http://www.nytimes.com/2016/09/07/dining/rouge-tomate-restaurant-wine.html 2016-09-06 21:42:13 Rouge Tomate: Smaller Restaurant, Bigger Wine List After a two-year wait, a New York wine destination will reopen in Chelsea in a new guise. === For two years now, New York wine lovers have been restlessly tapping their feet, checking their watches and sighing heavily as they waited for word that Rouge Tomate would reappear. The restaurant, But this time, it’s for real. The With recycled wood, exposed brick and ceiling beams, the new Rouge Tomate will be “a peaceful place,” said Pascaline Lepeltier, the beverage director and a partner. “I just wanted a place where you could hang out, not too noisy, and with lots of direct light.” Ms. Lepeltier has assembled a crack beverage crew, including John Wilkinson, with whom she worked at Rouge Tomate; James Sligh, who was a sommelier at Pearl & Ash; and Linda Milagros Violago, who has worked in fine restaurants around the world, including Though the restaurant is smaller than the old place, Ms. Lepeltier has more room for wine storage. When it closed in 2014, Rouge Tomate had 600 to 700 bottles on its list. It will reopen with about 800, and Ms. Lepeltier expects the list to grow to 1,600 before long. The list was always deep in wines from the Loire Valley, Ms. Lepeltier’s home territory, but she plans to offer more from Italy, Australia, South America and Georgia. “I’m going to explore areas that I just kind of touched on before,” she said. Rouge Tomate will also have more older vintages. Around 90 percent of the wines will be from grapes grown organically or biodynamically. The restaurant, which emphasizes vegetables and healthful preparations, will be open for lunch and dinner seven days a week, with a smaller menu available between meals at the brass-topped bar (complete with phone-charging ports). While wine will be an emphasis, Rouge Tomate will also offer a carefully managed selection of cocktails, beer and cider as well as tea, coffee and fresh juices. Rouge Tomate Chelsea 126 West 18th Street, September.