind the scenes. He was serving drinks to his «friends» free of charge. Then when I asked him if I can open a tab with credit card in hand, he told me he wasn’t a bartender, then I said well why are you serving drinks? Then he tells me because he’s the owner… Ok?! Bad for business right there! This is Not Manhattan or LA so why are you acting like your bar is slamming like that all I asked was is to open a tab all you had to say was ok let me open one for you but yet you insist on serving your ugly girlfriend who had a beak for a nose drinks versus opening up a tab for me
… New management really does suck and I don’t think I’ll be back and I’ll be sure to lety friends from NYC know not to come here for food or drinks because the owner works behind the bar and he’s a jerk

So disappointed ! Changes to the menu are a step backwards. Ordered the meet and cheese plate and one of the flat bread pizza both were not very good. Poor cheese selection on the plater the old one was much better! Flat bread came out cold and burnt around the edge and it was almost impossible to separate the slices. Extremely dissatisfied !!! This was one of our favorite places to do happy hour because of the half price apps and sushi ! The wine flights were our favorite and those are gone now too. Not to mention the entire restraint looks dirty and unkept. Chair arms are disgusting !! In need of a serous Bar rescue !!!
In all seriousness the couches and chairs are gross.
Please bring back the old apps and happy hour !!!

NEW MANAGEMENT: Cuve was my go-​to Friday happy hour spot for sushi and martinis. However, new management has changed everything; sushi is gas station grade AND MORE expensive, the classic Glacial Pear Martini was «missing ingredients» so they couldn’t even make it. I’m very disappointed with the new management. Should get one star but the waitress was great.

— Lovely place. It’s like a lounge I’ve always been looking for! Great music, comfortable seating, intimate lighting and great waitstaff. The drinks were very tasty, came quickly and their menu is very extensive. I would certainly recommended this place to everyone.

Painting in the bar all night during a Paint Nite with a friend, I was able to get a taste of Cuvée. It was unfortunately a not so great taste in my mouth after I finished my masterpiece.
The menus are not the same between the one on the website and the one in the restaurant. I had checked the cocktail list to see what I could have while painting, and planned on an espresso martini. When I arrived, however, it was not listed, but the bartender said she could try to make it anyway. After waiting a long time (about 20 minutes), I finally got my martini and saw it was almost transparent (not how an espresso martini should be). I tasted it and something was off about it. I brought it back during a brief moment of rest in the painting instruction to ask for another type of martini because it was not working with the espresso. The bartender was extremely nice and agreed that I should not drink it if it did not taste right to me. I then ordered what my friend got, a chocolate martini topped with whipped cream, and after another 20 minute wait got my first taste and found it was pretty good. I missed some of the painting instructions while waiting for it, though and my friend came over at one point to make sure everything was all right.
Overall, the cocktails seem decent, but not anything that I would really want or go out of my way for. Like the food, they are decently priced with specials during the notable happy hour. The food also seems a little limited to just finger-​foods; I understand the vibe it to have mainly cocktails and a little food, but it does not seem very balanced
The bartender on the night my friend and I painted was very hardworking and very kind. She made every effort to accommodate me and I appreciate it. She boosted my rating of Cuvée to the second star.
While its cocktails are not the best in the area and it took forever to get mine, Cuvée has good service. Because of the bartender on the night I visited, I am willing to give this place another chance and to try something different, though it will not be any time soon.

I was going to give this place 3-​stars, but the happy hour alone boosts it to 4-​stars. The food is pretty good… but the happy hour is 50% of EVERYTHING. That’s amazing!!! I managed to get two mixed drinks, a flat bread and sliders for $ 20. This place is a total win for the 5−7pm deal alone.

Three reasons why this is the best happy hour in WeHa: (1) 50% off everything — the entire menu (food, drinks, bottles, and even shots) — from 5 – 7 PM (2) that’s every day they’re open, even weekends and (3) you can make HH reservations, something not many restaurants allow.
Cuvee can’t brag about their food, which is decent but not mind-​blowing, or their service, which can often be slow, but they’re still excellent. Their servers put up with a lot of crap — huge groups splitting checks and squeezing in that one last huge ½ priced order before 7, so I can’t blame them for sometimes being slow.
I’ve been here a dozen times the last few years and also had a corporate event here. Never a bad experience. Never a stellar experience either, but always half off!
Overall — make a happy hour reservation and go for a half priced drink! You won’t regret it.

