If you head to Mr Chester Wine Bar & Bistro's website, you'll be greeted with a simple, bold statement — "What a wine bar should be!". And we have to admit, whoever wrote that is bang on. Everything to love about wine bars, be it the ambient lighting, simple European fare, unpretentious staff and soft background jazz, they've got it. Oh, and the wine. They've got that too, thankfully, in barrel-loads.
The focus here is on Aussie and New Zealand winemakers, while a few from beyond our shores also make the list. It doesn't matter if it's a young gun trying to reinvent chardonnay (again!) or a seasoned winemaker who remembers the days when you couldn't get wine by the glass in Australia; if you're good enough, you'll make it on the list.
Like all good wine bars, the list is constantly evolving at Mr Chester Wine Bar & Bistro. Still, as we write this, some of the highlights of the whites include a Skipjack sauvignon blanc from Marlborough, a Mandi 2021 pinot grigio from the Murray Darling and a gorgeous grenache-blanc from Terra Alta, Italy. If you're keen on rosés, try its chilled blend of saparavi, sangiovese, verdelho and semillon. If red is more your vibe, look towards the Unico Zelo grenache blend for something medium-light, while a big hearty Barossa shiraz makes the list from Torzi Matthews.
And like all good wine bars in Brisbane, the food here is also next-level. And the options here are primarily classic Mediterranean dishes and share plates — think arancini with bacon and semi-dried tomato or the baked camembert with pistachio crumb and truffle honey for something small. There is also a range of pizzas, with the diavola on point — featuring tomato, fior di latte and soppressata. Pasta dishes include a gorgeous squid ink linguine, while there's just one dessert — a white chocolate cheesecake that is worth the visit alone. You can easily pop by Mr Chester Wine Bar & Bistro to simply have some dessert and a nightcap.
