Tucked away on Coral Gables’ Miracle Mile is the new wine bar and restaurant Uvaggio. The cozy spot has garnered a lot of buzz because of its unique approach to wine and dining. Chat Chow TV sat down with Uvaggio’s Head Wine-O Heath Porter to learn more about the restaurant and its interesting take on the wine scene.

Uvaggio is part dining experience and part wine bar, carrying around 700 different bottles of wine, by 120 different labels, and prides itself on carrying uncommon wine varieties.

“Seems like everybody else wants to carry a lot of the same things, and that’s awesome if people want to go there and drink that,” Porter notes. “But I’d rather come here and try something I don’t drink sitting on my couch every night.”

The extensive wine program also features high-end bottles poured by the glass using a Coravin, a members only wine club, and wine tastings for people of all different levels.

As for the cuisine, Executive Chef and Top Chef alum, Bret Pelaggi, goes the untraditional approach and pairs the food with the wine — not the other way around. Creating interesting dishes like Braised Beef Short Rib with black licorice tea consommé and Octopus “Naranja Agria” that pair perfectly with wines on the menu.

Unlike many other wine-centric restaurants, Uvaggio doesn’t take itself too seriously. Uvaggio’s fun irreverence can be found throughout the restaurant, like its wine list separated by witty titles such as “Full Bodied, Plus Sized Wines” and “Juice Only I Would Drink” and Metallica soundtrack often heard playing in the background.

“Let’s just have fun. At the end of the day there is no ambulance coming if we screw up whatever we’re doing.” Porter adds. “It’s food, it’s booze, it’s wine, isn’t that we like?”