Cuvee has one of the most enticing happy hours in town: the whole menu is half off for 2 hours every day. Seriously, wow.
They are generous with their alcohol in the cocktails, so don’t be worried about that. Definitely be critical about what’s in the mix, though. The garden martini, for example, was too citrus-​y. But the Italian Kiss and Lady Godiva were excellent.
Best bang for your buck food-​wise were the sliders. The fries on the side alone were very substantive and delicious. The chicken pesto sliders were a little strange, not green at all. But it had some pesto essence and, again, was a great quantity for the price.
They get packed by 5:30 or 6. If you have a big enough party, definitely call and let them know, and you can get a stellar, comfy spot by the window.
If you can, get a seat looking toward the bathroom. Yes, that’s weird, but the line will get long quickly, and it’s great people watching.

Great place for happy hours. Good variety of drinks on the menu. I would highly recommend the Afternoon Cooler– very refreshing. As for food, I love the lobster Mac and cheese and the lobster sliders. The vibe is very cool. They have a live DJ that comestible daily at around 7. Personally I feel like this is a little unnecessary. Makes the place really loud and hard to have conversations.
The only down side to this place is that it’s quite pricy. Happy hour (5 – 7 PM Mon-​Fri) makes it reasonable (by reasonable I mean market price) as their whole menu is 50% off. You’re definitely paying for the vibe and atmosphere when you go here!

I’ve only been here for happy hour and although noisy and busy, it’s worth it. Everything is 50% off including cocktails, food, and wine bottles. Yes, even bottles.
The cocktail list is long and fun. If you are a fan of elderflower liqueur and gin you have to try the cucumber martini because trust me, it is delicious and one glass will work wonders. I’ve never had a problem with the food either but don’t be surprised if the meal doesn’t come out steaming hot since it is a busy kitchen.
Cuvee is a fun spot for post work hang-​out. You do have to call in advance to reserve a table or come right at 5:00. The service may not be the best during happy hour but don’t let that stop you.

It’s a total bummer that this great place that I used to go for epic happy hours with huge groups of friends has continually gone downhill. And it’s gone beyond, «Oh, they were a little off tonight, it will be better next time», because again and again, it’s disappointing. I want it to be better, but it never is. Things like, abysmally slow service. Potato wedges that are cold in the middle. 20 minutes to get a drink (even the food came out quicker). Requests for simple things like, silverware and menus being forgotten. Receiving a champagne cocktail WITHOUT CHAMPAGNE, and considering just drinking it anyway because it takes so freakin long to flag down a server.
I used to come in here all the time. Severs knew my name, my favorite cocktail and wine, and would check in before the end of happy hour to see if we wanted to place another order. Now, you can sit there for 2 hours and be totally sober, hungry, and annoyed.
I love the concept of a half off happy hour, and, when made correctly, they have some really nice drinks and small plates (I’ve always been a fan of the Arugala Flatbread). But it seems since new management and staff have come on board, the level of service is also half off.

I’d heard so much about the happy hour here, so I finally decided to try it out. I came a little after 5 on a Friday, so I was expecting it to be busy. It was actually less busy than I thought, although still very loud– the brick walls and layout don’t help with that. It seemed very lively, though, and I was greeted in a friendly manner right away.
I had wanted to sit in the bar area, but was told there was nothing available (I saw some open tables, so they may have been reserved). Instead I got to sit in one of the comfy chairs in the back, which was quieter anyway. It worked out well.
I was excited to find everything on the menu was half off; even bottles of wine or champagne. I’m not really a champagne person, but I can see this being a really great place for one such individual. There was not a great selection of red wine, but I found a bottle of Tempranillo I was happy with, especially for the reduced price. For some context as to how small the red wine list is, this was the most expensive red wine on the menu, and it was listed as $ 55/​bottle normally.
While everyone was friendly, I was shocked at how slow the service was. It was at least ten minutes to get water brought over, and then the bottle of wine we ordered took another ten minutes. The waitress was unsure of how to open the bottle and ended up breaking the cork in half. I didn’t mind, and gave her advice on how to get the second piece of cork out (I may have extensive experience opening bottles of wine :)). But I was then again surprised at how long it took to bring out a plate of cheese and a sushi roll, 2 cold items. It was almost 7 by the time we had finished those two plates, so we were just able to place a second order at half price before happy hour ended (and those actually did come out a bit faster).
While the food was good, I didn’t find it to be amazing. We had the Playboy sushi roll, and I thought the flavors were a little unbalanced (the cucumber almost overpowered the seafood and cream cheese, which is something cucumber is rarely able to do). The cheese plate was OK, but not good enough that I would have paid full price for it – the cheeses tasted like they may have come from a grocery store cheese kiosk. The potato wedges were a tad undercooked, and the lobster a bit mayo-​heavy (but still very tasty).
That said, for half price, the food was good enough to be a really good deal. If I had gone and paid full price, though, I would have been extremely disappointed.
Perhaps I need to stop by sometime and try some of the champagne cocktails I’ve heard so much about, and a few other menu items (the salads sounded pretty good).