Wine, Coffee Bar Comes to High Street

By Amber Lester Wednesday, March 31, 2010

During visits over the past 10 years, Carla Boyd has wished there were a place in Williamsburg where she and her fellow William and Mary Law School alumni could have a glass of wine and just catch up.

When Boyd couldn’t find what she sought, she decided to create it. Terra Coffee & Wine will open April 6 at High Street, behind the Plaza Azteca and next to Kilwin’s. Boyd left a career in law and her home in Baltimore to return to the Historic Triangle and pursue her vision of a restaurant that can transition from an espresso bar by day to a wine bar by night.

Guests entering on the side facing Movie Tavern will walk into the coffee bar, serving Illy espresso. The Illy brand is known for having one coffee blend available in three roast variations: normal, dark roast or decaffeinated. Boyd says her barista was trained by Illy representatives, who she describes as “purists.”

“They’re known for their precision,” she says. “They’re interested in quality.”

The coffee side of the 3,500-square-foot restaurant features a lounge area with free wireless Internet, allowing patrons to sip espresso while they work. For lunch, the restaurant will serve sandwiches and paninis.
Guests entering the wine side of the restaurant, facing Plaza Azteca, will first see a long bar and a wall lined with wine-dispensing machines.

The wine side of the restaurant has a dining room, where guests can share items from a menu of tapas, or small bites. During the day, customers can also access WiFi on that side of the room.

Boyd wants the décor to reflect the different sides of the restaurant, so the coffee bar is lined with hammered metal and white counters, while the wine side has green counters and dark wood accents. Terra, which means “earth” in Latin, has a color scheme of earth tones, with mint- and toffee-colored walls accented by chocolate-stained chairs and tables.

If the color scheme is relaxing, the atmosphere is meant to be social. Boyd worked with her staff to design a menu of small bites conducive to sharing. “It’s a good way to encourage groups…it’s not a formal atmosphere,” she says. She imagines customers popping in after a movie for a glass of wine and dessert.

Chef Troy Buckley, a graduate of the Culinary Institute of Pittsburgh, will be designing a menu that changes with the seasons. Boyd also has plans to host special themed meals, revolving around wine education or pairing with food. She has agreed to serve Kilwin’s chocolates with her wine, and plans to use their bricks of chocolate in desserts, such as pots de crème and crème brulee.

The wine dispensers will set the bar apart from other restaurants in the region, she says. The dispensers resemble mini wine fridges, temperature-controlled for red and white wines. Each dispenser holds four bottles, ranging in price, and offers a taste, a half-glass or a full glass of each wine.

To operate the dispensers, patrons will put money on a plastic card (resembling a gift card) and insert the card into a slot on the machine. A digital screen will then tell patrons how much money remains on the card and allow them to choose the type and amount of wine they’d like to try. Leftover money will remain on the gift card, which the patron can keep for the next visit.

“This is going to be a really nice feature for those who are not comfortable with wines,” Boyd says, adding that wine newbies and experts alike will have a chance to try new wines without breaking the bank.

During a tour on Tuesday, a bottle of Cupcake Chardonnay displayed in a dispenser was priced at $1.92 for a taste, $3.85 for half a glass and $8.46 for a full glass. That bottle will not be sold in the dispensers, but the bottle and the pricing were set up to train staff on the machines, Boyd said Wednesday.

A staff member will be on hand to answer patrons’ questions and monitor consumption so no one gets too intoxicated at the self-serve bar.
It was a gamble to leave her law career, but Boyd believes time has come for Williamsburg to have a good wine bar. “I would always visit wine bars in Baltimore and D.C and there was something warm about them. People felt like it was their neighborhood place,” she says. “There had to be some way to bring that flavor to this area.”