Speaking off the toque: Jim McCray, proprietor and wine bar manager, divino Italian Restaurant and Wine Bar [1830 West Alabama, (713)807-1123].
Q. Do you think that drinking distilled spirits before a meal is detrimental to the dining experience? Is that why divino is a wine bar?
A. Yes, whiskey just obliterates your palate. You can’t taste anything for a while after drinking it. There is a reason it was used as a local anesthetic. And yes, we did not want to become a whiskey bar and all that goes with it. For instance, people tend to smoke, or smoke more, with stronger drinks. Then, part of our concept is to be a place where you can have a good bottle of wine with your food at a reasonable price. In Texas, if you have just a wine bar, the tax is 8.25 percent. If you serve hard liquor, you have to collect 14 percent sales tax on all your alcoholic beverage sales, including beers and wines.
This article appears in Mar 15-21, 2001.